SolutionBase: Get a handle on managing Exchange with these three new tools from Microsoft
You may have to manually specify a global catalog server
The Microsoft Exchange Server Best Practices Analyzer Tool, Version 2.5
The Microsoft Exchange Server Best Practices Analyzer (EXBPA) has been around for quite a while now. However, the most recent version was released on the same day as the two tools that I have just discussed. In case you aren't familiar with the EXBPA tool, it is a utility that allows you to compare your Exchange Server's configuration against the configuration that's recommended by Microsoft. This allows you to check for potential performance or security related issues.
There have been at least a couple of significant changes since the original version of EXBPA was released. For starters, there was some controversy regarding some of the rules that the original version used to determine whether or not your server was running an optimal configuration. These issues have since been addressed, and this version of EXBPA contains the latest and most accurate set of configuration rules. Another enhancement is that version 2.5 of EXBPA is now designed to report configuration information to Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) servers. Even if you don't have a MOM server though, EXBPA can still be used as a stand alone management tool.
I'm not going to bore you by walking you through the EXBPA installation process. It basically just consists of downloading the utility, double clicking the downloaded file, and accepting an end user license agreement. What is important though is where you install the utility. Although you can install the EXBPA utility directly onto an Exchange Server, Microsoft recommends that you refrain from doing so. Server scans consume a large amount of CPU and memory resources.
As such, a scan could potentially deplete the Exchange Server of the resources that it needs in order to function properly. If you should decide to run EXBPA directly on an Exchange box, then I recommend that you only perform scans during non-peak operating hours and that you refrain from using that instance of EXBPA to scan other Exchange Servers in your organization.
You can access the EXBPA tool by selecting the Best Practice Analyzer Tool option from your computer's All Programs | Microsoft Exchange menu. When the EXBPA tool starts, the first thing that it will do is to check the Microsoft Web site for new versions. Although version 2.5 was released fairly recently, there is already an update available. The latest update includes a few bug fixes and adds support for various Exchange Server aware antivirus applications.
After checking for (and possibly downloading) updates, it's time for the main event. The EXBPA tool will ask you if you would like to select options for a new scan, or if you would rather view the results of a previous scan. For the purposes of this article, tell EXBPA that you want to select options for a new scan.
At this point, you will see a screen similar to the one that's shown above. Basically, what this screen is telling you is that in order for the EXBPA tool to work, it needs to be able to read data from a global catalog server. If the computer that you are using is in the same domain as the Exchange Server that you are scanning, you normally won't have any problems with this. If you are running the scan from outside of the domain though, then there is a chance that you may have to manually specify the name of a global catalog server and a set of authentication credentials.
The Microsoft Exchange Server Best Practices Analyzer (EXBPA) has been around for quite a while now. However, the most recent version was released on the same day as the two tools that I have just discussed. In case you aren't familiar with the EXBPA tool, it is a utility that allows you to compare your Exchange Server's configuration against the configuration that's recommended by Microsoft. This allows you to check for potential performance or security related issues.
There have been at least a couple of significant changes since the original version of EXBPA was released. For starters, there was some controversy regarding some of the rules that the original version used to determine whether or not your server was running an optimal configuration. These issues have since been addressed, and this version of EXBPA contains the latest and most accurate set of configuration rules. Another enhancement is that version 2.5 of EXBPA is now designed to report configuration information to Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) servers. Even if you don't have a MOM server though, EXBPA can still be used as a stand alone management tool.
I'm not going to bore you by walking you through the EXBPA installation process. It basically just consists of downloading the utility, double clicking the downloaded file, and accepting an end user license agreement. What is important though is where you install the utility. Although you can install the EXBPA utility directly onto an Exchange Server, Microsoft recommends that you refrain from doing so. Server scans consume a large amount of CPU and memory resources.
As such, a scan could potentially deplete the Exchange Server of the resources that it needs in order to function properly. If you should decide to run EXBPA directly on an Exchange box, then I recommend that you only perform scans during non-peak operating hours and that you refrain from using that instance of EXBPA to scan other Exchange Servers in your organization.
You can access the EXBPA tool by selecting the Best Practice Analyzer Tool option from your computer's All Programs | Microsoft Exchange menu. When the EXBPA tool starts, the first thing that it will do is to check the Microsoft Web site for new versions. Although version 2.5 was released fairly recently, there is already an update available. The latest update includes a few bug fixes and adds support for various Exchange Server aware antivirus applications.
After checking for (and possibly downloading) updates, it's time for the main event. The EXBPA tool will ask you if you would like to select options for a new scan, or if you would rather view the results of a previous scan. For the purposes of this article, tell EXBPA that you want to select options for a new scan.
At this point, you will see a screen similar to the one that's shown above. Basically, what this screen is telling you is that in order for the EXBPA tool to work, it needs to be able to read data from a global catalog server. If the computer that you are using is in the same domain as the Exchange Server that you are scanning, you normally won't have any problems with this. If you are running the scan from outside of the domain though, then there is a chance that you may have to manually specify the name of a global catalog server and a set of authentication credentials.
