Invalid Recipient Update Service Server Designated

[This topic is intended to address a specific issue called out by the Exchange Server Analyzer Tool. You should apply it only to systems that have had the Exchange Server Analyzer Tool run against them and are experiencing that specific issue. The Exchange Server Analyzer Tool, available as a free download, remotely collects configuration data from each server in the topology and automatically analyzes the data. The resulting report details important configuration issues, potential problems, and nondefault product settings. By following these recommendations, you can achieve better performance, scalability, reliability, and uptime. For more information about the tool or to download the latest versions, see "Microsoft Exchange Analyzers" at https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=34707.]  

Topic Last Modified: 2008-05-14

The Microsoft Exchange Analyzer Tool queries the Active Directory directory service to determine the value of the msExchAddressListServiceLink attribute for each Recipient Update Service object in the directory. The msExchAddressListServiceLink attribute is a link from the address list service to an Exchange Server computer that is running the Recipient Update Service.

The Exchange Analyzer then queries the CIM_Datafile Microsoft Windows® Management Instrumentation (WMI) class to determine the value of the Version key for the Address Book View and Dynamic Groups Service (abv_dg.dll) on the identified Exchange Server computers. The Version WMI key indicates the build number for this file.

If the Exchange Analyzer finds that the build number for the abv_dg.dll file on any of the identified computers starts with 08, an error is displayed.

This error indicates that the server running the Recipient Update Service is running Exchange Server 2007.

The Recipient Update Service is a component of the Exchange System Attendant service found in Exchange 2000 Server and Exchange Server 2003. The Recipient Update Service for Exchange 2000 and Exchange 2003 creates and maintains Exchange-specific attribute values in Active Directory. This functionality is handled by the recipient creation process in Exchange 2007 and the legacy Recipient Update Service will not process updates if running on an Exchange 2007 server.

To address this error, designate an Exchange 2000 Server or Exchange Server 2003 computer to host the Recipient Update Service.

To designate an Exchange 2000 Server or Exchange Server 2003 to host the Recipient Update Service

  1. Open Exchange System Manager.

  2. Under Recipients, click Recipient Update Services. In the right navigation pane, right-click the appropriate instance of the Recipient Update Service, and then click Properties.

  3. On the General tab, under Exchange Server, click Browse, and then specify a new, Exchange 2000 Server or Exchange Server 2003 server to run this Recipient Update Service instance.

  4. Click OK, and then click OK again for the change to take effect.

If you want to remove the last legacy Exchange server from your organization and completely remove the Recipient Update Service, follow the guidance in the Exchange Server 2007 product documentation, "How to Remove the Last Legacy Exchange Server from an Organization" (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=119613).