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The SMTP GlitchRetrySeconds registry value has been manually set

[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: 2007-01-17

The Microsoft® Exchange Server Analyzer Tool reads the following registry entry to determine if the default glitch retry wait time has been manually overridden:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\SMTPSvc\Queuing\GlitchRetrySeconds

If the Exchange Server Analyzer finds GlitchRetrySeconds to be present and configured, a non-default configuration message is displayed.

If Exchange 2000 Server or Exchange Server 2003 tries to route a message to a heavily loaded external SMTP system, it can receive a Server busy error. When this happens, Exchange goes into a state known as "glitch retry." In this state, Exchange waits 60 seconds before attempting to resend the message, and it repeats this process three times before resorting to other actions. If external SMTP servers are consistently busy, it is recommended that you reduce the glitch retry wait time to prevent mass message queuing.

Important

This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, make sure you understand how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For information about how to restore the registry, view the "Restore the Registry" Help topic in Regedit.exe or Regedt32.exe.

To revert to the default configuration

  1. Open a registry editor, such as Regedit.exe or Regedt32.exe.

  2. Navigate to:
    HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\SMTPSvc\Queuing

  3. In the right-hand pane, delete the GlitchRetrySeconds value. Alternatively, you can reduce the value for the GlitchRetrySeconds if mass queuing is occurring.

  4. Close the registry editor and restart the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) service for the change to take effect.

Before you edit the registry, and for information about how to edit the registry, read Microsoft Knowledge Base article 256986, "Description of the Microsoft Windows Registry" (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=3052&kbid=256986).