
None of the Stores on the Server Will Mount
If the problem is affecting all stores on a server, the good news is that most likely your stores are in good shape. You just need to find the common issue that is plaguing them all. Here are some of the more obvious issues to investigate.
Information Store
Is the Microsoft Exchange Information Store (MSExchangeIS) service running?
Can you successfully start the Information Store service if it is stopped?
If you cannot start the Information Store service, is the Microsoft Exchange System Attendant (MSExchangeSA) service started?
System Attendant
Is the Microsoft Exchange System Attendant service started?
Can you successfully start the System Attendant service if it is stopped?
If you successfully start the System Attendant service, make sure to start the Information Store service as well.
If you cannot start the System Attendant service, see Microsoft Knowledge Base article 245024, "XADM: How to Troubleshoot Exchange 2000 System Attendant Startup Failures" (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=3052&kbid=245024).
Anti-Virus Software
Anti-virus software comes in two flavors as far as Exchange is concerned: generic and Exchange-aware. If you are using generic anti-virus software (that is, software that is not Exchange-aware), make sure that you are not scanning your Exchange data directories. If your anti-virus software is Exchange-aware, see these Knowledge Base articles for more help: 285667, "XADM: Understanding Virus Scanning API 2.0 in Exchange 2000 Server SP1" (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=3052&kbid=285667); 328841, "Exchange and antivirus software" (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=3052&kbid=328841); and 823166, "Overview of Exchange Server 2003 and antivirus software" (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=3052&kbid=823166).
If the previous information didn't lead you to a solution and the System Attendant and Information Store services are both running, but none of your stores mount, try disabling your anti-virus software and then restart your Exchange server.
If disabling your anti-virus software does not solve the problem, you can try uninstalling your anti-virus software.
If your stores mount after disabling or uninstalling your anti-virus software, check with your anti-virus vendor and search the Microsoft Knowledge Base for any known issues with coexistence between your anti-virus software and Exchange.
Mount a Blank Database (Enterprise Edition Only)
If you are trying to isolate the problem and are not sure if the problem is with a particular database, you can try to mount a blank database. If you can successfully mount a blank database, you know that your existing database has a problem. When mounting a blank database, do not move your current database files, simply create a new database. If you have used all 20 of your allowed databases, you can create a database in a recovery storage group to do the test. If you are using a recovery storage group to test mounting a blank database, either restart the IIS Admin Service (IISADMIN) or wait 15 minutes before attempting to mount the new database so that the Active Directory® directory service caches are refreshed.