Edge Transport server cloned configuration

Applies to: Exchange Server 2013

Edge Transport servers store their configuration information in Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services (AD LDS). You can install more than one Edge Transport server in the perimeter network and use a DNS round robin to help balance network traffic among the Edge Transport servers. Round robin is a simple mechanism used by DNS servers to share and distribute loads for network resources.

To ensure all Edge Transport servers use the same configuration information, use the provided cloned configuration scripts to duplicate your source server's configuration on a target server.

Cloned configuration is used to deploy new Edge Transport servers based on a configured source server. Source server configuration information is duplicated and then exported to an XML file. The XML file is then imported to the target server.

This topic provides an overview of the cloned configuration process. For detailed steps about configuring your Edge Transport servers using cloned configuration, see Configure Edge Transport server using cloned configuration.

Cloned configuration and EdgeSync

Run the EdgeSync process after you import the cloned configuration. To perform recipient lookup and message security tasks, the Edge Transport server requires data that resides in Active Directory. EdgeSync is a collection of processes run on an Exchange 2013 Mailbox server to establish one-way replication of recipient and configuration information from Active Directory to the AD LDS instance on an Edge Transport server. EdgeSync copies only information required for the Edge Transport server to perform anti-spam tasks and information about connector configuration required to enable end-to-end mail flow. EdgeSync performs scheduled updates so the information in AD LDS remains current.

Cloned configuration doesn't duplicate a server's Edge Subscription settings. The certificates used by EdgeSync aren't cloned. You must run the EdgeSync process separately for each Edge Transport server. EdgeSync overwrites any settings included in both the cloned configuration information and in EdgeSync replication information. These settings include Send connectors, Receive connectors, accepted domains, and remote domains.

Cloned configuration process

The cloned configuration process consists of three steps:

1. Export the configuration from the source server.

   Run the ExportEdgeConfig.ps1 script (located in %ExchangeInstallPath%Scripts) to export the source server's configuration information to an intermediate XML file.

2. Validate the configuration on the target server.

   Run the ImportEdgeConfig.ps1 script (located in %ExchangeInstallPath%Scripts). This script checks the existing information in the intermediate XML file to see whether the exported settings are valid for the target server and then creates an answer file. The answer file specifies the server-specific information used when you import the configuration onto the target server. The answer file contains entries for each source server setting that isn't valid for the target server. You can modify these settings so that they're valid for the target server. If all settings are valid, the answer file contains no entries.

3. Import the configuration on the target server.

   The ImportEdgeConfig.ps1 script uses the intermediate XML file and the answer file to clone an existing configuration or to restore the server to a specific configuration.

Step 1: Export the configuration from the source server

After you install and configure the Edge Transport server role, run the ExportEdgeConfig.ps1 script (located in %ExchangeInsallPath%Scripts). This script retrieves the source server's configuration information and stores the information in an intermediate XML file.

The following information is exported from the source server and stored in the intermediate XML file:

• Transport service-related information and log file path information:

  • ReceiveProtocolLogPath
  • SendProtocolLogPath
  • MessageTrackingLogPath
  • PickupDirectoryPath
  • RoutingTableLogPath

• Transport agent-related information, including status and priority settings of each transport agent.

• All Send connector-related information. If any Send connectors are configured to use credentials, the password is written to the intermediate XML file as an encrypted string. You can use the -key parameter with the ImportEdgeConfig.ps1 and ExportEdgeConfig.ps1 scripts to specify the 32-byte string to use for password encryption and decryption. If you don't use the -key parameter, a default encryption key is used.

• Receive connector-related information. To modify local network binding and port properties, you must modify the configuration information in the answer file that's created in the validate configuration step.

• Accepted domain configuration.

• Remote domain configuration.

• Anti-spam features configuration settings:

  • IP Allow list information. Only IP Allow list entries that were manually configured by the administrator are exported.
  • IP Block list information.
  • Content filter configuration.
  • Recipient filter configuration.
  • Address rewrite entries.
  • Attachment filter entries.

Step 2: Validate the configuration on the target server

The target server is an Exchange 2013 server that has a clean installation of the Edge Transport server role. First, run the ImportEdgeConfig.ps1 script (located at %ExchangeInstallPath%Scripts) on the target server to validate the existing information in the intermediate XML file and to create the answer file. The answer file specifies the server-specific information used when you import the configuration onto the target server. The answer file contains entries for each source server setting that isn't valid for the target server. You will need to modify these settings so that they're valid for the target server. If all settings are valid, the answer file contains no entries. The intermediate XML file can be used for different target servers. The answer file is specific to a target server.

The ImportEdgeConfig.ps1 script (located at %ExchangeInstallPath%Scripts) performs the following tasks:

• Verifies that the data paths and log paths can be created on the target server. If the paths can't be created, a blank path is inserted into the answer file.
• For each Send connector in the XML file, the script adds a blank entry for the source IP address in the answer file.
• For each Receive connector in the XML file, the script adds a blank entry for the local network bindings in the answer file.

You will need to manually modify the answer file to provide the following information about server-specific settings:

• Fill in the data paths and log paths. If these paths are left blank in the answer file, the paths configured in the intermediate XML file will be used in the next step when you import the configuration onto the target server.
• For each Send connector entry, fill in the source IP address. If this field is left blank, an error will occur in the import configuration step.
• For each Receive connector entry, fill in the local network bindings. If the local network bindings are left blank, an error will occur when you try to import the configuration onto the target server.

Step 3: Import the configuration onto the target server

You can perform this step on any target server to clone the configuration of an existing Edge Transport server or to restore the server to a specific configuration. Run the ImportEdgeConfig.ps1 script (located at %ExchangeInstallPath%Scripts) to validate and import the new configuration. After you run this script, the target server's configuration will match the settings in the intermediate XML file and the answer file.

This step uses the server-specific information provided in the answer file. If a setting isn't specified in the answer file, the data in the intermediate XML file will be used. Before the script modifies the configuration, the script validates the data in the intermediate XML file and the answer file.

Import configuration modifies the following target server configuration settings:

• The transport agent configuration is modified.
• The existing connectors on the target server are removed, and the connectors present in the intermediate XML file are added.
• The existing accepted domains are removed, and the accepted domain entries in the intermediate XML file are added.
• The existing remote domains are removed, and the remote domain entries in the intermediate XML file are added.
• The existing IP Allow list entries are removed, and the IP Allow list entries in the intermediate remote domains file are added.
• The existing IP Block list entries are removed, and the IP Block list entries in the intermediate remote domains file are added.
• The following anti-spam configuration is cloned to the target server:
  • Content filter configuration
  • Recipient filter configuration
  • Address rewrite entries
  • Attachment filter entries

Transport configuration information

The settings of the transport configuration object define server-wide email transport settings for an Edge Transport server. When you import the intermediate XML file to the target server, all transport configuration object settings except the following are imported:

• General names and creation dates from the exported XML file

• Send connector information

• Receive connector information

• Attachment filter entries

• The MaxDumpsterSizePerStorageGroup attribute entry

After the import process is complete, you may also configure the settings by using the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet. For more information, see Set-TransportConfig.

The attributes in the following table are associated with the transport configuration object and the default values. You can configure this object on both Mailbox servers and Edge Transport servers. However, many attributes apply only to the Transport service on Exchange 2013 Mailbox servers. Configuring these attributes on an Edge Transport server will have no effect.

Transport configuration attributes and default values