Sub-optimal Memory Settings

[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: 2007-02-15

The Microsoft Exchange Analyzer Tool queries the Win32_NTLogEvent Microsoft Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) class to determine whether an Event 9665 error has been logged for MSExchangeIS within the last 24 hours.

Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 performs an optimal memory configuration check when the store process starts. If the memory settings are not optimal, you will see event 9665 in Event Viewer.

If the Exchange Analyzer finds that an Event 9665 has been logged in the past 24 hours, the Exchange Analyzer then reads the data field of the event to determine which of the possible flags from the table below is present in the event.

Event Data Field Flag Exchange Server Analyzer Warning Displayed Exchange Server 2003 Issue

0x00000001

The /3GB switch is not set

The server is running Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server or Microsoft Windows 2000 Datacenter Server, has 1 GB or more of physical memory, but does not have the /3GB switch set in the boot.ini file.

0x00000002

The /Userva switch is not set properly

The server is running Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition, Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition or Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Datacenter Edition, has 1 GB or more of physical memory and the /3GB switch is set, but the /USERVA setting is not present in the boot.ini file.

0x00000004

The 'SystemPages' setting needs to be set.

The server is running any edition of Microsoft Windows 2000 Server and the SystemPages value in the registry is set outside the range of 24000 to 31000.

0x00000008

The 'SystemPages' setting needs to be reset

The server is running Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Standard, Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Enterprise, or Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Datacenter Edition, and the SystemPages value in the registry is set to something other than 0.

0x00000010

The HeapDecommitFreeBlockThreshold setting is not properly set

The server is running any edition of Microsoft Windows 2000 Server or Microsoft Windows Server 2003, and the HeapDeCommitFreeBlockThreshold value in the registry is set to something other than 0x00040000

Depending on the flag that is present in the Event 9665 data field, the Exchange Analyzer displays the corresponding warning from the above table.

These warnings indicate that the Exchange Server memory is set to a sub-optimal state.

To address these warnings, follow the guidance of the issue-specific Exchange Analyzer articles listed below:

For More Information

For more information about these issues, see Microsoft Knowledge Base article 325044, "How to troubleshoot virtual memory fragmentation in Exchange Server 2003 and Exchange 2000 Server" (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=3052&kbid=325044).

For more information about MSExchangeIS Event 9665, see the "Events and Errors Message Center: Event Details."