Administering Recipient Update Services

Recipient Update Services, also known as RUS, are used to apply SMTP domains to recipients residing in domains where Exchange Server 2003 is not installed. The RUS is also responsible for managing and maintaining address list membership and updating address changes to ensure that accurate information is available at all times.

When installing Exchange Server 2003, each Exchange organization is installed with a default RUS. When installed, the default service contains two individual services. One is responsible for managing mail addresses and lists at the enterprise level, and the other is responsible for doing so at the domain level.

When working with multidomain environments, it is not always cost-effective or feasible to install multiple Exchange Server 2003 systems to support small amounts of users in each domain. RUS can assist in providing email functionality to accounts that belong to other domains in the Active Directory forest.

Understanding Recipient Update Services

The Recipient Update Services in Exchange Server 2003 are responsible for providing SMTP domain email functionality within and beyond the default domain where the Exchange server is installed. This means that administrators can now prepare and mail-enable accounts in additional domains without actually installing Exchange Server 2003 directly into the domain.

Managing Recipient Update Services

To create, modify, and delete a RUS, the administrator must posses the Exchange Full Administrator role in the Exchange organization where the service is being managed.

In addition, any Exchange server services in additional domains will be granted permission to modify Exchange properties in the domain being serviced by the RUS.

Another key function of RUS is to provide and replicate accurate and detailed address list information to other domains in the Active Directory forest.

Each RUS can also be configured to replicate information on a predefined schedule to provide optimal network performance and avoid bandwidth saturation when replicating changes across WAN links.

Deploying Recipient Update Services

Additional Recipient Update Services can be created to provide support in domains both with and without Exchange Server 2003. Most important, understanding the requirements for creating a RUS can avoid any problems when mail-enabling recipients in another domain.

To create a RUS to provide support in a domain where Exchange is not installed, the domain must first be prepped to provide Exchange Server 2003 support:

1. From a domain controller in the domain without Exchange, insert the Exchange Server 2003 CD-ROM into the CD drive.

2. Click Start, Run from the Start menu on the Windows domain controller.

3. The domain where email functionality will be enabled must be Domainprep before the RUS can be created. Using a domain administrator account, enter D:\I386\Setup.exe /domainprep in the Run command dialog box (D: represents the drive letter of the CD-ROM drive on the domain controller).

NOTE

For more information on the Domainprep task, see Chapter 3, "Installing Exchange Server 2003."

After the domain has been prepared for Exchange Server 2003, a RUS installation is the same for domains adding additional services and domains without Exchange Server 2003. To establish a RUS to provide email support to the domain members , create the service for the domain by following these steps:

1. Open the Exchange System Manager and select the RUS container.

2. On the Exchange System Manager menu, select the Action option and click New, Recipient Update Service.

3. On the New Object Recipient Update Service dialog box, click Browse. Select the domain where the recipient update service will function. Click OK when complete.

4. On the second New Object Recipient Update Service screen, select the Exchange server responsible for servicing the domain. Click the Browse button to open the Active Directory Search tool, and select the Exchange server providing the service. Click the OK button to return to the New Object screen, and select Next to continue.

5. Review the information provided to ensure that the configuration is correct, and select Finish.

Managing Recipient Update Services

RUS can be managed in multiple ways to help with server performance and network bandwidth. As an organization becomes larger and server performance, availability, and even replacement become a factor, services and communication can be modified on the RUS to use other domain controllers and Exchange servers in the forest and domain.

Service can also be scheduled to replicate at nonpeak network traffic hours, to avoid bandwidth issues and network performance issues. In addition to scheduled replication, changes and updates to the address list can be pushed manually by administrators to force update changes.

Performing a Manual Update with Recipient Update Services

Also, when applying changes to the address list, administrators can push changes and update directory information directly from the Exchange System Manager, ensuring that updates are processed immediately. To force a recipient update manually, complete the following steps:

1. From the Exchange System Manager, select the RUS responsible for providing the update needed.

2. On the Exchange System Manager menu, select Action, Update Now. This manually forces the system's update to other Global Catalogs and domains in the forest.

Setting and Configuring an Update Schedule

When a RUS is created, it must replicate changes with other domains to ensure that the address list and email addresses are applied and viewed correctly and that the information is accurate and always up-to-date. To accomplish this, each RUS is configured with an update schedule that is also created when the service is created.

By default, the replication schedule is set to run every hour . However, the replication schedule is fully configurable and can be changed to meet network and organizational needs.

Administrators might modify the default schedules for several reasons. For example, changes to the address list need to be replicated sooner than every hour in some cases.

Things to Know About Scheduling

When custom schedules are configured, each update is run at the beginning of the schedule block configured. Allow enough time for the address list to update before the next replication occurs.

Important : When the Never Run schedule option is selected, no changes or modifications to address lists and email addresses are applied. This is true even in the domain that the recipient update service is servicing.

Using the Update Interval Selections drop down box, preconfigured Exchange replication schedules can be selected and configured to provide accurate replication.

To modify the default schedule, open the Exchange System Manager and select the RUS where the schedule will be modified. To change the replication schedule, complete the following steps:

1. Scheduling options are located on the properties page of the RUS. To open the RUS properties, select the Action option from the Exchange System Manager menu and select Properties.

2. To configure a new update schedule, select a preconfigured schedule from the Update Interval drop-down menu or click Customize to create a custom schedule.

3. After the schedule has been configured, select Apply to save the changes and close the properties of the RUS.