Moving Transaction Log Files and Database Files

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In Exchange Server 5.5, Microsoft provided the Microsoft Exchange Optimizer, a graphical wizard that enabled the movement of databases from one location to another. In Exchange 2000 Server, this has become a manual process that requires careful attention on your part as you move your files. Because all of the stores reference the same set of transaction logs, you can't move a single store in a storage group to another location without moving all of the other stores along with it. However, you can move individual files within a database to a separate location, which we will discuss in just a moment. When you attempt to move either the transaction log file location for a storage group or the stores within a storage group, you'll see the warning message shown in Figure 11-19, which will warn you that your current backups will be useless after the move. The reason moving a database invalidates current backups is that the transaction logs that have been backed up have the database path hard-coded in their headers. If you move a database, the headers in the backed-up copies of the transaction logs will still point to the old location for the database. Thus, a recovery process won't work because it won't be able to find the database that the transaction logs were supporting. See Chapter 2 for more information on this topic.

Figure 11-19. Warning message that you see when you attempt to move a database.

Since Microsoft recommends that your transaction log and stores be held on different spindles, you can relocate your transaction log files, your store databases, or both by using the General tab of the property sheet for the storage group in question (refer back to Figure 115). Simply select the new location where you want the files or databases to reside, and the following happens:

1. All of the stores are dismounted.
2. The selected files or databases are moved.
3. The stores are remounted.

As we mentioned a moment ago, you can select a store's database files to reside in two different places. To relocate a store's database files, use the Database tab on the store's property sheet (refer back to Figure 11-9). First dismount the store, and then enter the new directory location for the database files. You are not required to place them both in the same location. And, as we mentioned earlier, you can host databases on a volume mount point. Once you've chosen the new directory location and selected OK, the databases will be moved and Active Directory will be updated. This action also updates the headers in the transaction files automatically. The store should mount as it normally would.