I want to uninstall ESA - what are my options?

Category: How do I?
Date: 01 Feb 2011
Product: Exchange Server Archiver
I want to uninstall ESA - what are my options?

First of all, you need to ask yourself what you want to do next:

o Do you want to use another archiving solution?
o Do you want to migrate to another version of Exchange?
o How long do you have to decide?

Secondly, there is no urgency, you can choose to continue using ESA, or at any time, you can stop archiving your messages with ESA. If you choose to stop using ESA, your users will still be able to access archived messages and view them with the Outlook add-in. Therefore, if you are considering an alternative archiving solution, you can investigate the solution fully, whilst keeping your customers happy.

1) If you want to Migrate to Exchange 2010:

Note: Before migrating to Exchange 2010, back up all configuration data and make a record of all settings.

- ESA is fully compatible with Exchange 2010, enabling you to migrate your Exchange Server, while keeping your archived messages. You can access your archived messages as normal, even if you are no longer archiving them. For further details, refer to the following documentation:

o Upgrading Exchange Server when using Exchange Server Archiver http://www.red-gate.com/supportcenter/Content?c=Exchange_Server_Archiver%5carticles%5cESA_Migrating_Exchange_2003_to_Exchange_2007.htm&p=Exchange%20Server%20Archiver

o Upgrade Exchange 2007 to Exchange 2010 http://www.simple-talk.com/sysadmin/exchange/upgrade-from-exchange-2007-to-exchange-2010---part-1/

o Upgrade Exchange 2003 to Exchange 2010 <http://www.simple-talk.com/sysadmin/exchange/upgrade-exchange-2003-to-exchange-2010/

- If you prefer to migrate consolidated mailboxes, you have two options:

  i. Option 1:

    1. Archive all messages for a specific mailbox
    2. Export messages to a PST file using Red Gate's PST Export utility ftp://support.red-gate.com/patches/ESA/PSTExport.zip (PST files are exported in 32bit)
    3. Migrate the mailbox to Exchange 2010
    4. Import the PST file in to the Exchange 2010 archived mailbox

  ii. Option 2:

    1. Copy back archived messages for a group of mailboxes
    2. Migrate the mailboxes to Exchange 2010
            For this option, it is recommended that you only migrate a few mailboxes at a time, enabling you to monitor the space taken on your Exchange server and manage the data load.

2) If you want to use another archiving solution.

First, choose whether to consolidate all your messages:

- If you want to consolidate your users' messages, do one of the following:

o Use the copy back function of ESA, which is used to copy previously archived messages back to the Exchange server. You can
then re-archive the messages with your new solution. If you are concerned about space on your Exchange server, you can copy back one group at the time, and then archive using your new solution. This will free up space on the Exchange server, enabling you to copy back and archive another group.

o Export the archived messages as a PST file. You can then manage the messages with your new archiving solution.

- You may not want to consolidate your users' messages, therefore leaving the archived messages where they are.

For example, you want to use a new archiving solution, but you have a specific retention policy and consolidating your messages would be a concern. In this case, you might want to use the new archiving solution, but at the same time keep the archived ESA messages. You can then, at a later date (if required), delete the ESA store without having to worry about migration.

Note that all archived messages can be accessed via UAAS by your users.

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Do you have any questions about the copy back feature?
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How do I calculate the space required in Exchange (as single-instance storage is lost)?

- There is no real way of doing this, apart from processing small groups of mailboxes at a time and monitoring the space. You do not have to worry about SIS, as the SIS ratio tends to be fairly low in Exchange.

Do I need to do this at the weekend - what is the performance effect on Exchange?

- The effect on performance depends on your configuration, and the relative performance of the ESA box and the Exchange servers. You do not have to perform the copy back feature out of hours, but as usual, it is best to try first and monitor the progress.

Can I use the mailbox at the time of unarchiving (that is, restoring messages to the state before archiving)?

- Yes.

Will the size of the Exchange log become too large to manage?

- This should not be a problem, but all configurations are different. It is recommend that you perform your own tests to see what size the log becomes; doing this group-by-group, should mitigate any adverse effects.

What is the effect on the end user?

- There should not be any effect on the end user. However, after copy back, you will probably need to uninstall the ESA add-in, which will mean that your users will have to use the Outlook search again.