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Q241186: XADM: DirRep Bridgeheads Generate Unnecessary Notifications

Article: Q241186
Product(s): Microsoft Exchange
Version(s): winnt:5.5
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): exc55 kbExchange550preSP4fix kbExchange550sp4Fix
Last Modified: 11-NOV-2000

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Exchange Server, version 5.5 
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SYMPTOMS
========

Directory replication may take several hours on a large Exchange Server site
that has many servers if this site also has a directory bridgehead server with
many downstream sites attached to it.

At each replication interval, the bridgehead server can receive updates to (2 X
number of sites) directory contexts, which it has to pass on to the other
servers within its own site. These intrasite remote procedure call (RPC) updates
are serialized and queued. If there are n downstream sites and the bridgehead
has y servers in its own site, the bridgehead has up to (n X y X 2) directory
replication updates to send to its local site. The issue is that the bridgehead
always sends a change notification for all contexts to all servers in its site
even if there have been no directory changes in the remote sites. When you
multiply the number of updates by the replication pause interval between each
update, the whole process can take some time (several hours in extreme cases).

CAUSE
=====

The speed of directory replication can be affected by many factors; however, in
this particular case, the issue is caused by the fact that the notification
mechanism on the directory replication bridgehead servers generates
notifications for downstream naming contexts regardless of whether there are
changes or not. On large Exchange Server systems, this behavior can cause valid
directory changes to be queued behind a large number of notifications containing
no real information.

RESOLUTION
==========

To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Exchange Server 5.5.
For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft
Knowledge Base:

  Q191014 XGEN: How to Obtain the latest Exchange Server 5.5 Service Pack


STATUS
======

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Microsoft Exchange Server
version 5.5 . This problem was first corrected in Exchange Server 5.5 Service
Pack 4.

Additional query words:

======================================================================
Keywords          : exc55 kbExchange550preSP4fix kbExchange550sp4Fix 
Technology        : kbExchangeSearch kbExchange550 kbZNotKeyword2
Version           : winnt:5.5
Issue type        : kbbug
Solution Type     : kbfix

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