How to Fix MSExchDiscovery Error – Event ID 5000 in Exchange Server?

Let’s say, you have an Exchange Server 2016 installed, along with an Exchange Server 2010. As per Microsoft’s standards, both server versions can coexist. You haven’t faced any issue during the installation and configuration. However, when you checked the Event Viewer, you found the below error logged in the Application section, under MSExchDiscovery.

Microsoft.Exchange.Data.Storage.NotSupportedWithServerVersionException. The mailbox of user MSSExchDiscovery<guid> this is located on a server that is running version 14 can’t be opened on a server that is running version 15.

The issue can occur if the mailbox is on the older version of Exchange Server. When a user tries to log into Outlook Web Access and access the mailbox, they may get the same error message (like the given below).

X-OWA-Error: Microsoft.Exchange.Data.Storage.NotSupportedWithServerVersionException

From the error message, it seems that the mailbox is not supported by the version of Exchange Server serving the mailbox. This should not happen since both Exchange Servers can coexist. This issue would only be with one message. However, the error can also occur due to problems with the database, Exchange Server transaction logs, or configuration and network or resource issues.

Let’s see how to resolve this MSExchDiscovery error.

Possible Solutions to Fix the MSExchDiscovery Error

The first thing you can try is run the PrepareAD command. This will require the original Exchange Server ISO used for the installation of the Exchange Server. This involves the configuration and setup of the Active Directory and Schema. Running this command will refresh the configurations done and system accounts created during the installation.

The command can be executed as given below:

Setup.exe /PrepareAD

Note: Make sure the user is a member of the Enterprise Admin Security Group in the Active Directory.

Next, you can check the audit log of the server to understand if there were any issues reported before or if there was any change on the server. Sometimes, misconfiguration of backup software, anti-malware software, or any other third-party software can hinder the performance and operational function of the server and databases. This way you can trace back to when the server was working to when it stopped, with a full audit trial of what happened on the server. You can also check if any updates or configuration changes were made on the server.

You can check with the network team if there were any changes to the network configuration and firewall. If the servers are geographically distanced and connectivity between them is over a site-to-site VPN, then ports are important as well as the latency of the connection.

A health check of the server is suggested to ensure that the server is running properly, with regards to performance and operations.

You also need to check if the issue is with one mailbox only or with all mailboxes. If the issue is with one mailbox, you can try to move the mailbox to the newer server or to another database on the same server.

The other option is to move all the arbitration mailboxes to the newer server. To do this, you can use the combination of the Get-Mailbox and New-MoveRequest PowerShell commands in the Exchange Management Shell (EMS) as given below.

Get-Mailbox -Server <older server name> -Arbitration | New-MoveRequest -TargetDatabase <new server database name>

After this operation is complete, all the arbitration mailboxes will be moved to the new server. To confirm this, you can use the Get-MoveRequest command. Then, you can try accessing the mailbox via Outlook Web Access and see if the issue is resolved and check the Event Viewer for any possible issues.

To Conclude

If the move of the arbitration database fails, it means there is an underlying issue with the server. If there is an issue with the Exchange Server or the database is damaged, you need to re-install the server and restore from backup. If you restore from backup, any changes done since the last backup will be lost. You might re-install or create a new database but still not able to move the mailboxes as the database is damaged.

In such cases, it is suggested to take the help of a professional Exchange Server Recovery tool, like Stellar Repair for Exchange. With this tool, whatever happens to the Exchange Server, you can rest assured that you can recover user mailboxes, archive mailboxes, shared mailboxes, disabled mailboxes, and public folders, and export them directly to a live Exchange Server database, with no data loss. It requires less resources and less administrative efforts. This means that the recovery process will take less time and less money. You also use Stellar Repair for Exchange as a migration tool to export EDB data to Office 365.

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About The Author

Shelly Bhardwaj

I am a Product Consultant and is associated with Stellar Data Recovery from last 8 years. I write about the latest technology tips and provide custom solutions related to Exchange Server, Office 365, MS Outlook, and many other Email Clients & different flavors of OS Servers. Read More