I manage a small Windows 2000 network (50 users). We had the only DC experience a multiple hard drive failure. It also acted as our only Exchange server (5.5). We were able to bring it back online long enough to promote a new server (Windows 2003) to be the DC. We then rebuilt the old server, forgetting to demote it as a DC first, reinstalled OS & Exchange 5.5 using the same name for the server. Now the new DC is trying to replicate with it causing NTDS replication event errors and NtFrs event warnings. The old DC still is shown in Active Directory Sites & Services, but, of course, it does not see itself as a DC. It’s our ultimate goal to migrate Exchange 5.5 to Exchange 2003 on a new Windows 2003 server & retire the old server or reformat it & use it only as a file server. But we would like to clean up the meta data that is still in AD before.
I tried to use NTDSUtil but when you get to step 15 it warns that the server that caused the orphan meta data should be offline & never brought online again.
What should we do? Can we use dcpromo and promote the old DC to a DC & then demote it? Or will that add to the problem?
Can we migrate Exchange 5.5 to Exchange 2003, drop the old server online, wait & test that the new Exchange is working fine; then use NTDSUtil to clean up the meta data; reformat the old server & bring it up using a different name?
