Trying to compact Exchange 2003 database.

Hello everyone,

I have an Exchange 2003 (standard) server and my goal is to reduce the size of the database. Last weekend I used the ESEUTIL /D tool to compact the database and within 1.5 hours it made it to 10% completion. The utility ran for the next 8 hours and was still at 10%. No error messages had appeared which I was expecting to see. Due to time constraints I was forced to close the utility and restore mail service.

Has anyone used the ESEUTIL /D with success to compact the Exchange database? Am I using the right tool for this task? Is there a better method? With the weekend approaching I am planning another attempt at this.

Thanks in advance.