Topic Last Modified: 2006-10-06

The Microsoft® Exchange Server Analyzer Tool queries the Internet Information Services (IIS) metabase for the value of the QueueDirectory attribute of each Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) virtual server instance.

The Exchange Server Analyzer then counts the number of files in the queue folder that is specified for each SMTP virtual server.

If the Exchange Server Analyzer finds that there are 50,000 or more files in the queue folder for an SMTP virtual server, the Exchange Server Analyzer displays a warning.

If the Exchange Server Analyzer finds that there are 90,000 or more files in the queue folder for an SMTP virtual server, the Exchange Server Analyzer displays an error.

This warning or error means that there is a buildup of messages that the SMTP virtual server instance must process. The warning or error indicates a significant performance issue or outage on the server, because the server can no longer deliver the incoming mail in a timely manner. The following conditions can cause this delay:

To address this issue:

To verify the SMTP service is started
  1. Open the Services Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap-in.

  2. In the right pane, scroll down to the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) service and double-click it. This will display the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) Properties dialog box.

  3. Verify the value in the Startup type drop-down menu is set to Automatic.

  4. Click Start to start the System Attendant service.

  5. Click OK to save the changes and close the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) Properties dialog box.

  6. Close the Services snap-in.

For more information about how to troubleshoot SMTP queues, see the following Exchange resources: