Overview of Services Installed by Exchange Setup

Applies to: Exchange Server 2010 SP3, Exchange Server 2010 SP2

Topic Last Modified: 2012-06-21

During the installation of Microsoft Exchange Server 2010, Setup runs a set of tasks that install new services. A service is a background process that can be launched during operating system startup by the Service Control Manager in Microsoft Windows. Services are executable files designed to operate independently and without administrative intervention. A service can run using either a graphical user interface (GUI) mode or a console mode.

Services aren't new to Exchange 2010. All previous versions of Exchange included components implemented as services. Each server role includes services that are part of, or may be needed by, the server role to perform its functions. Although Setup installs all services whether they're immediately needed or not, some services only become active when specific features are used.

The following table lists by name and by short name the various services installed by Exchange 2010. Also included is a description of each service, the server role that installs the service, and whether the service is required or optional. In the table, optional means that the service is installed by Setup, but you can disable it if you determine that the function provided by the service isn't needed by your organization.

Services installed by Exchange Setup

Service name	Service short name	Security context	Description and dependencies	Default startup type	Server roles	Required (R) or optional (O)
Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology	MSExchangeADTopology	Local System	Provides Active Directory topology information to Exchange services. If this service is stopped, most Exchange services are unable to start. This service has no dependencies.	Automatic	Mailbox, Hub Transport, Client Access, Unified Messaging	R
Microsoft Exchange ADAM	ADAM_MSExchange	Network Service	Stores configuration data and recipient data on the Edge Transport server. This service represents the named instance of Active Directory Lightweight Directory Service (AD LDS) that's automatically created by Setup during Edge Transport server installation. This service is dependent upon the COM+ Event System service.	Automatic	Edge Transport	R
Microsoft Exchange Address Book	MSExchangeAB	Local System	Manages client address book connections. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service.	Automatic	Client Access	R
Microsoft Exchange Anti-spam Update	MSExchangeAntispamUpdate	Local System	Provides the Microsoft Forefront Protection 2010 for Exchange Server anti-spam update service. On Hub Transport servers, this service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service. On Edge Transport servers, this service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange ADAM service.	Automatic	Hub Transport, Edge Transport	O
Microsoft Exchange Credential Service	MSExchangeEdgeCredential	Local System	Monitors credential changes in AD LDS and installs the changes on the Edge Transport server. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange ADAM service.	Automatic	Edge Transport	R
Microsoft Exchange EdgeSync	MSExchangeEdgeSync	Local System	Connects to an AD LDS instance on subscribed Edge Transport servers over a secure LDAP channel to synchronize data between a Hub Transport server and an Edge Transport server. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service. If Edge Subscription isn't configured, this service can be disabled.	Automatic	Hub Transport	O
Microsoft Exchange File Distribution	MSExchangeFDS	Local System	Distributes offline address book (OAB) and custom Unified Messaging prompts. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology and Workstation services.	Automatic	Client Access, Unified Messaging	R
Microsoft Exchange Forms-Based Authentication	MSExchangeFBA	Local System	Provides forms-based authentication to Microsoft Office Outlook Web App and the Exchange Control Panel. If this service is stopped, Outlook Web App and the Exchange Control Panel won't authenticate users. This service has no dependencies.	Automatic	Client Access	R
Microsoft Exchange IMAP4	MSExchangeIMAP4	Network Service	Provides IMAP4 service to clients. If this service is stopped, clients won't be able to connect to this computer using the IMAP4 protocol. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service.	Manual	Client Access	O
Microsoft Exchange Information Store	MSExchangeIS	Local System	Manages the Exchange Information Store. This includes mailbox databases and public folder databases. If this service is stopped, mailbox databases and public folder databases on this computer are unavailable. If this service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to start. This service is dependent on the RPC, Server, Windows Event Log, and Workstation services.	Automatic	Mailbox	R
Microsoft Exchange Mail Submission Service	MSExchangeMailSubmission	Local System	Submits messages from the Mailbox server to Exchange 2010 Hub Transport servers. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service.	Automatic	Mailbox	R
Microsoft Exchange Mailbox Assistants	MSExchangeMailboxAssistants	Local System	Performs background processing of mailboxes in the Exchange store. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service.	Automatic	Mailbox	R
Microsoft Exchange Mailbox Replication Service	MSExchangeMailboxReplication	Local System	Processes mailbox moves and move requests. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology and Net.Tcp Port Sharing service.	Automatic	Client Access	O
Microsoft Exchange Monitoring	MSExchangeMonitoring	Local System	Allows applications to call the Exchange diagnostic cmdlets. This service has no dependencies.	Manual	All	O
Microsoft Exchange POP3	MSExchangePOP3	Network Service	Provides POP3 service to clients. If this service is stopped, clients can't connect to this computer using the POP3 protocol. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service.	Manual	Client Access	O
Microsoft Exchange Protected Service Host	MSExchangeProtectedServiceHost	Local System	Provides a host for several Exchange services that must be protected from other services. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service.	Automatic	Hub Transport, Client Access	R
Microsoft Exchange Replication Service	MSExchangeRepl	Local System	Provides replication functionality for mailbox databases on Mailbox servers in a database availability group (DAG) and database mount functionality for all Mailbox servers. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service.	Automatic	Mailbox	R
Microsoft Exchange RPC Client Access	MSExchangeRPC	Network Service	Manages client RPC connections for Exchange. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service.	Automatic	Mailbox, Client Access	O (Mailbox), R (Client Access)
Microsoft Exchange Search Indexer	MSExchangeSearch	Local System	Drives indexing of mailbox content, which improves the performance of content search. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology and Microsoft Search (Exchange Server) services.	Automatic	Mailbox	O
Microsoft Exchange Server Extension for Windows Server Backup	WSBExchange	Local System	Enables Windows Server Backup users to back up and recover application data for Microsoft Exchange. This service has no dependencies.	Manual	Mailbox	O
Microsoft Exchange Service Host	MSExchangeServiceHost	Local System	Provides a host for several Exchange services. On internal server roles, this service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service. On Edge Transport servers, this service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange ADAM service.	Automatic	All	R
Microsoft Exchange Speech Engine	MSSpeechService	Network Service	Provides speech processing services for Unified Messaging. This service is dependent upon the Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) service.	Automatic	Unified Messaging	R
Microsoft Exchange System Attendant	MSExchangeSA	Local System	Forwards directory lookups to a global catalog server for legacy Outlook clients, generates e-mail addresses and OABs, updates free/busy information for legacy clients, and maintains permissions and group memberships for the server. If this service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to start. This service is dependent on the RPC, Server, Windows Event Log, and Workstation services.	Automatic	Mailbox	R
Microsoft Exchange Throttling	MSExchangeThrottling	Network Service	Limits the rate of user operations. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service.	Automatic	Mailbox	R
Microsoft Exchange Transport	MSExchangeTransport	Network Service	Provides SMTP server and transport stack. On Hub Transport servers, this service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service. On Edge Transport servers, this service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange ADAM service.	Automatic	Hub Transport, Edge Transport	R
Microsoft Exchange Transport Log Search	MSExchangeTransportLogSearch	Local System	Provides remote search capability for Microsoft Exchange Transport log files. On Hub Transport servers, this service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology service. On Edge Transport servers, this service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange ADAM service.	Automatic	Hub Transport, Mailbox, Edge Transport	O
Microsoft Exchange Unified Messaging	MSExchangeUM	Local System	Enables Microsoft Exchange Unified Messaging features. This allows voice and fax messages to be stored in Exchange and gives users telephone access to e-mail, voice mail, calendar, contacts, or an auto attendant. If this service is stopped, Unified Messaging isn't available. This service is dependent upon the Microsoft Exchange Active Directory Topology and the Microsoft Exchange Speech Engine service.	Automatic	Unified Messaging	R
Microsoft Search (Exchange Server)	msftesql-Exchange	Local System	This is a Microsoft Exchange-customized version of Microsoft Search. This service is dependent on the RPC service.	Manual	Hub Transport, Mailbox	O