Applies to: Exchange Server 2007 SP1, Exchange Server 2007
Topic Last Modified: 2007-06-07

This topic explains how to configure Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 to copy non-delivery reports (NDRs) to a mailbox that you specify and to configure that mailbox to accept replies to system-generated e-mail messages or messages sent to the postmaster address.

When delivery of a message is attempted and the delivery of that message fails, an NDR is generated. The NDR is sent to the sender of the original message together with information about why the delivery failed. In Exchange 2007, if an NDR is generated for a permanent delivery failure, you have the option of copying the NDR to an alternative mailbox. However, Exchange 2007 does not enable this functionality by default. You must configure Exchange 2007 to copy NDRs to a mailbox.

In Exchange 2007, you can configure whether NDRs that are originally sent to internal senders, to external senders, or to both are copied to a mailbox. This topic describes how to configure Exchange 2007 to copy NDRs in each of these scenarios.

To copy NDRs to a mailbox, you must do the following:

Each of these actions is discussed later in this topic.

Before You Begin

To perform this procedure, the account you use must be delegated the Exchange Organization Administrator role.

For more information about permissions, delegating roles, and the rights that are required to administer Exchange 2007, see Permission Considerations.

Important:
Changes that you make by using the Set-TransportConfig and Set-OrganizationConfig cmdlets are applied to your whole Exchange 2007 organization.
Important:
This topic assumes that you have subscribed all Edge Transport servers by using the Edge Subscription process and that the Microsoft Exchange EdgeSync service is keeping the Active Directory Application Mode (ADAM) directory service instance on all Edge Transport servers up-to-date with Active Directory directory service data.

For more information about Edge Subscriptions and the EdgeSync synchronization process, see Understanding Edge Subscriptions.

How Internal and External Senders Affect NDRs

When a permanent failure NDR is generated because a recipient mailbox could not be reached, or because of other delivery problems, Exchange 2007 determines whether the sender of the message is internal or external to the Exchange 2007 organization. Whether an NDR is sent to an internal sender or external sender affects how the NDR is addressed.

An internal sender is a sender for whom one or both of the following conditions are true:

  • The sender has a mailbox inside the Exchange 2007 organization.

  • The domain part of the sender's Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) address exists in the accepted domains list for the organization.

All other senders are considered external to the Exchange 2007 organization.

Internal Senders

When an NDR is sent to an internal sender, the NDR is sent from the Microsoft Exchange Recipient. The Microsoft Exchange Recipient is a special recipient object that is used by several Exchange 2007 features to provide a unified and well-known recipient that users can use to differentiate system-generated messages from other messages.

By default, messages that are sent to the Microsoft Exchange Recipient are ignored and not delivered. For messages that are sent to the Microsoft Exchange Recipient to be delivered to a mailbox, you must associate a mailbox with the Microsoft Exchange Recipient.

External Senders

When an NDR is sent to an external sender, the NDR is, by default, sent from the Postmaster@<Authoritative Domain> SMTP address. The authoritative domain that is used to create the postmaster SMTP address is the default accepted domain. You can view the default accepted domain by using the Get-AcceptedDomain cmdlet.

For more information about accepted domains, see Managing Accepted Domains.

By default, no mailboxes in the Exchange 2007 organization are created with the Postmaster@<Authoritative Domain> SMTP address. For messages that are sent to the Postmaster@<Authoritative Domain> SMTP to be delivered to a mailbox, you must add the SMTP address to a mailbox or create a mailbox with the name "Postmaster".

Creating a Mailbox to Accept NDRs

Whether you associate a mailbox with the Microsoft Exchange Recipient to copy internal NDRs, or configure the external postmaster SMTP address to copy external NDRs, you must first create a mailbox to accept the NDRs.

We recommend that the mailbox that you create be used only for the specific purpose of receiving NDRs. To simplify configuration, you may want to configure the new mailbox with the name "Postmaster". If you create a mailbox with the name Postmaster, an SMTP address of Postmaster@<Authoritative Domain> is added to the mailbox automatically. This lets you comply with SMTP standards and lets you avoid some of the configuration steps that are described later in this topic.

Note:
Monitor the mailbox that you use to receive copies of NDRs. If the mailbox exceeds configured mailbox or mailbox database storage limits, NDRs may not be delivered to the mailbox.

For more information about how to create a mailbox, see How to Create a Mailbox for a New User.

Copying Internal NDRs to a Mailbox

Perform the following procedure on a Hub Transport server in your organization to copy internal NDRs to a mailbox.

To receive copies of internal NDRs, you must associate the mailbox that you created in the "Creating a Mailbox to Accept NDRs" section earlier in this topic to the Microsoft Exchange Recipient. If you don't associate a mailbox with the Microsoft Exchange Recipient, NDRs that are copied to the Microsoft Exchange Recipient are not captured. By default, no mailbox is associated with the Microsoft Exchange Recipient.

To associate a mailbox with the Microsoft Exchange Recipient, specify the full name of the mailbox by using the following command:

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Set-OrganizationConfig -MicrosoftExchangeRecipientReplyRecipient <Recipient Identity>
Important:
Verify that the MicrosoftExchangeRecipientEmailAddressPolicyEnabled parameter on the Get-OrganizationConfig cmdlet is set to $True. If the MicrosoftExchangeRecipientEmailAddressPolicyEnabled parameter is set to $True, Exchange 2007 automatically adds new accepted domains to the Microsoft Exchange Recipient when new accepted domains are added. If the MicrosoftExchangeRecipientEmailAddressPolicyEnabled parameter is set to $False, you must manually add new accepted domains to the Microsoft Exchange Recipient.

The mailbox that is specified by using this command will receive copies of all NDRs that are generated for the NDRs configured in the "Configuring NDRs to be Copied to a Mailbox" later in this topic.

To use the Exchange Management Shell to associate a mailbox with the Microsoft Exchange Recipient

  • Run the following command:

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    Set-OrganizationConfig -MicrosoftExchangeRecipientReplyRecipient "Kim Akers"

Copying External NDRs to a Mailbox

When you perform the following procedures on a Hub Transport server that is configured to replicate configuration to Edge Transport servers by using the Microsoft Exchange EdgeSync service, the external postmaster SMTP address is replicated to the Edge Transport servers.

Configuring the External Postmaster Address

By default, the ExternalPostmasterAddress parameter on the Set-TransportServer cmdlet is not set. When the ExternalPostmasterAddress parameter is not set, the external postmaster SMTP address defaults to Postmaster@<Authoritative Domain>. The authoritative domain that is used to create the postmaster address is the default accepted domain. You can view the default accepted domain by using the Get-AcceptedDomain cmdlet.

Note:
If you created a mailbox with the name Postmaster in the "Creating a Mailbox to Accept NDRs" section earlier in this topic, the SMTP address of this mailbox should already be Postmaster@<Authoritative Domain>. To verify this, run the command: Get-Mailbox Postmaster | Format-List Name, EmailAddress* . Verify the EmailAddress property contains the Postmaster@<Authoritative Domain> e-mail address. Also, verify that the EmailAddressPolicyEnabled property is set to $True. If EmailAddressPolicyEnabled is set to $True, this mailbox will receive updates to domain names, and add or change the configured e-mail addresses accordingly.

If you want to change the external postmaster SMTP address, you must change the SMTP address on each Hub Transport server and Edge Transport server in your organization.

Use the following command to change the external postmaster on a single Hub Transport server:

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Set-TransportServer <Hub Transport Server Name> -ExternalPostmasterAddress <External Postmaster SMTP Address>

To use the Exchange Management Shell to change the external postmaster address on a single Hub Transport server named HUB1 to postmaster@contoso.com

  • Run the following command:

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    Set-TransportServer HUB1 -ExternalPostmasterAddress postmaster@contoso.com

Use the following command to change the external postmaster on all Hub Transport servers in the organization:

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Get-TransportServer | Set-TransportServer -ExternalPostmasterAddress <External Postmaster SMTP Address>

To use the Exchange Management Shell to change the external postmaster address on all the Hub Transport servers in the organization to postmaster@contoso.com

  • Run the following command:

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    Get-TransportServer | Set-TransportServer -ExternalPostmasterAddress postmaster@contoso.com

You must configure the external postmaster SMTP address locally on each Edge Transport server. Use the following command to change the external postmaster on each Edge Transport server:

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Set-TransportServer <Edge Transport Server Name> -ExternalPostmasterAddress <External Postmaster SMTP Address>

To use the Exchange Management Shell to change the external postmaster address on an Edge Transport server named EDGE1 to postmaster@contoso.com

  • Run the following command:

    Copy Code 
    Set-TransportServer EDGE1 -ExternalPostmasterAddress postmaster@contoso.com

The mailbox that you specified by using the commands in this section will receive copies of all NDRs that are generated for the NDRs that are configured in the "Configuring NDRs to be Copied to a Mailbox" later in this topic.

Adding the Postmaster SMTP Address to a Mailbox

If you want to configure Exchange 2007 to send external NDRs to the mailbox that you created, you must add the postmaster SMTP address that you configured by using the commands in the "Configuring the External Postmaster Address" section earlier in this topic as a proxy SMTP address on the mailbox.

For more information about how to add the postmaster SMTP address to a mailbox, see How to Add a New E-Mail Address for a Mailbox User.

Configuring NDRs to be Copied to a Mailbox

You can control which NDRs are copied to a mailbox by specifying which Delivery Status Notification (DSN) codes you want to monitor. A DSN code is the code that is returned by the receiving server to the sending server when delivery of a message fails. This code indicates why the delivery of the message failed. Each DSN code is associated with a DSN message. This DSN message, which includes a user-friendly explanation of why the delivery failed, is included in the NDR that is sent back to the sender of the original message.

On a Hub Transport server, NDRs are copied to the mailbox that is associated with the Microsoft Exchange Recipient. On Edge Transport servers, NDRs are copied to the external postmaster address. For more information, see the "Copying Internal NDRs to a Mailbox" and "Copying External NDRs to a Mailbox" sections earlier in this topic.

To configure the DSN codes that you want to monitor, you must do the following:

  • On one Hub Transport server, use the GenerateCopyOfDSNFor parameter on the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet or use the Exchange Management Console to configure the DSNs that you want to monitor. When you configure the monitored DSNs on one Hub Transport server, the configuration is replicated to all the other Hub Transport servers in the Exchange organization.

    Note:
    In Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1 (SP1), you can also use the Exchange Management Console on a Hub Transport server to configure the DSNs that you want to monitor.
  • On each Edge Transport server in the Exchange organization, configure the DSNs that you want to monitor by using the GenerateCopyOfDSNFor parameter on the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet.

By default, the following DSN codes are monitored:

5.4.8

5.2.4

5.4.6

5.2.0

5.4.4

5.1.4

For more information about DSN codes and NDRs, see Understanding Non-Delivery Reports.

Note:
Even though the DSN codes in the previous list are monitored by default, the associated NDRs aren't copied to the Microsoft Exchange Recipient or to the external postmaster address if no mailbox is assigned to the Microsoft Exchange Recipient or to the external postmaster address. By default, no mailbox is assigned to the Microsoft Exchange Recipient or to the external postmaster address.

To use the Exchange Management Console on a Hub Transport server to configure the monitored DSN codes in Exchange 2007 SP1

  1. Open the Exchange Management Console.

  2. In the console tree, click Organization Configuration, and then click Hub Transport.

  3. In the result pane, click the Global Settings tab.

  4. In the action pane, click the Properties link that is directly under Transport Settings.

  5. Click the Message Delivery tab. In the DSN area, do one of the following:

    • To add a DSN code, enter the 3-digit DSN code as x.y.z, and then click Add.

    • To edit an existing DSN code, select the DSN code, and then click Edit. Modify the DSN as necessary, and then press Enter.

    • To remove an existing DSN code, select the DSN code, and then click Remove icon.

  6. When you are finished, click OK.

Note:
You can only use the Exchange Management Console to configure the list of monitored DSNs on a Hub Transport server. On an Edge Transport server, you must use the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet in the Exchange Management Shell.

To use the Exchange Management Shell on a Hub Transport server or Edge Transport server to configure the monitored DSN codes in Exchange 2007 SP1 or the release to manufacturing (RTM) version of Exchange 2007

  • Run the following command:

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    Set-TransportConfig -GenerateCopyOfDSNFor <DSN1, DSN2, DSN3, ...>

    For example, to specify DSN codes 5.4.8, 5.4.6, 5.7.1 and 5.7.2, run the following command:

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    Set-TransportConfig -GenerateCopyOfDSNFor 5.4.8, 5.4.6, 5.7.1, 5.7.2

If you want to modify the default list of DSNs that are configured on the GenerateCopyOfDSNFor parameter, first note the DSN codes that you want to keep. Every time that you configure the GenerateCopyOfDSNFor parameter, you must reenter the previously configured DSN codes in addition to adding any additional DSN codes.

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