Applies to: Exchange Server 2007
Topic Last Modified: 2007-06-15

A disconnected mailbox is a mailbox that is not associated with an Active Directory directory service user account.

If you remove a mailbox by using either the Exchange Management Console or the Exchange Management Shell (specifically by using the Remove-Mailbox cmdlet without the Permanent or StoreMailboxIdentity parameters), you will remove the user object that is associated with the mailbox from Active Directory. By default, the disconnected Exchange mailbox object will remain in the Exchange database for 30 days before it is deleted. To view all disconnected mailboxes in an Exchange database, in the Exchange Management Console, expand Recipient Configuration, and then click Disconnected Mailbox.

Note:
The Exchange mailbox object is created in an Exchange database when a user logs on to the mailbox or when the mailbox receives e-mail messages. If you create a new mailbox and then remove the mailbox before the user has logged on or has received mail, Exchange will not have created a mailbox object in the Exchange database, so you will not see the mailbox object in the result pane.

When you click a disconnected mailbox in the result pane, the action pane displays the following task.

Connect

Use the Connect task to connect the selected disconnected mailbox to an existing user. A wizard will walk you through the steps to associate the disconnected mailbox with a specific user object.

Note:
The Connect task appears only if a disconnected mailbox is listed in the result pane. If no disconnected mailboxes are listed, the Connect to Server task is made available. For more information about the Connect to Server task, see Recipient Configuration > Disconnected Mailbox (RTM).

For More Information