restoring from exchange 2003

[zak2011]

Hi,

I have a requirement to restore some old mails from 2002. That time we were using exchange 2003 and we have shifted to exchange 2010 a year ago. Would i be able to do a restore of mailboxes made on exchange 2003 on 2010. How would i be able to restore those mails from tape?

[CraigV]

Hi zak,

Not possible...at all. Exchange 2003 is fundamentally different from Exchange 2010, and this inability to restore from a version like Exchange 2003 is a MS issue.

Why not do 1 of the following:

1. Bring up an Exchange 2003 server in an isolated environment, and restore the Exchange Information Store to this. Pull what you need out into a mail box, and then put that into a *.pst.

2. Duplicate that backup to disk which leaves you with the Exchange flat-files. Once done, use a third-party application like Kernel for Exchange to crack that file open and export to *.pst.

https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/articles/restoring-exchange-or-individual-mailboxesitems-using-backup-exec-howto

3. Use BE 2012's ability to restore directly to a *.pst (probably your better option).

Thanks!

[Colin_Weaver]

What version of BE were you on at the time?

To be honest I think you need an Exchange 2003 setup to restore into there are Microsoft limitations on restoring to different versions. 

There is a very small, potentially untested, outside chance, however that you might be able to use the BE2012 restore to PST file capability. However I think you might have needed to backup with GRT functionality for this idea to even have a chance and the date of 2002 I think might limit this as I think GRT started later than this. EDIT: If you did not backup with GRT then I don't think Craig Vs point 2 above is NOT possible either.

[zak2011]

 I was using BE12.5 that time. The backup was a non GRT backup.

Craig's point 1 would require an AD and an exchange 2003 in an isolated environement wouldnt it.

I have changed to Exchange 2010 only last year, and having old backups of exchange then would seem pointless.

[CraigV · Accepted solution]

...yes, it would require a DC and Exchange 2003 server. No reason why you can't make them the same server to save on resources.

Check the links below too as they might assist you further:

http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=content&id=TECH29719

http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=content&id=TECH10533