Exchange 2010 SP1 Database growing when archiving task is running

[AL-ex-AND-ar]

Recently we upgrade EV to version 9, also we upgrade Exchange 2010 to SP1. We establish archiving to Exchange 2010 sp1 servers.

Today i notice that when archiving task is running (archiving and shortcut processing) the target database is growing (grow is almost the same size  as newly created items in archive).

Another thing that i notice is that items from Exchange server is not replaced with shortcut after backup (In EV8 version that was not case). Because replacement with shortcut was not done - i manually start shortcut processing. After that - replacement was made.

Is there something i miss? Does anyone experience something like this?

Thanks in advance for your help.

[JesusWept3]

The actual message stores will usually grow in an after backup scenario due to the fact that you are only adding information at that point, you're not deleting any items with large attachments or anything, the space saving will come after the post processing and it turns it from a pending item in to a fully archived item

The Transaction logs will also grow due to the fact with moved items, EV will stamp each item thats been moved, so if you have say 10,000 shortcuts that you've moved, EV is going to modify each and every one of those shortcuts, so now you have 10,000 modification entries in your transaction logs

As for the post processing, Storage File Watch is supposed to be going every 2 hours to make sure that items have been backed up or not, if they have then it will set the item as backup complete and then will post process and shove everything in the A2 queue

But what it sounds like is, that your task is just outside of schedule, and when you are doing a run now, you are forcing the task to pick up items from the A1 queue, however if you were to let it go in to its scheduled run, it would then convert them all for you

[AL-ex-AND-ar]

I understand growing after backup - but that's strange in this case - the start of grow of the database is in moment when i click manually task (archiving and shortcut processing). When i stop task - the database (only database) growing is stopped.

Transaction logs are on separate disk so that should not be the problem in my case

Because of enormous size of one database we decide to move one mailbox (13 gb) to another database. Monitoring the moving process we notice that Exchange Moving Log show that the size of that database is 29 GB ????

I suspect in some settings on Exchange and im looking for that

[AL-ex-AND-ar]

IN exchange move log we notice that large part of that growing database was Deleted Items (17 GB from 29 Gb). We have retention policy of 14 days. So the database keep all archived mails plus 14 days.

And i thing that is the explanation to my problems.

[AL-ex-AND-ar · Accepted solution]

And finally this is what cause my problem - Recoverable Items folder

SingleItemRecoveryEnabled : True

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee364755.aspx

http://msexchangeteam.com/archive/2009/09/25/452632.aspx

So when task is running (archiving and shortcut processing) the small attribute is added to the message. This automatically generate version of the original message in the same exchange database, Another actions to mails generate another versions.....and finally deletion of the mail from mailbox generate deleted items (for later recovery)  which is also stored in that exchange database.

So that's why my mailbox with 13 GB size is actually 29 GB.

Solution: Disable Single Item Recovery or lower the number of days to keep Deleted items.