How to rebuild a Site Replication Service without a backup

This article describes how to build a Site Replication Service (SRS) when you do not have a backup.

If you do not have a backup of the SRS, you can delete and re-create the entire service, as long as you have another Microsoft Exchange 2000 or a Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 computer in the site. If you have not yet installed a second Exchange 2000 or Exchange Server 2003 computer, you may install one temporarily, and then remove it after the recovery process has finished.

You are required to have another Exchange 2000 or Exchange Server 2003 computer because you are not permitted to delete the last SRS in a site until all servers in the site have been upgraded from Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5 to Exchange 2000 or Exchange Server 2003. This safeguard prevents you from severing the links between Exchange Server 5.5 and the Exchange 2000 or the Exchange Server 2003 computer in the site. If you will create a new SRS database on a server, you first must remove the existing service completely. When you add a second Exchange 2000 or Exchange Server 2003 computer to the site, you can delete any SRS you want if there is more than one SRS in the site.

Note This operation generates approximately the same amount of replication traffic as if you install two new Exchange Server 5.5 computers in the site.

To re-create an SRS:

1. Install a second Exchange 2000 or Exchange Server 2003 computer in the site, if you have to.
2. Start the Exchange System Manager from the console of the other Exchange 2000 or Exchange Server 2003 computer.
   
   Note You cannot run the Exchange System Manager remotely when you create a new SRS database. However, you can connect to the server that has a Terminal Services session. This has all the required characteristics of a local console session.
3. Expand Tools to reveal the Site Replication Services container.
4. Each SRS in your organization is displayed as "Microsoft Exchange Site Replication Service Server_name." However, if "Directory Replication Service Administrative_group_name" is displayed, click Site Replication Service View on the console View menu.
5. Click the Site Replication Services container object, click Action, click New, and then click Site Replication Service.
   
   Note When you create a new SRS, Exchange 2000 or Exchange Server 2003 performs directory updates similar to those that are finished when you join a new server to a site. It may take several minutes for the process to finish.
6. After the new SRS has been created, delete the original SRS on the first server.

To move the SRS back to its original server, repeat steps two through five, but reverse the server on which each action is performed.