Message when a client tries to connect to Exchange Server 2003 in Outlook: "Exchange is currently in recovery mode"

When a Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 client tries to connect to Exchange Server 2003 in Microsoft Outlook, you may receive the following message:

This issue may occur if the following conditions are true:

• The client mailbox was moved to a different Exchange Server organization.
• Outlook is running in Cached Exchange Mode.

In this scenario, the signature of the offline folder (.ost) file does not match the signature of the Exchange Server database in the new organization.

To resolve this issue, use one of the following methods.

Method 1: Disable Cached Exchange Mode

To disable Cached Exchange Mode on the client computer, follow these steps:

1. On the Tools menu, click E-Mail Accounts, click View or change existing e-mail accounts, and then click Next.
2. In the Outlook processes e-mail for these accounts in the following order list, click the Exchange Server e-mail account, and then click Change.
3. Under Microsoft Exchange Server, click to clear the Use Cached Exchange Mode check box.
4. Exit and then restart Outlook.

Method 2: Create a new Outlook profile

To create a new Outlook profile, follow these steps:

1. In Control Panel, double-click User Accounts, and then click Mail.
   
   Note If you are using Control Panel classic view, double-click Mail.
2. Click Show Profiles.
3. Click Add.
4. Type a name for the profile, and then click OK.
5. Follow the directions on the screen to complete the process.

Note If many users in your organization experience this issue, Method 2 may not be a workable resolution. For more information about how to modify multiple profiles in an organization, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: