You cannot install an Exchange Server 2010 SP1 server from an unattended installation

Original KB number:   2280782

Symptoms 1

Consider the following scenario:

  • You run the Setup /PrepareAD cmdlet without the hosting parameter to install Exchange Server 2010 SP1.
  • You run the setup.com cmdlet with the hosting parameter to install the first Exchange Server 2010 SP1 server. This installation fails.

In this scenario, you receive the following error message:

Active Directory wasn't prepared using hosting mode. To install server roles for hosting mode, you need to clean up Active Directory and prepare it again for hosting mode.

Symptoms 2

Consider the following scenario:

  • You run the Setup /PrepareAD cmdlet with the hosting parameter to install Exchange Server 2010 SP1.
  • You run the setup.com cmdlet without the hosting parameter to install the first Exchange Server 2010 SP1 server. This installation fails.

In this scenario, receive the following error message:

Active Directory was prepared using the /hosting parameter. You must run the command again with the '{0}' parameter to continue. If you didn't intend to use Hosting mode, you need to clean up Active Directory and prepare it again without using the /hosting parameter.

Resolution

Warning

If you use the ADSI Edit snap-in, the LDP utility, or any other LDAP version 3 client, and you modify the attributes of Active Directory objects incorrectly, you can cause serious problems. These problems may require you to reinstall Microsoft Windows 2000 Server, Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Microsoft Exchange 2000 Server, Microsoft Exchange Server 2003, or both Windows and Exchange. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems that occur if you modify Active Directory object attributes incorrectly can be solved. Modify these attributes at your own risk.

Resolution 1

To clean up the environment and install Exchange Server 2010 SP1 in hosting mode, follow these steps:

  1. Remove Exchange Server 2010 SP1 from the first server. For more information about how to remove Exchange Server 2010, see Modify or Remove Exchange 2010.

  2. Install Active Directory Service Interfaces Editor (ADSI Edit). For more information about ADSI Edit, see ADSI Edit (adsiedit.msc).

  3. Open ADSI Edit, expand Default naming context.

  4. Locate and then delete the following two objects:

    Microsoft Exchange Security Groups
    Microsoft Exchange System Objects

  5. Expand the Configuration container in ADSI Edit.

  6. Locate and then delete the following two objects:

    Microsoft Exchange
    Microsoft Exchange Autodiscover

  7. Run the Setup /PrepareAD cmdlet with using the hosting parameter.

  8. Run the setup.com cmdlet with using the hosting parameter to install Exchange Server 2010 SP1 in hosting mode.

Resolution 2

To clean up the environment and install Exchange Server 2010 SP1 in non-hosting mode:

  1. Remove Exchange Server 2010 SP1 from the first server. For more information about how to remove Exchange Server 2010, see Modify or Remove Exchange 2010.

  2. Install Active Directory Service Interfaces Editor (ADSI Edit). For more information about ADSI Edit, see ADSI Edit (adsiedit.msc).

  3. Open ADSI Edit, expand Default naming context.

  4. Locate and then delete the following two objects:

    Microsoft Exchange Security Groups
    Microsoft Exchange Hosted Organizations

    Microsoft Exchange System Objects

  5. Expand the Configuration container in ADSI Edit.

  6. Locate and then delete the following two objects:

    Microsoft Exchange
    Microsoft Exchange Autodiscover

  7. Install Exchange Server 2010 SP1 in non-hosting mode. For more information about how to deploy an Exchange Server 2010 server, see Deploying Exchange 2010.

More information

There is another article that also resolves the problem of the Exchange Server 2010 SP1 installation failure. For more information, see "Active Directory wasn't prepared using hosting mode" error when you install Exchange Server 2010 SP1 from an unattended installation.