An Exchange Server database is susceptible to different corruption problems, such as dirty database shutdown, antivirus scanning, log file issues, and others. Thus an administrator might require different Microsoft Exchange Recovery tools to solve such problems and to continue working the e-mailing environment.

Further is a scenario that depicts a similar situation of Exchange Server database corruption. As an Exchange Server administrator, you may observe one or more of the below symptoms:

1. You cannot start and/or Information Store service

2. Exchange clients lose the ability to send or receive e-mails. You cannot solve this issue by restarting the server

3. You restore the database from an offline backup but the database is still inconsistent. On running Isinteg utility (database integrity check), it gives the below error message on screen:

"Error 4294966746: JET_errDatabaseInconsistent"

Cause

Information Store is corrupt. Either both or one of public store and private store is corrupted.

Solution

Before trying the below steps, you are recommended to take the backup of the entire Information Store to prevent any post-crash consequences. Use the below steps in order to solve the above problem:

1. Analyze all the error message and events of application event log that Exchange reports on attempting to start the Information Store

2. Run eseutil /mh command to check the integrity of Exchange databases (Priv.edb and Pub.edb). An inconsistent database shows 'Dirty Shutdown' state but is not always corrupt. This state can also occur if all the transaction logs have not been committed yet.

3. Replay all the transaction log by performing soft database recovery. For this, execute eseutil /r command for the affected database(s).

4. Run hard database repair in case soft recovery doesn't work. Run eseutil/ p command and delete all the .chk and .log files

5. Check if the previously occurring symptoms go away. If you can successfully work with the database(s), they are repaired. Next, run eseutil /d and isinteg -pri -fix -test alltests commands in sequence to defragment and fix database issues respectively.

6. In case, the problem remains the same, use a third-party Exchange Server Recovery tool to diagnose and repair the database more effectively. A Microsoft Exchange Recovery utility uses safe, yet powerful, scanning procedures and allows for easy database repair.

Microsoft Exchange Recovery Tool is a professional utility that repairs corrupted Exchange database and extracts the mailboxes in individual *.pst files for Exchange Server 2007, 2003, 2000, and 5.5. The tool provides advanced Exchange Server Recovery features and is easy to use. It can also recover deleted mailboxes and inaccessible STM data.