XADM: MTA May Fail During Mailstorms Involving Large DLs (177006)
The information in this article applies to:
- Microsoft Exchange Server 5.0
This article was previously published under Q177006 SYMPTOMS
If a brief, intense flurry of messages and replies (also known as a
mailstorm) occurs in
an Exchange Server organization and involves one or more very large
distribution lists (DLs), the Microsoft Exchange message transfer agent
(MTA) may fail repeatedly. The Event Log will typically show events 2051
and 9405 for the MTA preceding the failures, and the exceptions generated
will usually all have the same error code, 0xe0050803.
MORE INFORMATION
Under certain conditions, a message sent to a very large DL may generate a
large volume of replies and replies-to-replies over a short period, all
addressed to the same DL. This can cause a mailstorm that increases the
load on messaging servers exponentially over a period of minutes or hours.
Under these high-stress conditions, occasional failures of the MTA as
described in this article may occur.
WORKAROUND
Temporarily or permanently place delivery restrictions on the distribution
list(s) involved in the mailstorm, to prevent the message traffic from
escalating as multiple users reply to messages sent to the lists. When the
traffic drops, the MTAs will stop failing. Under extreme conditions, it may
be necessary to delete the MTA queues or take other urgent action to reduce
traffic.
STATUS
Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Microsoft Exchange Server
version 5.0. This problem has been corrected in the latest Microsoft
Exchange Server 5.0 U.S. Service Pack. For information on obtaining the
service pack, query on the following word in the Microsoft Knowledge Base
(without the spaces):
| Modification Type: | Minor | Last Reviewed: | 4/28/2005 |
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| Keywords: | kbbug kbfix KB177006 |
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