XCLN: Exmerge Loses Free/Busy Information for Existing Appointments (240756)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5
  • Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5 SP1
  • Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5 SP2
  • Microsoft Outlook 2000
  • Microsoft Outlook 97
  • Microsoft Outlook 98
This article was previously published under Q240756

SYMPTOMS

When you use Exmerge to export or import a mailbox, it may lose the current free and busy information for existing appointments. All new appointments show the free and busy time correctly.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this issue, you need to log on to the mailbox with a Microsoft Outlook client by using the /cleanfreebusy switch. This re-establishes all free and busy information for appointments listed in the mailbox calendar.

WORKAROUND

To work around this issue, after you run Exmerge to import the data:
  1. Create an Outlook profile for the mailbox.
  2. At a command prompt, change to the directory where Outlook.exe file is located, and type: outlook.exe /cleanfreebusy.
  3. Log on to the mailbox as you normally would, and confirm that the free and busy information is correctly displayed by attempting to schedule a meeting at a date and time that already has an existing appointment in the calendar. When you view Attendee Availability, the time is shown as busy instead of free.

MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about command-line switches for Outlook, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

197180 OL2000: Additional Command-Line Switches

After the mailbox has been imported via Exmerge, the free/busy data for those users will need to be rebuilt. Use one of the following methods to complete this:
  1. The users whose mailboxes were exmerged should login to their mailbox, and make a change to their calendar. This will recreate the free/busy data.

    -or-

  2. Send an appointment to the exmerged users, which will also recreate the free/busy data.
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:4/28/2005
Keywords:kbprb KB240756
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