Ever try to rename a server with Exchange 2007 installed? Don't even think about it!
After spending the good part of a day setting up a nice clean MOSS development VM (W2K3x64/VS2008/Office), I decided to add Exchange Server 2007 to the mix just to play with managed folders and the most excellent Messaging Records Management (MRM) support layer.
Got everything installed and configured. So far so good. Then got around to configuring email in MOSS and decided the server name needed to be changed because of a conflict with another server that I'll typically have running all the time. Shouldn't be so bad, right?
- WRONG! Renaming the server breaks Exchange monkey-bad. Ok, so I should've seen that one coming. No problem, I'll just uninstall and reinstall Exchange, right?
- WRONG! Exchange can't be uninstalled after a rename because the setup program is also dependent on the name that was used when it was first installed. Arrrrrgh! Ok, no problem. I'll just rename the server back to the original name, uninstall and reinstall Exchange, then rename it again, right?
- WRONG! The temporary rename hosed the setup PREREQUISITES configuration, which the setup program uses during the uninstallation process. If the prerequisites fail for any reason, then it CANCELS the uninstall of any remaining components, including the Mailbox Server Role, which is the main one that has to be removed!
Like I said - monkey bad! Can't recover. Can't uninstall. Can't rename even to the original name. Can't use MOSS, because it's now hosed as well.
Nothing good can come of this, so I'm starting over again from scratch. This time, with Exchange Server 2007 in its own private cage since it can't seem to play nice with the other primates.
Call me silly, but was this really necessary?
Fool me once, shame on me, right?
Wrong! It shouldn't be this hard.
