Modify Exchange 2003 Global Message Size Limits in Exchange 2007 RTM

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[This is pre-release documentation and subject to change in future releases. This topic's current status is: Writing Not Started.]

You can set most Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 message size limits by using the Exchange Management Console or the Exchange Management Shell. However, the following message size limits are not visible when you use the Exchange Management Console or the Exchange Management Shell:

  • Outgoing message size   The default value is 10240 KB.
  • Incoming Message Size   The default value is 10240 KB.
  • Maximum number of recipients   The default value is 5000.

These message size limits correspond to the global message size limits that are used in Exchange Server 2003. These global message size limits exist in the following Exchange 2007 environments:

  • An Exchange 2007 environment that has been upgraded from Exchange 2003   If any of the global message size limits were set to the value No limit when the Exchange 2003 organization was upgraded to Exchange 2007, Exchange 2007 setup will change the value of those global message size limits to the following values:
    • Outgoing message size   10240 KB
    • Incoming Message Size   10240 KB
    • Maximum number of recipients   5000
      If any of the global message size limits were set to a specific value when the Exchange 2003 organization was upgraded to Exchange 2007, Exchange 2007 setup won't change the value of those specific global message size limits.
  • A pure Exchange 2007 environment that wasn't upgraded from Exchange 2003    Exchange 2007 setup sets the global message size limits to the following values:
    • Outgoing message size   10240 KB
    • Incoming Message Size   10240 KB
    • Maximum number of recipients   5000

In a pure Exchange 2007 environment or in a mixed Exchange 2003 and Exchange 2007 environment, the global message size limits are used by the store driver. The store driver exists on a computer running Exchange 2007 that has the Hub Transport server role installed. The store driver is responsible for transporting incoming and outgoing messages to and from mailboxes that exist on Mailbox servers. For more information about the store driver, see Transport Architecture.

The following organization message size limits are set by using the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet in the Exchange Management Shell:

  • MaxReceiveSize   The default value is unlimited.
  • MaxSendSize   The default value is unlimited.
  • MaxRecipientEnvelopeLimit   The default value is unlimited.

The organization message size limits apply to all Hub Transport servers in the Exchange organization.

When the global message size limits and the corresponding organization message size limits conflict, the lowest value takes precedence. We recommend that you set the global message size limits and the corresponding organization message size limits to the same values.

The global message size limits are stored in the Active Directory directory service. You can modify the global message size limits by using the following methods:

  • Use Exchange System Manager   You can only use Exchange System Manager to modify these settings if there are still Exchange 2003 servers in your Exchange organization.
  • Use the Active Directory Service Interfaces (ADSI) Edit tool   ADSI Edit is part of the Windows Support Tools. ADSI Edit lets you directly view and modify Exchange objects. You can also use ADSI Edit in an Exchange organization that contains Exchange 2003 servers.

Before You Begin

To perform the following procedures, the account you use must be delegated the Exchange Organization Administrator role.

For more information about permissions, delegating roles, and the rights that are required to administer Exchange 2007, see Important: Update for Permissions in Exchange 2010.

Procedure

To use Exchange System Manager to modify the global message size limits

  1. Open Exchange System Manager on a server that is running Exchange 2003.

  2. Expand Global Settings.

  3. Right-click Message Delivery and then click Properties.

  4. In Message Delivery Properties, click the Defaults tab. We recommend that you set each global message size limit to match the value of the corresponding organization message size limit. You may modify the following settings:

    • Sending message size   This corresponds to the MaxSendSize parameter in the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet. You can select No limit, or you can select Maximum (KB) to enter an outgoing message size limit in kilobytes (KB). The default value is 10240 KB. Valid input for this parameter is 0 to 2097151 KB.
    • Receiving message size   This corresponds to the MaxReceiveSize parameter in the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet. You can select No limit, or you can select Maximum (KB) to enter an incoming message size limit in kilobytes (KB). The default value is 10240 KB. Valid input for this parameter is 0 to 2097151 KB.
    • Recipient limits   This corresponds to the MaxRecipientEnvelopeLimit parameter in the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet. You can select No limit, or you can select Maximum (recipients) to enter a maximum number of message recipients. The default value is 5000 recipients. Valid input for this parameter is 0 to 2147483647.

  5. Click OK to close Message Delivery Properties.

To use ADSI Edit to modify the global message size limits

  1. If it is necessary, install the Microsoft Windows Support Tools. For detailed instructions, see Install Windows Support Tools.

  2. Click Start, and then select Run. In the Open field, type C:\Program Files\Support Tools\Adsiedit.msc, and then click OK.

  3. Open ADSI Edit, expand Configuration, and then expand CN=Configuration..., expand CN=Services, expand CN=Microsoft Exchange, expand CN=<Your Exchange Organization Name>, and then select CN=Global Settings.

  4. In the result pane, right-click CN=Message Delivery, and then select Properties.

  5. In CN=Message Delivery Properties, select the Attribute Editor tab. In the Attributes section, locate the following attributes:

    • delivContLength   This is the incoming message size limit that corresponds to the MaxReceiveSize parameter in the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet.
    • submissionContLength   This is the receiving message size limit that corresponds to the MaxSendSize parameter in the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet.
    • msExchRecipLimit   This is the maximum number of message recipients that corresponds to the MaxRecipientEnvelopeLimit parameter in the Set-TransportConfig cmdlet.

  6. To modify an attribute, select the attribute, and then click Edit. We recommend that you set each global message size limit to match the value of the corresponding organization message size limit. In the Integer Attribute Editor, perform one of the following actions:

    • To remove the global message size limit, select Clear, and then click OK. The value of the attribute will be <not set>.
    • To enter value for a specific global message size limit, in the Value field, type the value, and then click OK. Valid input values are as follows:
      delivContLength   Valid input for this parameter is 0 to 2097151 KB. The default value is 10240 KB.
      submissionContLength    Valid input for this parameter is 0 to 2097151 KB. The default value is 10240 KB.
      msExchRecipLimit   Valid input for this parameter is 0 to 2147483647 recipients. The default value is 5000 recipients.

  7. Repeat step 6 for each global message size limit that you want to modify.

  8. To close CN=Message Delivery Properties, click OK and then click File, Exit to close ADSI Edit.

To use the Exchange Management Shell to view existing organization message size limits

  1. Run the following command:

    Get-TransportConfig | fl max*

  2. Record the displayed values of the MaxReceiveSize, MaxSendSize, and MaxRecipientEnvelopeLimit parameters.

To use the Exchange Management Shell to modify the organization message size limits

  • Run the following command:

    Set-TransportConfig -MaxReceiveSize <value> -MaxSendSize <value> -MaxRecipientEnvelopeLimit <value>

    For example, to set the maximum incoming message size to 10 MB, the maximum outgoing message size to 10 MB, and the maximum number of message recipients to 5000, run the following command:

    Set-TransportConfig -MaxReceiveSize 10MB -MaxSendSize 10MB -MaxRecipientEnvelopeLimit 5000

We recommend that you set each organization message size limit to match the value of the corresponding global message size limit.

When you enter a value for the MaxReceiveSize parameter or the MaxSendSize parameter, qualify the value with one of the following:

  • B (bytes)
  • KB (kilobytes)
  • MB (megabytes)
  • GB (gigabytes)

Unqualified values are treated as bytes.

The valid input range for the MaxReceiveSize parameter, the MaxSendSize parameter, and the MaxRecipientEnvelopeLimit parameter is 0 to 2147483647. To remove the limit, enter a value of unlimited.

For More Information

For more information, see the following topics: