XGEN: Cannot Update When Only Exchange Administrator Installed

• Microsoft Exchange Server, version 4.0

SYMPTOMS

If you run the Microsoft Exchange Server Setup program and clear every check box except Administration, only the Microsoft Exchange Server Administrator program components will be installed. If you later try to update to Microsoft Exchange Server version 4.0 Service Pack 3 (SP3) on this computer, the Service Pack update will stop. The following error message appears:

   This version of Exchange Setup can only upgrade servers that are
   4.0a/SP2.Upgrade the server to 4.0a/SP2 and then run Setup again.

CAUSE

When Microsoft Exchange Server is installed, entries are written to the registry that identify build version information. When only the Administrator components are installed, some of the entries are not written to the registry. Microsoft Exchange Server 4.0 SP3 checks the version. Because some registry entries are missing, Update for SP3 cannot determine the current version of Microsoft Exchange Server and terminates.

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, add the missing entries to the registry. You can update the registry using Regini.exe from the Windows NT Resource Kit.

The registry values that need to be added to the registry are:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Exchange\Setup
   NewestBuild REG_DWORD  value = 0x3E1
   Build REG_DWORD  value = 0x345

     \registry\machine\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Exchange\Setup
        NewestBuild=REG_DWORD 0x3E1
        Build=REG_DWORD 0x345