XFOR: Messages from X.400 ADMD May Result in NDR & IS Event 296

• Microsoft Exchange Server, versions 4.0, 5.0, 5.5

SYMPTOMS

When a message is sent to an automated mailbox on a foreign X.400 messaging system from a Microsoft Exchange client user, the reply from the automated mailbox is not delivered to the message originator.

The following error messages may be seen in the Windows NT Application log:

   Event ID:296
   Source:MSExchangeMTA
   Type:Information
   Category:X.400 Service
   Description:
   The message C=us;A=admd;P=;L=97082616584041+20201E53 (object ID:
   06000058) has been successfully converted from content type 56010A00 to
   content type 2A864886F7140501. [MTA DISP:FANOUT 11 112] (10)

   Event ID:2025
   Source:MSExchangeIS Private
   Type:Information
   Category:Transport Delivering
   Description:
   The delivery of a message failed due to error 00000BB8. A non-delivery
   report is being sent to the message's originator.

   Event ID:290
   Source:MSExchangeMTA
   Type:Warning
   Category:X.400 Service
   Description:
   A non-delivery report (reason code transfer-failure and diagnostic code
   invalid-arguments) is being generated for message
   C=us;A=admd;P=;L=97082616584041+20201E53. It was originally destined for
   DN:/o=xxx/ou=xxxxxx/cn=RECIPIENTS/cn=xxxx[ASCII
   167]C=US;A=ADMD;P=PRMD;O=ORG;S=lastname;G=firstname;I=initial;
   (recipient number 1), and was to be redirected to . [MTA DISP:RESULT 21
   136] (12)

CAUSE

This problem can occur if the foreign X.400 messaging system sends a message with an MTS-ID that has a zero-length value PRMD. This is the case with the above example: C=us;A=admd;P=;L=97082616584041+20201E53

There is a private management domain (PRMD) value, but it is zero-bytes. The Microsoft Exchange MTA finds this to be invalid per X.411 of the CCITT messaging specifications. The recommendation calls for a PRMD length between 1 and 16 characters.

WORKAROUND

Contact the X.400 provider or the administrator of the X.400 messaging system to find out whether there is a patch available for their messaging platform.

STATUS

The Microsoft Exchange Server Message Transfer Agent (MTA) is a fully compliant 1984 and 1988 X.400 messaging platform. However, we are researching this problem to possibly enable a workaround in our own MTA. We will post more information here in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.