Troubleshooting CAS Autodiscover problems

 

So i’ve posted about client connection issues before. It seems that most admins encounter configuration issues all the time, regarding RPC over HTTP, Exchange ActiveSync and AutoDiscover. This article is really dedicated to a problem I often see with Autodiscovery.

 

First, some basics. If you are having trouble getting Autodiscover working, there is a lot file on the client machine that holds all Autodiscovery information. You will find it at: %userprofile%\Local Settings\Temp\2\olkdisc.log

 

If you look in this log file and find failed URL errors, chances are you have an erroneous URI (that’s right not URL, URI) in the SCP (Service Connection Point) that is stored in AD or that your certificate is badly configured. So lets troubleshoot both problems:

 

1. Reset your SCP in AD: I get this question often, how do you set the URL (actually URI) that is used from the Internet to access your Exchange server. Well you need to publish that information in AD through the SCP (there’s actually other connection methods, but that discussion is for another day :)).

To reset your SCP with the accurate URI, use the following EMS command:

 

Set-ClientAccessServer -identity "EXCHANGECASSERVERNAME" -AutodiscoverServiceExternalURI HTTPS://EXTERNALFQDN/autodiscover/autodiscover.xml  -DomainController "DC NAME"

 

Force replication betwen all DC’s in your domain, restart Outlook and if you had a bad URI, you’re golden now!

 

2. If you have a cert problem, ensure that the following are correct: Certificate is not expired, Certificate is trusted on the client computer and that the name in the certificate matches your external URI.

 

Good luck with your CAS deployments!!!