XADM: Out of Office Message Is Received for a Message Sent to a Distribution List Configured Not to Generate Them

A message is sent to a Distribution List (DL) configured to not generate Out of Office (OOF) messages. If the message is sent to another Exchange Server site connected with the Microsoft Exchange Internet Mail Service, an OOF message may be generated for recipients that are out of the office.

The default behavior in the information store is to send an OOF message for a recipient that receives a message and that is configured to generate an OOF message. In the case of message delivery to a DL, when the message is being delivered to a user that is configured to generate an OOF, the DL configuration must be queried to see if it allows OOF responses. In the case of a message delivery path across the Internet Mail Service, the DL configuration is not being queried and the information store performs its default behavior, which results in an OOF message being returned.

To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Exchange Server 5.5. For additional information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: The following files are available for download from the Microsoft Download Center:
For additional information about how to download Microsoft Support files, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: Microsoft scanned this file for viruses. Microsoft used the most current virus-detection software that was available on the date that the file was posted. The file is stored on security-enhanced servers that help to prevent any unauthorized changes to the file.

NOTE: When you start this version of the information store, the information store databases are automatically upgraded to a new format. After the databases have been upgraded, you can restore an earlier version of the Store.exe file on the server, but only if it is version 5.5.2651.32 or later. If you restore a Store.exe file earlier than version 5.5.2651.32 after the database has been upgraded, you are no longer able to start the information store. For additional information, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

To work around this issue, use the X.400 Connector or remote procedure call (RPC) Site Connector to connect your.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in Microsoft Exchange Server version 5.5. This problem was first corrected in Exchange Server 5.5 Service Pack 4.