Situation

This document explains the prerequisites and process of using Dropsuite with a hosted exchange environment.


Prerequisites 

Below is a list of all requirements to be able to use Dropsuite with the Hosted Exchange Environment.


  1. Remote PowerShell enabled in the Exchange Server.
  2. A PowerShell admin user that has the ability to run the following commands:
    • Get-Mailbox
    • Select-Object
    • Get-MailboxPermission
    • Add-MailboxPermission
    • Remove-MailboxPermission
    • Remove-MailboxFolderPermission
    • Set-MailboxFolderPermission
    • Add-MailboxFolderPermission
    • Get-MailboxFolderPermission
    • Get-ExchangeServer
    • New-Mailbox
    • Get-WebServicesVirtualDirectory
  3. If the service includes an Archive subscription, the user will also need permission to run the following commands to setup journaling:
    • Get-DistributionGroup
    • New-DistributionGroup
    • Remove-DistributionGroup
    • Get-DistributionGroupMember
    • Add-DistributionGroupMember
    • Remove-DistributionGroupMember
    • Get-JournalRule
    • New-JournalRule
    • Remove-JournalRule
    • Get-TransportConfig
    • Set-TransportConfig
  4. Whitelist Dropsuite PowerShell service IP to remotely log into the Exchange Server. The PowerShell service IP is shown in the Add Hosted Exchange Emails Form. As an example:


Adding Exchange Mailboxes for Backup

The below is how to add the actual mailboxes to the Dropsuite platform for backup.

  1. Log into the end-user dashboard.
  2. Click "Add Backup".
  3. Click the Hosted Exchange option.
  4. Enter the Exchange server PowerShell admin credentials.
    • PowerShell Connection Uri: PowerShell connection URL of the Exchange Server. 
    • Username: PowerShell admin username with domain
    • Password: PowerShell admin password.
    • Authentication Mechanism: The default is basic.
    • Enable SSL: The default is enabled.
  5. Click on "Login".

  6. Select the mailboxes you wish to add to the backup and then select "Start Backup".


Important Mentions

Important things to note to make sure that everything runs as expected.


  • Dropsuite is not compatible with Sherweb's Hosted Exchange Servers.
  • Make sure not to delete or change the password of the mailbox that is created on the Exchange Server for granting permissions to user mailboxes. ([email protected])
  • Set the password expiration policy for this mailbox to never expire.
  • The PowerShell connection URL can be found by logging into your exchange admin center (ECP)
    • Go to servers > virtual directories and select "PowerShell" and edit. Here you will be able to note the External URL.