How to configure Outlook to a specific global catalog

server or to the closest global catalog server

View products that this article applies to.
This article was previously published under Q319206
For a Microsoft Outlook 2000 version of this article, see 272290 .
Expand all | Collapse all

SYMPTOMS

In some situations, you may notice excessive network traffic when Microsoft Outl...

In some situations, you may notice excessive network traffic when Microsoft Outlook attempts to
contact the global catalog server.

This article describes how to configure Outlook to a specific global catalog server or to the closest
global catalog server.

Note If the global catalog server and the Exchange Server computer are in the same site as the
Outlook client, you do not need to make this registry setting. The normal referral mechanism
provides the best performance.
Back to the top

CAUSE

This behavior occurs when the Exchange Server computer (where the Outlook client is homed) and

the global catalog server are both located in a site that is remote from the Outlook client location.

Back to the top

WORKAROUND

Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry.

However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure

that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify

it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back

up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft

Knowledge Base:

322756 How to back up and restore the registry in Windows

How to set the closest global catalog server

To have us set the closest global catalog server for you, go to the "Fix it for me" section. To set

the closest global catalog server yourself, go to the "Let me fix it myself" section.

Fix it for me
 To set the closest global catalog server automatically, click the Fix it button or link. Click Run in

the File Download dialog box, and then follow the steps in the Fix it wizard.

Fix this problem

Microsoft Fix it 50353

Note this wizard may be in English only; however, the automatic fix also works for other language

versions of Windows.

Note if you are not on the computer that has the problem, save the Fix it solution to a flash drive or

a CD and then run it on the computer that has the problem.

Let me fix it myself

Use the following steps to force Outlook to identify and use the closest global catalog server

yourself.

1. Click Start, and then click Run.

2. In the Open box, type regedit.exe, and then click OK.

3. Locate and then click the following key in the registry:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Exchange\Exchange Provider

Note You may have to create the registry path.

4. On the Edit menu, click Add Value, and then add the following registry value:

Value name: Closest GC

Data type: REG_DWORD

Radix: Hexadecimal

Value data: 0x00000001

5. Quit Registry Editor.

How to set a specific global catalog server

In other topologies, you may want to force Outlook to communicate with a specific global

catalog server, not necessarily the global catalog server that is closest to the Outlook client.

Note although you can manually change the registry parameter in the MAPI profile, it is overwritten

the next time that you start Outlook.

To force Outlook to use a pre-defined global catalog server, use the following steps to set the

following special registry parameter to point to the Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN). Doing this

over-rides any setting in the MAPI profile.

1. Click Start, and then click Run.

2. In the Open box, type regedit.exe, and then click OK.

3. Locate and then click the following key in the registry:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Exchange\Exchange Provider

Note You may have to create the registry path.

4. On the Edit menu, click Add Value, and then add the following registry value:

Value name: DS Server

Data type: REG_SZ (string)

Value data: FQDN of the global catalog server

5. Quit Registry Editor. If Outlook stops responding after you set the closest global catalog

server or set a specific global catalog server, Outlook returns to the DSProxy process on the

Exchange 2000 server and requests a new referral. The following are two possible

limitations if you configure Outlook to a specific global catalog server:

• The client-detected global catalog server may be out of date or semi-functional. If the

global catalog server is having problems but still responds to Named Service Provider

Interface (NSPI) requests, Outlook may not stop responding, and Outlook may return to the

DSProxy for a new referral.

• In multidomain environments, the global catalog server that you select may not be in the

same domain as group objects in the Active Directory directory service. Therefore, users

cannot update group membership because the local global catalog server has a read-only
 copy of the group.

This behavior can also affect how you add delegate permissions to a third party's account.

This behavior was recently changed so that you receive an error message when the "Send

on Behalf Of" permission is not written. For more information, click the following article

number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

913807 Description of the update for Outlook 2003: March 14, 2006

Back to the top

MORE INFORMATION

For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft

Knowledge Base:

317209 How to identify your global catalog server using Outlook 2000 and Outlook 2002

Back to the top

The information in this article was derived from the "Understanding and Troubleshooting Directory

Access" white paper. To view this white paper, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=C976433F-F979-4745-B7A6-

9D8446EF6409&displaylang=en

Back to the top

APPLIES TO

• Microsoft Office Outlook 2007

• Microsoft Office Outlook 2003

• Microsoft Outlook 2002 Standard Edition

Back to the top

Keywords: kbmsifixme kbfixme kbregistry kbconfig kbhowto kbprb KB319206
Back to the top