Score:0

Why is autodiscover getting the wrong server?

us flag

Outlook clients are popping up the "do you want to allow this server" autodiscover box, but with the wrong server name in it. It pops up with a server name that is gone years ago. All our DNS (internal and external as we're split zone) clearly have the current server specified for autodiscover. I've gone as far as searching registries, other DNS zones, policies, etc and can find no trace of this old server name. Any clues on common places it could be incorrectly picking it up?

Score:2
cn flag

there are so many factors, that there are tools to help you find them: https://testconnectivity.microsoft.com/tests/exchange

Or from Outlook itself:

  • Press and hold CTRL and then right-click the Outlook icon in the system tray or notification area on the lower-right corner of the screen.
  • From the menu, select Test E-mail AutoConfiguration.

enter image description here

us flag
That's pretty cool. Everything that showed up in the various tabs was correct. No sign of the rogue server name. However, it never fully completed either. It said it would take a minute to run. 30 minutes later and the bar is at probably 98% and still flashing...
Jos Verlinde avatar
cn flag
Then it would be worth checking with wireshark/fiddler to see where it is getting hung up on. Or work down the discovery tree , starting with the SCP registration that might still have the old servername configures on the CAS. Also check the client for GPOs/policy settings or generated outlook profiles that might have been 'hardcoded' to use the old/replaced servername. https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/troubleshoot/profiles-and-accounts/unexpected-autodiscover-behavior
us flag
For reasons unknown, https://autodiscover.domain.com:443/Autodiscover/Autodiscover.xml fails. The Autodiscover XML file is in the right place, DNS resolves fine, and IIS is setup to bind * and I see Autodiscover in the target... I imagine if that would work my problem would go away even though I can still find no trace of the old server name after going through the above doc.
Score:1
us flag

Agree with what Jos Verlinde has replied above, for further troubleshooting, you could run EXRCA to test autodiscover and it will give more configuration information. And I suggest you to confirm the DNS record especial CNAME record.

In addition, I want to confirm something with you:

  • What is the version of your exchange server?
  • Does this issue occur to internal users or external users?
us flag
Version 2016. Both internal and external users are impacted.
us flag
Oddly EXRCA fails miserably to connect to our servers, but picks up the correct server name to try...
Joy Zhang avatar
us flag
Could you provide detailed error messages for further troubleshooting? Please overwrite your private information.
Joy Zhang avatar
us flag
Refer to the blog and check if these methods work for you: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/troubleshoot/profiles-and-accounts/unexpected-autodiscover-behavior
Jayce avatar
au flag
You could mark the useful one as Answer
us flag
@Jayce Still poking at this issue (it's a low priority so I only get a few minutes here and there), not yet sure which answer to accept.
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