Error While Deleting The Default Mailbox Database In Exchange 2010…

When an Exchange 2010 mailbox role is installed, a default mailbox database is created. In Exchange 2007, the default database is named “Mailbox Database” whereas in 2010, it comes with a random numbering at the end of the “Mailbox Database” name. This is to make the mailbox database name unique. Mine is named “Mailbox Database 1697561822”.

As most of the admins, my first instinct is to remove the default database and create ones with my company’s naming convention or the names of my choice. I created a new database named “MD1” and tried deleting the default one, only to be greeted with the error below.

“This mailbox database contains one or more mailboxes or arbitration mailboxes. Before you can remove this mailbox database, you must disable, move or remove user mailboxes and move arbitration mailboxes.

Technet explains arbitration mailboxes as the mailboxes used for managing approval workflow. For example, an arbitration mailbox is used for handling moderated recipients and distribution group membership approval.

I moved my user mailboxes to another database and ran the following command to find the arbitration mailboxes.

Get-Mailbox –Database “Mailbox Database 1697561822” –arbitration

I moved the arbitration mailboxes as well to the second database with the command below.

Get-Mailbox –Database “Mailbox Database 1697561822” –arbitration | New-MoveRequest –TargetDatabase MD1

I confirmed that the arbitration mailboxes were successfully moved using the Get-MoveRequest cmdlet.

Once the mailbox move was completed, I could delete my default database!