When you're setting up SQLMail, messing up is easy. To help you avoid trouble, here are some
common problems to watch out for when you configure SQLMail functionality.
MSSQLSERVER Domain Account
Start the SQL Server service with a valid domain account that has local administrative
privileges. You can configure this setting in Control Panel, Services. Click Startup, and choose the
appropriate name and password.
Be sure to stop and start the MSSQLSERVER service to test the account. In larger domains, newly
created accounts might not replicate immediately, causing a logon error when you start the service.
Use the Server Manager application to synchronize the server with the domain controller, or wait a
few minutes to give the account a chance to propagate.
Basic Connectivity
Make sure that the Exchange client or MSMAIL client on the NT SQL Server have basic send and
receive mail capability outside SQL Server. If you can't exchange messages with the basic client
tools, SQLMail won't work. When you start the SQLMail service in Enterprise Manager, SQL Error
17903, "MAPI Login Failure," can indicate connectivity problems. Run the SQL Server setup
program, select Server options, and make sure that the mail user account and password (or Exchange
profile names, depending on your configuration) are correct.
Exchange Profile Settings
If you're using an Exchange Server, configure the profile setup on the NT SQL Server for the
Exchange client with the Exchange Server service and personal address book. Don't install personal
folders because doing so will affect the mail delivery location. Use the Mail icon from Control
Panel, Networks to modify the Exchange client properties.
Postoffice Issues
The most common problem when you use Windows NT postoffices is insufficient privileges to the
postoffice shared directory. Use xp_cmdshell to ensure that the SQL Server has full permission to
the postoffice share. Log on to the SQL Server using the System Administrator account and issue the
command
xp_cmdshell "dir\\mailserver\poshare"
If the directory listing is returned successfully, permissions are OK. For more information
about troubleshooting SQLMail postoffices, see the Microsoft Knowledge Base article Q118501 at
http://www.microsoft.com/kb.