With the development of OAB version 4 in Exchange 2003 SP2 and Outlook 2003 SP2 you may want to verify your Outlook clients are using OAB version 4. If your clients are still using OAB version 3 they cannot take advantage of all the new features offered by OAB version 4.
There are several ways to determine the OAB version used by Outlook. The method you employ is a function of your environment, skillset, and level of redundant verification.
NOTE: The methods below assume you are using Outlook 2003 SP2. If you are using an earlier version of Outlook, this information is not relevant.
Method 1: Application Event Log
Probably the easiest way to determine the OAB version in use on the Outlook client is to utilized the Application Event log on the client. Use the following steps to determine the OAB version.
- In Outlook, point to Send/Receive on the Tools menu and then click Download Address Book.
- Select the appropriate address book (if necessary) and then click OK.
- Wait for the OAB to finish downloading.
- Right-click My Computer and then click Manage.
- In Computer Management expand System Tools and then Event Viewer.
- Select the Application event log.
- On the View menu click Filter.
- Enter 27 in the Event ID box and then click OK.
- Examine the Event 27 entries where the Source = Outlook. Locate the entry with the latest date and where the Description contains "OAB download succeeded".
- In the Data section, scroll down until you see the line for 0050.
- Examine the fifth byte on this row. This value indicates the OAB version in use on the client.
If you see a value of 04 in this data you are using OAB version 4 and if you see a value of 03 you are using OAB version 3.
Method 2: Full/No Details Download
In OAB version 4 there is only one type of OAB download - Full Details. Even though you can specify a No Details download, Outlook 2003 SP2 always performs a Full Details download if you are using OAB version 4. So, the logic is that if Outlook performs a No Details download it cannot possibly be using OAB version 4.
To verify the OAB version using this approach, use the following steps.
- Go to the following folder on the Outlook client:
\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook
- Delete all *.oab files in this folder (there are at most 6 files with an .oab extension).
- In Outlook point to Send/Receive on the Tools menu and then click Download Address Book.
- Under Information to download select No Details and click OK.
- Wait for the OAB download to finish.
- Go to the following folder on the Outlook client:
\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook
- Examine the *.oab files in the folder for the existence of Udetails.oab.
If the Udetails.oab file exists you are using OAB version 4 on the client. If the Udetails.oab file does not exist you are using OAB version 3.
Method 3: Compare GUID on client with server
This third method is by far the most complicated method of the three methods mentioned in this document. However, I felt compelled to mention it with the hope of spreading some knowledge on the architecture of the OAB.
Client GUID
To inspect the Offline Address Book GUID data, you can verify the client-side GUID under the following registry key.
HKCU \Software\Microsoft\Exchange\Exchange Provider
Registry Value(s) MOABU
Registry Type String
Registry Data
Exchange server GUID
You can also locate the Offline Address Book GUID on your Exchange server. To locate the GUID for the Offline Address Book on the Exchange server, use the following steps:
1. Start the MFCMAPI utility. You can get a copy of MFCMAPI from the following KB article.
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;291794
2. On the Session menu click Logon and Display Stores.
3. Select an Outlook profile if prompted, and then click OK.
4. Double-click Public Folders in the Display Name column.
5. Expand the following path in the tree:
Public Root\NON_IPM_SUBTREE\OFFLINE ADDRESS BOOK\<DN for OAL>
6. Double-click OAB Version 4.
7. Select any item in the window that appears. These are the messages that make up the Offline Address Book.
8. Locate the 0x6802001E property in the property pane. The GUID for the OAB is listed in the Value column.
If the value for the GUID in the registry of the client matches the value of the GUID displayed in MFCMAPI then the client is using OAB version 4.
For additional information about OAB version 4, please see the following KB article.
Information about the changes that occur to the Offline Address Book after you install Outlook 2003 SP2 and Exchange Server 2003 SP2
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;906559