If an Exchange Server database doesn't undergo proper shutdown, it remains attached to its associated transaction log stream. Exchange identifies this state of database as 'Dirty Shutdown'. This simply means all the data from the transaction log stream has not securely committed to the database files. You can examine the database state using eseutil/ mh command that examines the database header information. At next startup, Exchange detects this problem and applies the required logs to the database. In this situation if you remove the transaction logs, the database loses the ability to mount and cannot be restored unless you apply a backup or use some Exchange Server Repair utilities to repair it.

As one of the practical problems of such problems, you may find an Exchange database failing to mount. Also, you receive an error that reads similar to below:

Operation terminated with error -550
JET_errDatabaseDirtyShutdown, Database was not shutdown cleanly. Recovery must first be run to properly complete database operations for the previous shutdown

The error indicates that you cannot access Exchange database.

Cause

Error 'JET_errDatabaseDirtyShutdown' occurs when database exists in improper shutdown or inconsistent state. It doesn't always mean database corruption, but might show that the database requires log files to be replayed.

Another error 'JET_errDatabaseInconsistent' also has the same numeric value as of the above mentioned error.

Solution

To solve the depicted issue, you need to implement the following measures:

eseutil /p is a hard repair command and checks each 4 KB database page for errors. If it finds errors that it cannot correct, it simply discards the page and proceeds further. Thus the command can cause serious data loss. To avoid this, you are suggested to use a safer Exchange Repair program. The EDB Repair utilities scan the corrupted database and repair it using powerful, yet safe, algorithms.

Exchange Repair Tool is a reliable utility that repairs corrupted Exchange database and restores the mailboxes in *.pst files. The Exchange repair software features selective mailbox recovery. The easy to use EDB Repair utility supports Exchange Server 5.5, 2000, 2003, and 2007. The software is compatible with Windows 7, Vista, XP, 2003, and 2000.