Exchange 2016 DNS Settings

MX Records

The MX records tells DNS servers on the internet where your IP address or, in an exchange environment, where our servers, are located. So DNS servers know where to send incoming messages to. Without proper MX records, mail will be delivered to a previously known mail server prior to migration, or will either simply remain ignored without being delivered, or be returned with a failure notification as the current valid mail address/server cannot be found.

In your clients DNS settings set up the following MX records:

• inboundcluster1.giacomcp.com              pref/priority 10
• inboundcluster2.giacomcp.com              pref/priority 10
• inboundcluster3.giacomcp.com              pref/priority 20
• inboundcluster4.giacomcp.com              pref/priority 20

PLEASE NOTE: Ensure that these are the only MX records applied to the domain name.

CNAME Autodiscover Record

The CNAME Autodiscover entry is needed in order for Exchange 2016 and Outlook 2013/2016 to function properly. 

Please note: Using Outlook 2007 is not recommended with the Exchange 2016 environment and may not function correctly

This would especially relate to:

• Free/Busy information in your calendar
• Out of office messages setup in Outlook.
• IMPORTANT - Proper syncing of Offline Address Book – which is what your exchange environment uses instead of the Global Address Book (GAL)
• For externally connected clients (roaming users) the SSL certificate must include the CNAME Autodiscover record.
• IMPORTANT - Outlook Anywhere - required for devices and mobiles etc.
• IMPORTANT - Exchange ActiveSync
• Unified Messaging

The Autodiscover service uses a user's e-mail address and password to automatically configure a user's profile. Using the e-mail address, the Autodiscover service provides the following information to the mail client:

• The user’s display name.
• Separate connection settings for internal and external connectivity.
• The location of the user’s Mailbox server.
• The URLs for various Outlook features that manage functionality such as OOF, free/busy information, Unified Messaging, and the offline address book.
• Outlook Anywhere server settings.

In your client's DNS settings set up the following CNAME record:

  
• autodiscover.yourdomain pointing to autodiscover.giacomcp.com

OWA white labelling


In order to whitelabel OWA access for the 2016 Environment please add a CNAME as follows


webmail.yourdomainname.com CNAME webmailrd.giacomcp.com


SPF Record

IMPORTANT: the type 99 SPF record has been deprecated and is no longer recognised by many mail providers. The recommendation is to use a TXT record (type 16).

The SPF record is necessary due to the fact that a significant majority of spam comes from forged addresses. A Sender Policy Framework (SPF) standard is being implemented by a number of ISPs and mail hosts, including several major providers (Hotmail, Yahoo, AOL and cloud-based hosting providers etc). Those providers require SPF to be used in order to allow mail through their networks. Mail systems need SPF records for their domains if they want their mail to be accepted by those providers. If no SPF record is in place your domain emails will be flagged and scored as high probability spam items and will not get delivered to the intended recipients.

In your clients DNS settings set up the following TXT record: include:spf.giacomcp.com

The TXT record should resolve to: v=spf1 include:spf.giacomcp.com -all

Important:

• If an existing TXT (SPF) record exists,  then you need to add include:spf.giacomcp.com into the current record before the "-all" part of the syntax. For instance v=spf1 ip:xx.xx.xx.xx include:spf.giacomcp.com -all
• Any other servers that are allowed to send for the domain will have to be included this way as well.

Related Guides

• Basic mailbox settings for Outlook and other email clients (POP/IMAP)
• Diagnostics log collection in Support and Recovery Assistant
• Add an Outlook.com or Office 365 account
• How to Create Email Account in the Control Panel
• Groups naming policy