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Email Server Downtime FAQ's - February 2011

On Thursday 24th February 2011 the email server went down. Following the implementation of the interim email server we have been asked many questions so we have summarised as much as we can in the following FAQ.

When will the normal webmail be back up and running?

We are still working towards a fix for the failed components and timescales for returning email services to normal are estimated as follows.

  • Currently we have in place an emergency email server for the purpose of sending and receiving emails only – there is no access to emails stored prior to the downtime.
  •  At 17:00 Friday 4 March the emergency server will be taken off line. By 09.00 on Saturday 5 March an interim server will be brought back online containing:

  1. All your emails, in their folders, up to Sunday 20 February.

  2. All your emails from lunchtime Thursday 24 February onwards.

  3. Those emails from between Sunday and Thursday that can be recovered. Unfortunately we do expect some to have become corrupt beyond recovery.

  • New email storage equipment is being purchased and should be in place by the end of March. This will allow the University to return to having both a main and back-up email server.

Please keep checking our news page and twitter feed for updates.

All my past emails appear to have been deleted?

Due to the disruption we have encountered it is not currently possible to view previous emails or folders using the interim solution. 

However, at 17:00 on Friday 4 March the emergency server will be taken off line. By 09.00 on Saturday 5 March an interim server will be brought back online containing:

  1. All your emails, in their folders, up to Sunday 20 February.

  2. All your emails from lunchtime Thursday 24 February onwards.

  3. Those emails from between Sunday and Thursday that can be recovered. Unfortunately we do expect some to have become corrupt beyond recovery.

Will the previously stored e-mails be available again once the system is working?

Yes where possible we will be recovering stored email and once we have a more permanent solution in place we will begin transferring this back to your email account.

I forwarded my Uni emails to a personal email account - what should I do now?

If you have forwarded emails to your personal email please remember to turn this off at  https://www.bath.ac.uk/account/cas-bin/forwardmail. If you did not tick the ‘Keep a copy’ check box option you may wish to forward your emails back to your University email account.

I need an important email that was sent before the downtime can you restore this?

Not at this time. We are hoping to restore as many as we can by 09.00 on Saturday 5 March. However, we would suggest if possible that you ask the person / company concerned to resend the email.

I am expecting an important email from an external email address - will I receive this?

Yes emails sent during and since the downtime last week will be delivered to your interim Inbox as normal, however if you believe the email was sent before 12noon on Thursday 24th February you may wish to ask the person / company to resend it.

I have important research data stored within the folders of my Bath e-mail account - can I access this?

Due to the disruption we have encountered it is not currently possible to view previous emails or folders using the interim solution. 

However, at 17:00 on Friday 4 March the emergency server will be taken off line. By 09.00 on Saturday 5 March an interim server will be brought back online containing:

  1. All your emails, in their folders, up to Sunday 20 February.

  2. All your emails from lunchtime Thursday 24 February onwards.

  3. Those emails from between Sunday and Thursday that can be recovered. Unfortunately we do expect some to have become corrupt beyond recovery.

I seem to have removed my inbox by mistake?

This is not something you have done, this is part of the interim email solution.

Is it safe to move files into my (now empty) folders until things are restored?

Yes it is safe to move things into existing email folders or to create new folders, once the permanent solution is working we will be merging your old emails with the interim system so you will still have access to them.