DOCUMENT:Q151689  27-MAR-1999  [exchange]
TITLE   :XADM: Error Starting Key Management Server
PRODUCT :Microsoft Exchange
PROD/VER:winnt:4.0,5.0
OPER/SYS:
KEYWORDS:kbusage

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The information in this article applies to:

 - Microsoft Exchange Server, versions 4.0, 5.0 
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SUMMARY
=======

When starting the Microsoft Exchange Key Management Server (KM Server) the
following error is received.

   The Microsoft Exchange Key Manager service returned service specific error 1

The Windows NT Event Log might have the following error message.

   The Exchange KM service failed to start. Ensure that the KMSMSG.DLL and
   KMSERVER.EXE files have the same version and are in the same location and
   that you have provided the KM server password in the startup parameters in
   the services panel.

MORE INFORMATION
================

There are two main reasons why the above error message can be generated:

 - The service account for KM Server is wrong or the password for the system
   account is wrong.

 - The password for the KM service startup parameters was not specified and the
   KM Server floppy is not accessible. The floppy disk might not be present
   because the option to create a KM Server floppy disk might not have been
   selected during installation of the KM Server

To correct this problem, verify that the system account for the Microsoft
Exchange Key Manager service is the same account being used by the Microsoft
Exchange Directory service.

This problem can also occur if, during the installation of the Microsoft Exchange
KM Server, an error was encountered writing the data to the floppy drive.

The password for the Key Manager startup parameters must be entered every time
the KM service is started . This is the password that was received during
installation of the KM server. This password can be stored on a floppy which is
in the drive every time the KM server is started. This floppy should have a file
called Kmspwd.ini with the following information:

   [config]
   pwd=<14 character password>

For example:

   [config]
   pwd=ABCDEFGHIJKLMN


Additional query words:

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Keywords          : kbusage 
Technology        : kbExchangeSearch kbExchange500 kbExchange400 kbZNotKeyword2
Version           : winnt:4.0,5.0

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