How can I change the POP3 banner seen when connecting to my Exchange server?
MS KB article 303513 has more:
When you connect to an Exchange 2000/2003 server with the Post Office Protocol (POP) you receive a banner that is similar to the following:
Microsoft Exchange 2003 POP3 server version 6.0.4417.0 (your_server_name) ready.
Note: The POP3 banner has another function. Read Remote Version Checking through SMTP/POP3/IMAP4.
Note: You may also want to Change the IMAP4 Banner, Change the SMTP Banner or Change the Telnet Banner.
WARNING: If you use the ADSI Edit snap-in, the LDP utility, or any other LDAP version 3 client, and you incorrectly modify the attributes of Active Directory objects, you can cause serious problems. These problems may require you to reinstall Microsoft Windows 2000/2003 Server, Microsoft Exchange 2000/2003 Server, or both. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems that occur if you incorrectly modify Active Directory object attributes can be solved. Modify these attributes at your own risk.
This may be an issue if you do not want the version of the SMTP service that is running on your server to be displayed. To remove the version information from the Windows 2000 SMTP banner, follow these steps:
Note: The following screenshots were taken on a Windows Server 2003 computer running Exchange 2003. I bet you can find your way on a similar W2K + E2K computer.
- Using a metabase editing tool such as MetaEdit or Metabase Explorer, locate the following file:
LmPOP3SVCvirtual server number
- Click Edit, click New, and then click String Record.
- Verify that the entry in the ID box is Other, and then type 41661 (decimal) on the right side of the ID box.
- In the Data box, type the banner that you want to be displayed. Or, if you’re using Windows Server 2003 and the IIS 6.0 version of Metaedit, double click the new value you’ve added and enter the text you want to be displayed.
- Stop, and then restart the POP3 virtual server or the POP3 service.
- To confirm that the banner has been changed, telnet to port 110 of the virtual server (the default setting). The original banner should no longer be displayed.
Related articles
You might also want to read the following related articles:
- Block Incoming Internet Mail to Specific Users or Groups
- Change the IMAP4 Banner
- Change the SMTP Banner
- Change the Telnet Banner
- Configure IIS to be a Smart Host for Exchange
- Configure MX Records for Incoming SMTP E-Mail Traffic
- Message Protocols Used by Exchange 2000/2003
- Ports used by Exchange Server
- Preventing Exchange 2000/2003 from Relaying
- Quickly Send Email Messages
- Remote Version Checking through SMTP/POP3/IMAP4
- Send Mail from Script
- Send Mail (from the Tools and Scripts section)
- SMTP, POP3 and Telnet in Exchange 2000/2003
- Test SMTP Service in IIS and Exchange
Links
How to Modify the POP or IMAP Banner – 303513
How to Modify the SMTP Banner – 281224
MetaEdit 2.2 is available for download by clicking the following Microsoft link:
MetaEdit 2.2 (2.52mb)
Metabase Explorer 1.6 is a part of the IIS 6.0 Resource Kit which can be downloaded here:
IIS 6.0 Resource Kit Tools (6mb)