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The Exchange admin center (EAC) is the modern-day web-based management console for managing recent versions of the Exchange Server. It replaces the Exchange Control Panel (ECP) that allows you to control your mail settings. There are times when you try to launch EAC, and you’re stopped by a message saying, “Could not load file or assembly.”
This means you ‘cannot access ECP on new Exchange 2019 server,’ and further communication won’t be possible.
There are chances that errors can crop up when you migrate or update the previous version of your Exchange Server to the recent one. One such errors we found while running EAC after the update is mentioned here:
Description: An error occurred during the processing of a configuration file required to service this request. Please review the specific error details below and modify your configuration file appropriately.
Line 36: <compilation defaultLanguage=”c#” debug=”false”>
Line 37: <assemblies>
Line 38: <add assembly=”Microsoft.Exchange.HttpRedirectModules, Version=15.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35″ />
Line 39: </assemblies>
Line 40: </compilation>
In this blog, we’ll give the best approaches for efficient Exchange database recovery and the reasons why this error occurs while working on Exchange Server.
Why does the ‘’Cannot access ECP on new Exchange 2019 Server’’ error occur?
Several things can result in this ECP inaccessibility error. Some common reasons include:
- Admin mailbox missing: Either the administrator doesn’t have any mailboxes in Exchange 2019, or there’s an issue with the configuration of Arbitration mailboxes.
- Certificate issues: The OAuth/Auth certificate assigned to your Exchange mailbox has expired.
- Security updates: Recent security updates and bug fixes can also cause errors with the ECP.
- Corrupt configuration file: Corruption in the configuration file can cause cannot access ECP error.
Approaches to fix “Cannot access ECP on new Exchange 2019 Server”
When you find an issue like this, there is never a single cause behind it. You need to check what the actual issue is with different approaches and then find a solution to fix cannot access ECP on new Exchange 2019 Server and repair EDB files. Here are the conditions you must verify to resolve the issue:
Is OWA working fine?
Outlook Web Access, or Outlook on the Web, is a web-based email client that allows users to send and receive email messages just like MS Outlook. Before you proceed to find a solution to fix the error, validate if OWA in your MS Office 365 is working.
Sometimes, OWA and EAC become inaccessible after a Cumulative Update (CU) or migration to an updated version. However, if OWA is working completely fine, there is a problem with the EAC mainly.
Did you try with other browsers and accounts?
Try accessing the Exchange admin center with other admin accounts, different web browsers, and local servers in your organization. It will provide a clear picture of the issue, showing if the error is in one single account or the EAC of your Office 365 account.
Check EcpVirtualDirectory
The ECP Virtual Directory works for the on-premises Exchange. Use the command “Get-EcpVirtualDirectory” to view the ECP Virtual Directory used in the Internet Information Services of Microsoft Exchange.
The Exchange Control Panel Virtual Directory is used in EAC. The EAC virtual directories and the connected cmdlets in Exchange Server 2013 and Exchange Server 2016 still have ECP in the name. You can use the cmdlets for ECP virtual directory management on Exchange 2010, 2013, and 2016 servers.
Run the following syntax in the Power management shell:
The command won’t provide output if you do not have the required permissions assigned to your account, so make sure to have them before running it.
Did you migrate from Exchange 2013 to Exchange 2019?
Sometimes, when you migrate from Exchange 2013 to Exchange 2019, the arbitration mailboxes remain untouched. This can become a hurdle to access the admin center in the updated Exchange.
Arbitration mailboxes are the system mailboxes that require migration before moving to the recent version of the Exchange server. These mailboxes store organizational data, such as audit logs and unified messaging data. Move your arbitration mailbox to Exchange 2019 or create a local mailbox on Exchange 2019 and make it the organization admin.
Automated solution to fix cannot access ECP error
An error like the Cannot access ECP error can affect productivity negatively and, in worst cases, can even lead to data loss. The best option to recover your data is to save it in a reliable format like PST. Using a professional tool is the best option for this task.
Recover or migrate your data with the help of an advanced EDB to PST Converter tool. Kernel for EDB to PST supports easy data migration from one Exchange Online to another, converts EDB to PST and other destinations, and recovers lost databases and mailboxes. Also, this tool is the perfect choice for migration of corrupt EDB files with 100% accuracy.
Conclusion
Learning about these approaches to Exchange will help you find the basis of the error occurring in EAC. It will help you to fix the ‘cannot access ECP on new Exchange 2019 server’ issue and perform the required functionalities to restore communication and improve overall productivity.
When no other solution is helping, get Exchange Server recovery software, restore your mailbox and other data, set up a new Exchange server, and start working again with the same flow as it was earlier when you were using previous versions. Download the demo version of the software to get an idea about how it works, and then buy it for your organization.
Frequently asked questions
Ans. Start with basic checks before making any major changes. Make sure to verify IIS and Exchange Services are running, confirm the SSL certificate is valid and assigned to IIS, and review event viewer logs. Avoid recreating virtual directories unless necessary.
Ans. Yes. Incorrect NTFS permissions or disabled Exchange services can prevent ECP from loading properly. Always make sure required services are running and permissions are intact.
