Mimecast Synchronization Engine - Requirements

This article describes the requirements needed to install the Mimecast Synchronization Engine (MSE) successfully.

To better understand the MSE requirements, we recommend reading this page in conjunction with the considerations highlighted in the article for specific tasks you may be looking to implement: Exchange Tasks.

Supported Environments

Supported Operating Systems

Platform

Windows Server 2022

Windows Server 2019

Windows Server 2016

Windows Server 2012 R2

Windows Server 2012

Application Servers & Platforms

Platform	Mailbox Folder Replication	Calendar Replication	Mailbox Storage Management	Exchange Managed Folders	Instant Messaging Archiving	Active Directory Sync (requires Windows Server 2012 R2+)	Mimecast Permissions/Delegate Sync
Exchange 2019	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A	N/A	Yes
Exchange 2016	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A	N/A	Yes
Exchange 2013	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A	N/A	Yes
Microsoft 365 Hybrid	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A	N/A	Yes
Microsoft 365 Standalone	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A	N/A	Yes
Lync 2013	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Yes	N/A	N/A
Lync 2010	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Yes	N/A	N/A
Skype for Business 2015 On-Premises	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Yes	N/A	N/A
Skype for Business Online	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	No	N/A	N/A
Microsoft Teams for Business* (supported by Mimecast MS Teams Sync)	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

*Teams is available as an optional email add-on Mimecast for Teams.

Hardware Requirements

The recommended hardware requirements for a Mimecast Synchronization Engine site vary depending on the following factors:

• Total number of Scheduled Tasks.
• Task Type.
• Schedule Frequency.

The minimum hardware requirements for a Mimecast Synchronization Engine site, in addition to the host operating systems requirements, are:

Components	Description
Processor	2+ cores @ 2Ghz
Memory	4GB RAM (8GB if Running Mimecast Delegate Sync (MDS))
Disk	At least 40 GB of available disk space on the drive where the application is installed. It is recommended that: The default path for state and log file directories can be changed during installation. During operation, additional disk space is allocated for state, logs, cache, and temporary files.

Software Requirements

The following software is required for the Mimecast Synchronization Engine to install:

• PowerShell 5.1 or later
• .NET Framework v4.5.2 or later
• Exchange Online PowerShell v3 (EXO V3)

Network Requirements

The following network requirements must be considered:

• Mimecast Synchronization Engine must be able to communicate externally from your network to the Mimecast platform over HTTPS via a TLS v1.2 or TLS v1.3 encrypted connection.
• The global discovery and regional service endpoints must be accessible from the server hosting Mimecast Synchronization Engine, with the global discovery endpoint accessible during the binding process and the customer's respective regional service endpoint accessible during normal operation.

The global discovery endpoint destination below is used during the binding process and will need to be permitted where restrictions on outbound traffic are in place:

• https://api.mimecast.com

In addition, your regional service endpoint must be permitted where restrictions on outbound traffic are in place:

• Europe (excluding Germany): https://eu-api.mimecast.com
• Germany: https://de-api.mimecast.com
• United States of America: https://us-api.mimecast.com
• United States of America B Grid: https://usb-api.mimecast.com
• Canada: https://ca-api.mimecast.com
• South Africa: https://za-api.mimecast.com
• Australia: https://au-api.mimecast.com
• Offshore: https://jer-api.mimecast.com

Firewall & Proxy Considerations

The following firewall and proxy points must be considered:

• If your organization uses a proxy server or web filtering services, you should know that the NETWORK SERVICE account will initiate communications. Where proxy settings are enforced, ensure this is factored in during your implementation.
• An increase in the connection timeout period for half-open connections may be required to prevent issues related to connection timeouts.

Host Server Considerations

The Mimecast Synchronization Engine must be installed on a member or standalone server. The decision on where to host the Mimecast Synchronization Engine depends heavily on the features that will be provisioned on the server.

The Mimecast Synchronization Engine should not be installed on an Exchange server, domain controller, or any other line of business application server (e.g., SQL server).

Active Directory Synchronization Considerations

When provisioning a Mimecast Synchronization Engine site for Active Directory synchronization, the recommended location must be on the same LAN as a dedicated Domain Controller. This ensures the best performance for larger deployments.

Active Directory Synchronization is supported for On-Premise Active Directory environments. Microsoft 365/ Microsoft Azure AD environments will need to build a Directory Sync integration.See Azure Active Directory Integration.

On-Premises Exchange Considerations

Applies to: Mailbox folder replication, calendar replication, mailbox storage management, and exchange-managed folders.

With On-Premises Exchanges, the following must be considered:

• The Mimecast Synchronization Engine must be installed on the same LAN as the Exchange servers while accessing Active Directory Domain Services to resolve objects, etc. Failed tasks and delays in the time scheduled tasks take to execute may be observed if either Exchange or Active Director becomes unavailable.
• Access to a domain controller with the global catalog may be required in certain deployments.
• Ensure a fast and reliable connection from the Mimecast Synchronization Engine site to the target data source (e.g., Microsoft 365, Exchange, File Servers, SQL Server, Active Directory, etc.).

Instant Messaging (IM) Archiving Considerations

The Mimecast Synchronization Engine should ideally be installed on the same LAN as the SQL servers hosting the Lync archive database you wish to archive. Failure to do so may result in a degradation in performance.abc

For IM archiving tasks, take note of the user account that the Mimecast Synchronization Engine Windows service is running under before upgrading from 2.9.x to 4. x. After the upgrade, change the Mimecast Synchronization Engine Windows service account from NETWORK SERVICE to the user account used for 2.9.x Windows service.

Service Account Requirements

The Windows Service account under which the Mimecast Synchronization Engine service runs requires the English locale. For this reason, we recommend installing the Mimecast Synchronization Engine on a server set up via the US / UK English installer media and configuring the server to use the English time format settings.

Review this configuration to ensure that the Mimecast API can effectively translate any communications received from your server environment by following the steps below:

1. Click on the Start button.
2. Navigate to your Control Panel.
3. Click on the Clock and/or Region icon.
4. Either:

• • Click on the Region link (Windows 10 or Windows 8).
  • Click on the Region and Language link (Windows 7).

5. Ensure the Format is set to "English(United States)."
6. Click on the Administrative tab.
7. Ensure the Current Language for Non-Unicode Programs is set to English (United States).

Supported Group Types

The Mimecast Synchronization Engine supports the following group types:

• Security.
• Distribution, but they must not be hidden from the Global Address List.
• Dynamic distribution, except when scoped to either the domain or forest level.

The following methods of grouping users are unsupported by the Mimecast Synchronization Engine for exchange service tasks:

• Organizational Units

Supported Group Types

Group Type	Microsoft 365 Standalone	On-Prem	Microsoft 365 / On-Prem Hybrid
Active Directory Security Group	No	Yes	Yes
Exchange Distribution List	Yes	Yes	Yes
Mail Enabled Security Group	Yes	Yes	Yes
Exchange Dynamic Distribution Group	Yes	Yes	Yes

Next Steps

Once you understand the requirements and what is needed for a successful Mimecast Synchronization Engine installation for your environment, you must install the Mimecast Synchronization Engine client software.

>> Installation & Upgrade >>