What Is ManageEngine Exchange Reporter Plus?
ManageEngine Exchange Reporter Plus is a dedicated reporting, auditing, monitoring, and content search solution for Microsoft Exchange Server and Exchange Online (Microsoft 365), developed by ManageEngine — a division of Zoho Corporation and one of the world’s largest enterprise IT management software providers.
Exchange Reporter Plus solves the fundamental frustration of every Exchange administrator: Microsoft’s native tools — Exchange Admin Center and PowerShell — provide access to the data you need, but transforming that raw data into structured, presentable reports requires writing scripts, manually assembling spreadsheets, and hours of repetitive work. Exchange Reporter Plus eliminates all of that. With over 500 pre-built reports, any report can be generated with a single click, automatically scheduled, exported to PDF or Excel, and emailed to stakeholders on a recurring basis.
Supported platforms:
- Exchange Server 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019
- Exchange Server Subscription Edition (SE)
- Exchange Online (Microsoft 365 / Office 365)
- Hybrid Exchange environments — on-premises Exchange + Exchange Online simultaneously
- Skype for Business Server
Why Exchange Admins Need a Dedicated Reporting Tool
Before evaluating Exchange Reporter Plus specifically, it’s worth understanding why native Microsoft tools fall short for reporting:
The PowerShell problem: Every useful Exchange report — mailbox sizes, inactive accounts, non-owner access, permission changes — requires PowerShell scripting. For admins who run these reports once, the script has to be written, tested, and debugged. For recurring reports, automation requires additional infrastructure. This consumes significant engineering time.
Exchange Admin Center limitations: EAC provides operational views but not analytical reports. You can see current mailbox status, but you cannot easily generate trend data, top-sender rankings, historical traffic comparisons, or compliance-ready exports.
Audit log complexity: Exchange audit logs capture security events, but extracting meaningful information — who accessed whose mailbox and when, which permissions were changed, which mailboxes have unauthorized forwarding rules — requires deep expertise in Exchange log formats.
Exchange Reporter Plus addresses all of these gaps by sitting on top of your existing Exchange infrastructure and presenting everything through an intuitive web console without requiring any scripting knowledge.
Core Report Categories
1. Mailbox Reports
The most frequently used category in day-to-day Exchange administration:
Size and capacity planning:
- Mailbox Size Report — Current size of all mailboxes sorted by volume, with a top-10 bar chart for visual identification of storage-heavy users
- Mailbox Growth — Historical size trend per mailbox over a selected period; essential for storage forecasting
- Quota Usage — Current mailbox size relative to assigned quota; identifies mailboxes approaching limits before users experience disruption
- Archive Mailbox Size — Size of archive mailboxes and quota consumption
Status and activity:
- Inactive Mailboxes — Mailboxes with no activity beyond a configurable threshold (e.g., 30, 60, 90 days). Critical for reclaiming unused Microsoft 365 licenses
- Hidden Mailboxes — Mailboxes with visibility set to hidden; these don’t appear in Exchange address lists and are easy to miss in routine audits
- Disconnected Mailboxes — Detached but not yet permanently deleted mailboxes
- Soft Deleted Mailboxes — Recoverable deleted mailboxes with retention details
- Mailbox Enabled Users — Complete list of all users with active mailboxes
Delegation and permissions:
- Mailbox Permission Reports — Full breakdown of who has what access to each mailbox: Full Access, Send As, Send on Behalf of
- Delegated Mailboxes — All mailboxes with delegates assigned
- Email Forwarding — Users with auto-forwarding rules configured to external addresses. A critical security check — unauthorized forwarding is a common data exfiltration vector
Policies:
- Retention Policies — Which retention policies are assigned to which mailboxes
- Retention Tag Details — Expiration actions and tag parameters
2. Email Traffic Reports
Traffic analytics across your Exchange organization:
- Sent and Received Traffic — Message count and volume per user, with time-range filtering
- Emails Exchanged with External Domains — All communication with specific external domains; useful for monitoring vendor/competitor interactions and detecting anomalous outbound flows
- Top Senders / Top Recipients — Rankings of the most active mail users
- Messages by Size — Distribution of messages by attachment size; identify users regularly sending large files that strain infrastructure
- Number of Messages Sent and Received — Aggregate statistics by user, department, or domain
- Undelivered Emails — Summary of failed deliveries with reasons: invalid addresses, size limits exceeded, internal routing issues
- Email Delivery Failures — Classified delivery error report for proactive troubleshooting
3. Audit Reports
The security layer of Exchange Reporter Plus — tracking what happened, who did it, and when:
Mailbox access auditing:
- Non-Owner Mailbox Access — Records every instance of a user accessing someone else’s mailbox. Essential for insider threat detection and post-incident forensics
- Shared Mailbox Access — Detailed access log for shared/service mailboxes: who accessed, which operation, timestamp
- Admin Audit Logs — All administrative actions performed in Exchange: configuration changes, mailbox management operations
Permission change auditing:
- Mailbox Permission Changes — Every modification to mailbox access rights: who made the change, what was changed, when
- Send As / Send on Behalf Changes — Modifications to delegation permissions
- Distribution Group Membership Changes — Who was added to or removed from distribution lists
Logon auditing:
- Logon Activity — Comprehensive login statistics: successful/failed, IP address, browser, access method, timestamp
- Failed Logons — Failed authentication attempts; identify brute-force patterns or locked accounts
- OWA (Outlook Web Access) Logons — Web access logins filtered by user, browser, client IP, department
- Logons Outside Business Hours — Configurable business hours filter to surface after-hours access patterns
Infrastructure events:
- DAG Failover Reports — Database Availability Group failover events
- Public Folder Changes — Modifications to public folder structure and content
- Database Status Changes — Exchange database mount/dismount events
- Certificate Expiration Tracking — SSL certificate expiry monitoring across Exchange servers
4. Monitoring
Real-time and scheduled monitoring of Exchange health:
- Exchange Server Health Dashboard — Overall server status at a glance
- Mail Queue Monitoring — Current mail queue depth; detect delivery backlogs before they affect users
- Database Replication Status — DAG replication health
- ActiveSync Device Monitoring — Mobile device synchronization status across the organization
Alert Profiles: Exchange Reporter Plus allows you to define alert conditions and receive immediate notifications:
- Create conditions such as: “Email from external domain with attachment >20MB,” “5+ consecutive failed logons for any account,” “Mailbox quota exceeds 90%”
- Deliver alerts via email and SMS in real time
- Schedule audit profiles to run automatically at defined intervals
5. OWA (Outlook Web Access) Reports
- OWA Logons — Usage statistics for Outlook Web Access: active users, login frequency, trends
- OWA by Browser — Browser distribution across OWA users
- OWA by Client IP — Login locations by IP address; surface access from unexpected locations
- OWA by Department — Departmental usage breakdown
6. ActiveSync Reports (Mobile Device Management)
- ActiveSync Device Inventory — Complete inventory of all mobile devices syncing with Exchange, mapped to their corresponding mailboxes
- ActiveSync Policy Details — Which policies are applied to which devices
- Sync Status — Last sync timestamp per device
- ActiveSync by Platform — Device distribution by operating system (iOS, Android, Windows)
- Blocked Devices — Devices blocked from Exchange access by policy
7. Distribution List Reports
- Distribution List Members — Full member list for each distribution group
- Hidden Distribution Groups — Groups with hidden visibility flags
- Dynamic Distribution Groups — Auto-populated groups with LDAP filter details
- Nested Distribution Groups — Groups within groups; important for understanding inherited permissions
8. Public Folder Reports
- Public folder usage statistics
- Size growth over time
- Message traffic to public folders
- Public folder permission analysis
9. Skype for Business Reports
For organizations still running Skype for Business Server:
- Conference Call Reports — Call statistics, attendee counts, policy details
- Instant Message Traffic — IM volume (internal and external)
- Top IM Users — Most active instant messaging users
- IM Filter Configuration — Content filtering settings for instant messages
10. Content Search
A powerful e-discovery and investigation module:
- Full-text keyword search across mailbox content
- Filter by attachment properties: file type, size, filename
- Filter by folder: Inbox, Sent Items, Deleted Items, custom folders
- Schedule content search profiles for automatic periodic scanning
- Export results for legal review, HR investigations, or compliance audits
Compliance Reporting
Exchange Reporter Plus includes dedicated compliance report templates that map directly to regulatory requirements:
| Standard | Coverage |
|---|---|
| SOX (Sarbanes-Oxley) | Admin action audit, permission change tracking, financial communication monitoring |
| HIPAA | Access control auditing, PHI access monitoring, failed logon tracking |
| PCI DSS | Cardholder data transmission monitoring, configuration change auditing |
| GLBA | Financial customer data protection, access monitoring |
| GDPR | Personal data in mailboxes, access audit trail, data subject requests |
All compliance reports can be scheduled for automatic generation and delivered to compliance officers or auditors on a recurring basis — reducing the manual effort of compliance evidence collection.
Setup and Configuration
Connecting Exchange Server (on-premises)
- Install Exchange Reporter Plus on a Windows server in your network
- Navigate to Org/Tenant Settings
- Click Add New Forest → enter the Global Catalog Server name
- Provide service account credentials with appropriate Exchange permissions
- Optionally enable LDAPS for encrypted directory communication
- Save — Exchange Reporter Plus begins collecting data automatically
Service account requirements: View-Only Organization Management role (Exchange 2013 and later) is sufficient for most reports. Full administrative rights are not required.
Connecting Microsoft 365 (Exchange Online)
- Go to Org/Tenant Settings → Exchange Online
- Select Configure using Office 365 Login
- Sign in with a Global Administrator account for your M365 tenant
- Exchange Reporter Plus registers an application in Azure AD with the required permissions
- Data collection begins automatically
Prerequisites: .NET Framework 4.8, PowerShell 5.1, Microsoft Graph API access from the Exchange Reporter Plus server
Hybrid Environments
Exchange Reporter Plus supports simultaneous connection to Exchange Server and Exchange Online, providing a unified reporting view across your entire hybrid mail infrastructure in a single console.
Scheduling and Automation
The scheduling engine transforms Exchange Reporter Plus from a reporting tool into a fully automated compliance and administration platform:
- Report scheduling — Any report can be configured to run daily, weekly, monthly, or on a custom schedule
- Automatic email delivery — Reports are delivered directly to recipients in their preferred format
- Export formats — PDF, XLS (Excel), CSV, HTML
- Data collection schedules — Configure when Exchange Reporter Plus gathers OWA logs and traffic data to minimize impact on Exchange server resources
- Archiving — Configure data retention rules with automated cleanup schedules
Customizable Dashboard
- Web-based console with drag-and-drop widget management
- Create custom tabs with the metrics and charts most relevant to your role
- Built-in Exchange Environment Overview widget for an instant infrastructure snapshot
- Separate dashboard views for administrators, help desk staff, and compliance officers
Exchange Reporter Plus vs. Native Microsoft Tools
| Task | PowerShell + EAC | Exchange Reporter Plus |
|---|---|---|
| Report all mailbox sizes | Write & run PowerShell script | One click |
| Find inactive mailboxes | Script with date filtering | Click, set threshold |
| Non-owner mailbox access audit | EAC + manual log export | Built-in filtered report |
| OWA logons from specific IP range | Parse IIS logs | Built-in IP filter |
| Mobile device inventory | Get-MobileDeviceStatistics | Visual report |
| Weekly traffic report emailed to manager | Scheduled task + script + formatting | Built-in scheduler |
| Export to Excel for leadership | Additional PowerShell formatting | Automatic XLS export |
| Content search across mailboxes | eDiscovery tools | Built-in module |
| Compliance report for auditor | Assemble manually | Pre-built template |
Editions and Pricing
| Edition | Mailbox Limit | Key Additions |
|---|---|---|
| Free Edition | Up to 5 mailboxes | Full feature evaluation for small environments |
| Professional | Unlimited | Full reporting, auditing, monitoring, single Exchange org |
| Enterprise | Unlimited | Multiple Exchange organizations and M365 tenants |
A 30-day free trial with full functionality is available without requiring a credit card.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Exchange Reporter Plus require internet access to work with on-premises Exchange? No. For on-premises Exchange Server, Exchange Reporter Plus operates entirely within your internal network. Internet access is only needed when connecting to Exchange Online (Microsoft 365) tenants via Microsoft Graph API.
What permissions does the service account need? The View-Only Organization Management role in Exchange covers the majority of reporting capabilities. Some audit and content search features may require additional permissions. The product documentation provides a precise list of required permissions for each feature category.
Can I filter reports by organizational unit, department, or database? Yes. Most reports support filtering by OU, domain, Exchange database, and custom user groups. This allows scoped reporting for specific teams, locations, or business units.
How does Exchange Reporter Plus handle hybrid environments? It connects to both your on-premises Exchange organization and your Microsoft 365 tenant simultaneously, presenting data from both in a unified interface. Hybrid-specific reports cover mailboxes in both environments within the same report views.
Can help desk staff access reports without full admin access? Yes. Exchange Reporter Plus includes a help desk role system that allows administrators to delegate specific report access to technicians without granting them full administrative privileges in the product.
Is Exchange Reporter Plus part of the broader ManageEngine ecosystem? Yes. Exchange Reporter Plus integrates with ManageEngine AD360, the identity and access management suite, alongside ADManager Plus (AD management), ADAudit Plus (AD auditing), and other tools in the ManageEngine portfolio — providing a unified view across your entire Microsoft infrastructure.
Summary
ManageEngine Exchange Reporter Plus eliminates the scripting burden that makes Exchange reporting slow, error-prone, and inconsistent across organizations. With over 500 pre-built reports covering every dimension of Exchange Server and Microsoft 365 — from mailbox size and inactivity to non-owner access auditing, permission changes, email traffic analysis, and ActiveSync device management — it provides complete visibility into your messaging environment with a fraction of the effort required by native Microsoft tools.
For IT teams managing compliance requirements (SOX, HIPAA, GDPR, PCI DSS), the pre-built compliance templates and automated scheduling turn evidence collection from a quarterly scramble into a continuously maintained audit trail.
For licensing assistance, contact our team via Telegram: t.me/DoCrackMe
Related: ManageEngine ADManager Plus — Active Directory Management & Reporting Guide | ManageEngine OpManager — Network Monitoring Guide | ManageEngine Endpoint Central Security Edition — Unified Endpoint Management Guide
