Thread: Microsoft - Exchange Server 2010 review

Just when you think you would be against all of the Exchange Server provides a new version of Microsoft's flagship e-mail / Collaborative Product horizon loom large. Still in the testing phase, at present, but it looks very polished, when we put it in the first. We found that the following is.

The most obvious change to Exchange 2010 Ares how the new end-user interaction server. Outlook is still the first choice of an updated version of the client and is expected in the next version of Office (scheduled for publication at the same time) will be required to support the many new features. However, many also work to improve access to Web-based client, Outlook Web Access (OWA) and Windows Mobile client and the ultimate aim is equal in all three functions.

Prospects updates are not included in the test, so we use the OWA, and the first thing, we found the interface to run a complete, more browsers. Safari and Firefox can be used, and before the cut is just a simple implementation for any other than Internet Explorer. Layout has been tidied up a single page of information, rather than hands. Support the shared calendar and address book also increased, together with the can open and read e-mail use of rights management OWA.

Is a much improved search tool is another enhancement to support Office Communications Server at the same time the browser means that users can now check and send instant messages from the Web client. Phone rules, adding that both OWA and Outlook in the integrity of the client, as well as automatic voice transcription to text message.

Of course, if you do not use features such as Office Communication Server will have little interest. General improvement of the two, but it will: a new view and the conversation MailTips.

The conversation view is that, once again, and prospects in the OWA client in 2010, so that clues you in accordance with the e-mail without having to Wade through the irrelevant messages. A standard feature of the bulletin boards and Google's Gmail, which is long overdue, but very useful and welcome new features.

MailTips will also be a smile on many faces display a warning to let you know when you have to make hush, hush. Such as clicking on the 'Reply All' when the distribution list contains hundreds of addresses, for example, or is about to send in your confidential information outside the company. A variety of other common errors can be trapped in long-term MailTips you hit the Send button, and the remaining time to re-jig of the e-mail, and then hit the fan.

More or less in front of the management interface to change from the Exchange 2007, but you can search multiple mailboxes, it is very good. Because it is able to move mailboxes from one server to another without a significant impact on services. In previous versions, users will not be able to use their data, in an hour, and now can be completed in just a few minutes.

Under management tasks can further on this release, and users to help themselves more Web-based foreign exchange control group (stroke). In addition, new federal sharing allows users to look at the calendar, schedule meetings, Exchange users to other companies.

Unfortunately, this and other additional features, is a price to pay, there are some very strict prerequisites for the deployment in 2010 in the Exchange Server.

First of all, you need 64-bit processor, just as with Exchange 2007, but this time the Windows Server 2008, but also this may greatly increase the cost of the upgrade. A question of fact does not help; you can not perform the upgrade in place. In fact, in order to upgrade to any previous version need to configure a single Exchange 2010 for the implementation, and then migrate your current information storage and other data.

Another problem is that huge and the time it takes to get installed and working. We spent the best part of a day, just to let one of our test servers up and running. Multi-server installation process will take a longer period of time, it is likely to exceed a lot of small businesses who may be encouraged to now presided over the implementation of foreign exchange, rather than running the software itself.

On the positive side, Microsoft claims that they have re-jigged I / O subsystem in Exchange 2010 years, so that it can work more effectively with cheap SATA disk. Added to the availability of a new database group, has been to provide automatic failover and recovery, without the need for the entire server clusters.
Archive has been added to the Exchange While this may not be a third-party plug-ins are no longer required, because it is very basic. Nevertheless, it allows users to file the information held in local PST files as well as Server-mail, together with the law can be forced to shelve the changes taking place to stop, for example, in the course of the investigation.

There are many more you can look at themselves, with the beta version free of charge to interested parties. This is not a major re-write, it is spitting and Poland to update the previous version, but it looks very good, and is likely to induce those who are still using the old version of Exchange to upgrade eventually.