What Is Exchange Server?

 

Exchange Server is often thought of as the electronic mail (e-mail) component of Microsoft BackOffice. This is an accurate description as far as it goes—Exchange Server is a good e-mail product. But Exchange Server offers more than just e-mail. It is a general purpose messaging and information delivery product that facilitates the exchange of information among groups of people and the development of groupware applications.

 

Microsoft Exchange Server is a collection of software applications, some client-based and some server-based, that cooperate to provide information-sharing facilities to groups of people and entire organizations. On the server, it comprises both standard and optional components.

A number of client components can be used  to provide comprehensive messaging services for desktop computer users. The client components include the following:

	Exchange Client. The primary component that comes with the Exchange Installation
	Outlook. The Microsoft client
	Lotus Notes.

The Exchange Client's user interface is shown in Figure 26.2. Visible in the left pane of the Viewer window are a personal mailbox, access to an Administrator's mailbox, a local copy of sample applications provided with Exchange Server, and shared public folders.    FIG. 26.2

Exchange Administrator

The Exchange Administrator tool can run on Windows NT Server or Windows NT Workstation. In version 5.0 of Exchange Server, the Exchange Administrator is not available for Windows, Windows for Workgroups, or Windows 95. A Windows 95 version may be available in the future. With the appropriate permissions, you can use this tool to configure and manage all the Exchange servers at the site you are currently logged on to and view the servers at other sites. FIG. 26.6

After you have installed Exchange Server, you use this tool to configure the server components, create mailboxes (or import mailboxes from another mail system), and perform other setup and configuration tasks. Monitoring utilities in this program also enables you to observe the status of Exchange servers and watch for potential problems.

Like several other tools and utilities provided by Microsoft, the Exchange Administrator display is divided into two panes. The left pane displays a hierarchy of containers. This display represents the contents of the directory, which is made up of all the objects in the Exchange Server organization. The right pane displays the contents of the container that is currently selected in the left pane. For example, if the Recipients object is selected in the left pane, the mailboxes (and other recipient objects such as distribution lists) that can be used as the target of a message display in the right pane.

Recipients

Any potential target of a message (or custom form, as you learn later) is known as a recipient. This includes not only user mailboxes and distribution lists, but also public folders. An e-mail address defined in the Exchange Server directory, but referencing a user's mailbox on another system, is called a custom recipient. Such a mailbox might be at another company, an organization such as a university, or an online service like CompuServe, America Online, or the Microsoft Network.

The directory has a recipients container that holds the definitions and properties of all the various types of recipients for the Exchange Server system. If you have the necessary access privileges, you can expand the recipients container in the Exchange Administrator and view the recipients defined on a particular system. As a normal user of Exchange Server, you can use the address book, which usually contains a Global Address List, a comprehensive list of all recipients. The contents of the address book are controlled by the administrators of the Exchange Server system.

Mailboxes

Several components play a role in the storage of a user's messages. Each Exchange Server user has a designated mailbox, which is located on the user's home server in a private information store. All incoming messages are first transferred into the user's mailbox. Users may create a personal folder file (with a PST extension) on their computer's disk drive or on their private directory on a server, if they have such a directory. Incoming messages are still stored temporarily in the private store on the home server and then transferred to the personal folder file when the user connects to the server.

Distribution Lists

If a group of recipients is frequently used as a target for the same messages, you can create a distribution list that contains each recipient in the group. This list allows users to address messages to a single recipient, which represents the entire list with a single entry. The distribution list can contain individual mailbox names, custom recipients from other systems, public folders, or even other distribution lists. Take care to avoid nesting distribution lists too deeply, to avoid inadvertently sending multiple copies of a message to some recipients. Distribution lists can be defined by administrators and stored on the server. Individual users also can create their own distribution lists and keep them in their Personal Address Books.

Some of the main features which were high-lighted in the lesson include the ability to do the following,

1. Redirection of mail.  The administrators mail would be redirected to another mail account as it would not be normal practice to install the client software on the server.

2. Redirection to an internet account.  An internet account would have to be setup in Exchange along side the users in house account. The redirection would be set up between these two accounts.

3. ISP connection for Internet Mail.  A permanent lease line or a simple modem connection could be used to connect an ISP to the local network.  The modem could be configured to dial out every half an hour to send and then receive mail.

A neat feature that can be set up for frequent business travelers is provided by certain ISPs.  A roaming account can be set up which allows the user to call a local number in the country he is currently working in to pick up the mail was has been redirected to the users internet account. 

Outlook

Microsoft has integrated information management tool called Outlook in Microsoft Office.  Outlook is available only for 32-bit Windows platforms (Windows 95 and Windows NT). Here is a sample of the features provided by this powerful new application:

	Provides an elegant e-mail client with a variety of views available (see Figure 26.14). In addition, you can define custom views and flag messages for later action. FIG. 26.14 This is the standard e-mail view shown by default when starting Outlook. The Office Assistant, an automated assistant that provides how-to advice and suggestions, is visible at the lower right.
	Displays your personal schedule in a daily, weekly, or monthly format (see Figure 26.15). FIG. 26.15 This is the weekly schedule display provided by Outlook.
	Uses the Outlook bar with a number of icon groups for easy movement from one display to another. The Outlook bar is visible at the left of the screen in all of the Outlook figures.
	Displays a Journal page that shows when you completed selected tasks, sent or received e-mail from selected individuals, or other important activities that you want to track (see Figure 26.16). FIG. 26.16 The Journal page in Outlook can be used to track your activities.
	Stores detailed information on contacts, including addresses, phone numbers, birthdays, and notes.
	Stores a To Do list that can be sorted by project, priority, or other criteria.
	Allows you to enter ad hoc notes (similar to "Post-it[tm]" notes) as displayed in Figure 26.17. FIG. 26.17 Some sample Notes are shown in this figure.
	In addition to personal schedule and contact management, Outlook also allows you to browse for information on your computer (see Figure 26.18). FIG. 26.18 Outlook helps you to file and locate information stored on your computer.
	Outlook also provides access to public folders on an Exchange Server (see Figure 26.19). FIG. 26.19 This figure depicts a public folder devoted to Object Oriented Technology. A number of ongoing discussions are visible in the pane on the right side of the window.

Outlook is a powerful blend of personal information management and activity tracking. It can be used as a task planner with the capability to delegate work and track progress on assigned tasks. For many people, this will be the best all around tool for electronic mail, and daily personal management.