Microsoft Exchange Server

MS Exchange consists of two parts: client software which runs on PCs running the Windows 95 or Windows NT operating systems and server software which runs on an Windows NT server. MS Exchange provides higher reliability than MS Mail and offers many features that are lacking in MS Mail including:

Mail forwarding - you can forward e-mail that you receive in MS Exchange to another e-mail system. This is useful when you temporarily want to read e-mail on another system for example when you are away from the office. When forwarding e-mail you can keep a copy in your MS Exchange mailbox.

Mail archiving - you can easily archive e-mail to and retrieve e-mail from a secure (encrypted) file on your PC or a network server. You can have multiple e-mail archive files with a separate password for each archive. Archive files can be easily accessed and searched while using MS Exchange.

"Rule based processing" - you can create rules that determine how the MS Exchange server handles incoming mail. For example, you can automatically file mail from a specified address in a personal folder. When you are out of the office you can set up an "out of office" message to be sent in response to incoming mail so that people corresponding with you will be aware of your absence. You can also have important mail forwarded to an assistant. The message handling capabilities allow for easy management of messages.

Remote mail features - MS Exchange has many features designed to make dial-in access to e-mail efficient and convenient. Using the UW remote access server (RAS) dial-in lines, you can dial in and download selected e-mail messages or all messages. While off-line, you can read, respond to, and create new e-mail messages which are delivered the next time you dial-in and connect to the MS Exchange server. The user interface for remote mail is the same as that at the office.

Multiple mail users can share a single computer - A registry based profile allows multiple people to access their MS Exchange e-mail from a single machine.

Other significant features of MS Exchange include:

MIME compliant - consistent with MS Mail, MS Exchange is MIME compliant which means you can attach binaries documents such as MS Word or MS Excel files or pictures to your e-mail messages.

Enhanced calendar - Exchange includes a new version of Schedule+, version 7.0, which has many new or enhanced features including an enhanced Personal Information Manager, To Do List, contacts list, and more robust scheduling capabilities.

Domain based security - Exchange uses the Microsoft domain for security. This eliminates the need for a separate username and password for e-mail.

Migration Issues:

Tools are available to make the migration from MS Mail to MS Exchange easy. Personal address books (PAB), archive mail folders, and Schedule+ calendar files can be converted from MS Mail to MS Exchange (but not visa versa). Because MS Mail and MS Exchange are tightly integrated, it will not be possible for users to have both a MS Mail account and a MS Exchange account.

When a user moves from MS Mail to MS Exchange, his or her SMTP e-mail address does not change (for example, johndoe@uwyo.edu), however the internal Microsoft address does change. Thus we recommend the use of SMTP addresses for all e-mail correspondence. If someone previously added the old Microsoft address to their personal address book, the entry will be obsolete.

Schedule+, version 7.0, is compatible with MS Schedule+; thus you can continue to schedule appointments with someone still using MS Mail. Although the free/busy schedule times are available between Schedule+ versions, it is not possible to view the schedule of someone who is using the earlier version. If you utilize an assistant, we recommend that you and your assistant migrate at the same time. As with MS Schedule+, Schedule+ version 7.0 requires the use of Microsoft addresses and thus names should be selected from the global address list (GAL) when you schedule an appointment.