Summary

Exchange Server 2003 relies on connectors to communicate with external messaging systems. Two protocol-based connectors, the X.400 Connector and the SMTP Connector, can be used either to connect two Exchange routing groups together or to connect an Exchange organization to an external messaging system that uses the same protocol.

SMTP is also used to provide messaging connectivity with the Internet. Creating multiple SMTP virtual servers allows you to segment SMTP traffic to use different IP addresses or TCP ports, each with its own configuration. Virtual servers are used to define basic SMTP transport properties. SMTP Connectors are configured on virtual servers to define properties for a specific address space.

In previous versions of Exchange, coexistence via connectors was supported for MS Mail and Lotus cc:Mail. As the times have changed, so has the support for foreign and legacy messaging systems in Exchange. Exchange Server 2003 provides connectors that allow Exchange Server 2003 organizations to coexist with Lotus Notes and Novell GroupWise messaging systems.