Summary

Although installing Microsoft Exchange Server is a straightforward process, there are still some important concepts for you to understand. One of the most important phases of an installation is pre-installation. Before starting the actual installation, you must make sure that the minimum requirements for Exchange are met. You must obtain the proper licenses to ensure compliance with legal issues. Because Exchange utilizes user accounts from Active Directory, Exchange Server 2003 is tightly integrated with Active Directory. Before Exchange can be installed, you will need to ensure that the required IIS services and components are installed and running. To avoid problems during the setup process, you should use the DCDiag and NetDiag tools to test your network ‚ s connectivity. Finally, you must prepare the Active Directory forest by running ForestPrep (or by having someone with the appropriate permissions do so) and prepare each domain that will host Exchange Server 2003 by running DomainPrep.

Exchange installation happens in one of four contexts: as the first server in an organization, as a subsequent server, as an upgrade, or for a coexistence/migration. During the first or a subsequent installation, you will select the various components that make up an Exchange server. Upgrades can be performed from Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 3 computers that are operating in Exchange native mode. If Exchange Server 5.5 is being used in your organization, you will need to coexist with and/or migrate to Exchange Server 2003. There are three types of installation options:

Typical This option installs the Exchange Server software, the basic Messaging and Collaboration components, and the System Manager snap-in program. It does not include the additional connectors.

Custom This option lets you choose exactly which components should be installed.

Minimum This option installs only the Exchange Server software and the basic Messaging and Collaboration components.

After an Exchange Server installation, you should know the directory structure that Setup has created. The default directory name for the installation is Program Files\Exchsrvr. Setup also creates network shares and modifies the Windows Registry.