Additional Client Access Decisions

Several additional decisions need to be made with regard to client access to SharePoint 2003 sites. These topics can be considered part of the checklist of items to be covered in design and planning discussions that involve the client access portions of the SharePoint 2003 design.

Deciding Whether to Support Non-Windows Platforms

A fundamental decision to be made is whether non-Windows operating systems will be supported (such as Macintosh or Linux), regardless of the design of the SharePoint 2003 environment. Because each organization has different standards for the types of operating systems supported, this issue should be addressed during the design and planning process. Decisions made in this area affect the testing processes as well as the design of the sites, and the breadth of support required after the SharePoint 2003 solution is in place.

If other operating systems will be supported, the desktop applications used on those systems also need to be tested, such as the word-processing software and email system, as well as any virus protection or personal firewall software used. The user experience should be tested as well, to make sure that basic design elements such as color combinations, font choices, and graphics are displayed properly.

Deciding Whether to Support Non-Microsoft Browsers

Possibly the next most important decision to make is whether to support non-Microsoft browsers. Some users are attached to Netscape or other competing browsers, and if they hold influential roles in the organization will need to be supported. Many organizations have developed applications that work with specific browsers, which require that those browsers be supported after SharePoint 2003 is made available.

This chapter briefly covers Netscape Navigator 7.2 to give a sense for how a non-Microsoft browser functions with SharePoint 2003 sites, but other non-Microsoft browsers would need to be tested to determine the level of compatibility with the SharePoint 2003 sites created. In general, the more customization that has taken place in the sites and the older the browser, the more likely it is that the experience won't be the same as with newer browsers.

Deciding Whether to Support SharePoint Portal Server 2001 Document Libraries

SharePoint Portal Server 2001 document libraries require the installation of some client-side software for full functionality. Many organizations decided to migrate the data from SharePoint Portal Server 2001 document libraries to Windows SharePoint Services or SharePoint Portal Server 2003 document libraries rather than continue to support the older Web-storage based databases. Chapter 8, "Migrating from SharePoint 2001 to SharePoint 2003," covers the upgrade process.

There may be compelling reasons to leave the SharePoint Portal Server 2001 sites and libraries in place. For example, some custom Web Parts may have been created that turn out not to work properly with SharePoint Portal Server 2003, and the organization may decide to keep the older server and libraries in place. Or, the number of files may be so large that the migration process to the SQL database and SharePoint 2003 technologies will take place over a longer period of time, so access will be needed even after SharePoint 2003 technologies are put in place. Some capabilities of the SharePoint Portal Server 2001 document libraries that have been removed, such as document routing, may be important enough that the organization requires them to be kept in place until the SharePoint 2003 libraries can be customized to provide similar capabilities, or until third-party companies develop Web Parts with similar capabilities.

TIP

If the design calls for supporting a wide range of operating systems and browsers, it is important to keep the design of the portal and sites fairly simple and generic to minimize risks of incompatibilities. Limiting the types of files that can be saved to the sites and the complexity or level of customization of the pages themselves can further ease administration. For example, try to restrain the web developers from heavily customizing the portal site and page layouts when there will be Macintosh users or Netscape users accessing the sites.