The Prototype Phase

Exchange Server 2003 offers a wealth of new features when compared to Exchange Server 2000 or Exchange 5.5, including database backup through Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS), public folder store replication improvements, Outlook 2003 Cached Exchange Mode, cross-forest Kerberos authentication, front-end and back-end Kerberos authentication, secured HTTP access from Outlook 2003, public folder search capabilities, and Exchange-specific events for use with MOM. Other features are upgrades from Exchange Server 2000 capabilities ”such as Outlook Mobile Access (OMA), which is a rewrite of Mobile Information Server ”and some of the previous functionality ”such as Exchange Conferencing Server ”are not supported on the Windows Server 2003 platform.

Depending on the design that was decided on by the organization, the prototype phase varies greatly in complexity and duration. It is still critical to perform a prototype, even for the simplest environments, to validate the design, test the mailbox migration process, and ensure that there won't be any surprises during the actual upgrade. The prototype lab should be isolated from the production network via a VLAN or physical separation to avoid interfering with the live users.

The prototype phase also gives the project team a chance to get acquainted with the new features of Exchange Server 2003 and any new add-on applications that will be used, and to configure the hardware in a pressure-free environment. If an external company is assisting in this phase, informal or formal knowledge transfer should take place. Ideally, the prototype lab exactly mirrors the final messaging configuration so that training in this environment will be fully applicable to the administration and support skills needed after the upgrade.

What Is Needed for the Lab?

At a bare minimum, the lab should include a new Exchange Server 2003 Server, one each of the standard desktop and laptop configurations, the tape drive that will be used to back up the public and private information stores, and application software as defined in the Design document. Connectivity to the Internet should be available for testing OWA and mobile access.

Additional information on testing applications and devices for compatibility with Exchange Server 2003 is provided in Chapter 17, "Compatibility Testing for Exchange Server 2003."

Existing data stores should be checked for integrity and then imported to Exchange Server 2003 to ensure that the process goes smoothly. Exchange Server 2003 comes with improved mailbox migration tools, which are more resistant to failure when corrupt mailboxes are encountered and are multithreaded for better performance.

NOTE

The recommended route for customers with Exchange 5.5 Servers to get to Exchange 2003 is to install an Exchange 2003 Server into the site and move mailboxes. If Exchange 2000 is already in place, an in-place upgrade process can be used (SP3 needed for both the Exchange and the NOS), but Exchange should actually be upgraded to Exchange Server 2003, and then Windows 2000 should be upgraded to Windows Server 2003. Note that in this case, Mobile Information Server, Instant Messenger, and/or Chat should be uninstalled .

If site consolidation or server consolidation are goals of the project, the prototype lab can be used for these purposes. Multi-forest connectivity can now be tested , but this requires an IIFP server in one or more of the forests to enable directory synchronization.

Exchange Server 2003 also comes with a number of new tools to aid in the testing and migration process, which are covered in detail in Chapter 17. These include a prescriptive guide that walks through the deployment process, preparation tools that scan the topology and provide recommendations, and validation tools.

For more complex environments and larger companies, the lab should be kept in place even after the upgrade is completed. Although this requires the purchase of at least one additional Exchange Server and related software, it provides a handy environment for testing patches and upgrades to the production environment, performing offline database maintenance, and in worst case scenarios, a server to scavenge from in times of dire need.

After the lab is configured to match the end-state documented in the Design document, representative users from different departments with different levels of experience and feature requirements should be brought in and given a chance to play with the desktop configurations and test new features and remote access. Input should be solicited to see whether any changes need to be made to the client configurations or features offered , and to help get a sense for the training and support requirements.

Disaster Recovery Testing

Another important testing process that can be performed prior to implementation of the new solution on the live network is business continuity or disaster recovery testing. Ideally this was covered in the design process and DR requirements were included in the design itself.

Documentation from the Prototype

During the prototype phase, a number of useful documents can be created that will be useful to the deployment team during the pilot and production upgrade phases, and to the administrators when the upgrade is complete.

As-built documents capture the key configuration information on the Exchange Server 2003 systems so that they can easily be replicated during the upgrade or rebuilt from scratch in case of catastrophic failure. Generally the as-built documents include actual screenshots of key configuration screens to facilitate data entry.

Assuming that DR requirements for the project were defined as suggested previously, this is a perfect time to summarize the testing that was performed in the lab and record the steps a knowledgeable administrator should take in the failure scenarios tested.

Final Validation of the Migration Document

When the testing is complete, the migration plan should be reviewed a final time to make sure that the testing process didn't reveal any show-stoppers that will require a change in the way the upgrade will take place or in the components of the final messaging solution.

The end-users who have had a chance to get their feet wet and play with the new Outlook 2003 client and learn about the new capabilities and enhanced performance of Exchange Server 2003 should be spreading the word by now, and the whole company should be excited for the upgrade!