Client Mail Application Recomendations

We have a client with a Win2K server. They do not have an Exchange server. Is their any application or network device that can cache all e-mails in and out of an office network. They All use M$ Outlook 2003. If they got an Exchange server could this be configured to save all e-mails even if a client deleted them?

Thanks.

 

The simplest solution is to install a mailserver. Microsoft's Exchange will do the job but can be expensive (particular as client licenses ramp up). However there are alternatives. For example Linux Magazine review some commercial e-mail server software recently:

http://www.linux-magazine.com/issue/73/Commercial_Mail_Servers_Review.pdf

Although aimed at Linux users, some of the software reviewed is also available for Windows systems (for example Kerio), and the article does give a good idea of some of the low cost alternatives to Exchange that are out there.

I use MDaemon on my works network (I work for a small company with less that 50 users) and it works fine. Not quite as polished as Exchange, but it does the job, is a lot easier to debug and backup, and is cheap. Also it doesn't require a MS server OS. I run it on an Windows 2000 pro box.

If you are also looking for a file server solution and perhaps SQL database, Microsoft Small Business Server is a good option. This package also includes Exchange.

 

Thanks Reggie. Those were good soultions.

My other question is this. If we did have Exchange it is fairly easy to setup that if a message is going to one person it is also copied to another box they cannot access. However how would we configure it so that when they send mail Exchange keeps a copy somewhere even if the user deletes the item from the sent items box.


Thanks.

 

I think it is possible to set up Exchange to do that, but I haven't used Exchange for a while, so couldn't tell you how to do it.

Why are you doing this? If you want to keep tabs on your users e-mail access, then catching a copy of each out going e-mail is one way to do it. However, two comments - you are going to need a lot of storage space; and there are privacy issues: you need to tell your users that you are doing this.

If on the otherhand you are doing this so you don't lose important e-mails, I think a better option would be to invest in a good back up system that will back up and restore at the mailbox level. Veritas (Symantec now I think) Backup Exec will do this if you invest in the Exchange plug-in or have the SBS version that I think includes the plug-in. There are other backup systems that will do the same.

 

According to the SEC this is some sort of requirement for their office. Compliance is the term they used. They asked/approached me about it so they completely know what is going on.

Thanks.

 

The only solution i found for this would be to setup a rule so that whenever an e-mail message is sent a copy is sent to a public folder with contributor permissions so that the user can add e-mails, as well as view them. However they would not be able to delete messgaes there. My followup question is can a rule be setup so that the user can not disable/edit it?

Thanks.

 

If there has an exchange server (let say 2003), you can have many ways to do it.
In AD, you can create the user to forward all incoming emails to another account that the users might not even aware of.

or

For exchange server 2007 has a way call Journaling Rules.
hxxp://www.msexchange.org/tutorials/Exchange-Server-2007-Using-Journaling-Rules.html

for exchange 2003
goto administrative group/first administrative group/servers/<servername>/Frist Storage Group/mailbox Store

right click on the properties

You will see "Archieve all message sent or received by mailboxes on this store "

This means you can archieve EVERY message sent and received.
This is much powerful tools.



WITH one issue is that you probably want to have a look at the size of it because it might grow up VERY VERY VERY fast.

you probably need to manage the user account correctly


Hopefully this is what you are looking for.


Cheers