Microsoft, Linux square off in InfoWorld's Exchange migration challenge

Being dutiful reviewers, we made a 2000-to-2003 upgrade part of the test. Then we ran the Exchange 2003 deployment wizard, which satisfied the prerequisites for installing Windows ASP.Net, NNTP, and SMTP services. When we restarted the setup utility, however, we received an installation error on Forest Preparation.

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That turned out to be a bit of a stumper. But after reading two Microsoft TechNet Knowledge Base articles and performing a separate Web search, we found a helpful article that suggested an environment variable was the culprit. This wasn’t a critical problem, and in the end, it was easy to fix; considering that both OSes and e-mail servers came from the same vendor, however, it was a mite unexpected.

After completing the installation, we attempted to install Exchange 2003 Service Pack 1. Again, even within this single-vendor environment, we found that a hot-fix download was needed. After we added this, the remainder of the installation completed successfully.

The migration of users consisted of pointing and clicking inside Active Directory’s Users and Computers interface. Migrating users either individually or in groups was a breeze. Here, an Exchange-to-Exchange migration really pays off.

Most coexistence functionality tested well. Sending mail and sharing folders between Exchange 2000 and 2003 users was no problem. Free/Busy searches didn’t work initially because there was no replica of the Free/Busy public folder on the new server. After we created that, we were able to share calendar information as well.

The new version of OWA was Exchange 2003’s most impressive aspect. It very closely resembles an Outlook 2003 desktop client in both style and functionality, making it a real alternative to using the full client. The only downside to OWA 2003 is that full functionality is available only when using Internet Explorer. Given IE’s reputation for ongoing security problems, that may not sit well with some customers.

Overall, aside from two marginally well-documented technical hiccups, this migration was far slicker than that of any of the Linux contenders. But frankly, that’s to be expected, considering all the variables that originate from the rainy Northwest. The question is whether a little convenience supersedes the significant price advantage offered by the Linux folks.

Novell Suse Linux Openexchange 4.1

Suse Linux has been a major Penguin player for years, and Novell’s recent acquisition of the operating system offers exciting possibilities. Although Novell didn’t acquire SLOX (Suse Linux Openexchange) outright, it is marketing the product in the United States and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

That’s good for Novell, as SLOX — based on the venerable Postfix mail server — proved the easiest to install. An important factor here is that SLOX runs on, not surprisingly, Suse Linux and that Suse/Novell makes this transition as easy as possible by including both the e-mail server and the OS in the same installation routine. Start the server, insert the CDs, and watch the OS and e-mail server install together.

In fact, SLOX will install only if it gets to install its operating system software as well. This is worth remembering before you run out and buy another Linux distribution to run this mail server. Although we liked the simplicity of this scheme for new servers, we can see how some users might wish for the ability to install the server product on either another Linux OS or an existing Suse server.

Because the same vendor is providing the OS and e-mail server, the Web administration tool incorporates both e-mail and OS functions into a single console. The Web console is easy to navigate, but there are areas that could be more intuitive. It handles most system administration functions, yet we found advanced Postfix e-mail functions, such as relay domains, that could not be configured from the GUI. SLOX takes this into account and offers the option to edit the configuration file directly if you’re savvy with Postfix.