A primer on server roles and Exchange hardware

You probably wish that your Exchange servers were running on 32 processor machines with huge RAID 10 arrays. But your budget is likely a limiting factor when shopping for server hardware. You can still have a well-performing Exchange organization in spite of your budget constraints, though. The trick is to know what type of hardware to buy, based on a server's role within your organization.

This guide provides a primer on the various types of server roles that can exist within an Exchange organization and how they affect hardware requirements.

A PRIMER ON SERVER ROLES AND EXCHANGE HARDWARE

 Home: Introduction
 Part 1: Microsoft's hardware recommendations
 Part 2: Server roles
 Part 3: Mail servers
 Part 4: Public folder servers
 Part 5: Bridgehead servers
 Part 6: Gateway servers
 Part 7: Front-end servers
 Part 8: Conclusion
 Part 9: Related links

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Brien M. Posey, MCSE Brien is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional for his work with Windows 2000 Server and IIS. He has served as CIO for a nationwide chain of hospitals and was once in charge of IT security for Fort Knox. As a freelance technical writer, he has written for Microsoft, TechTarget, CNET, ZDNet, MSD2D, Relevant Technologies and other technology companies. Copyright 2005 TechTarget

Rate this Tip To rate tips, you must be a member of SearchExchange.com. Register now to start rating these tips. Log in if you are already a member. Submit a Tip Digg This!     StumbleUpon     Del.icio.us    RELATED CONTENT Exchange Server Administration Tips Why are .PST files a security threat to Exchange Server mailboxes? EMS add-on tool generates graphical Exchange Server 2007 reports Third-party Exchange Server 2007 backup and restore tools Repairing damaged OWA virtual directories in Exchange Server 2003 Exchange Server 2007 hardware planning for continuous replication Benefits of SAN-based storage in Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 How to generate HTML reports with the Exchange Management Shell (EMS) Hosted Exchange Server adoption to infiltrate the enterprise Using ActiveSync without a front-end Exchange server Use the Exchange Management Shell Set command to block senders Microsoft Exchange Server Hardware Management Exchange Server 2007 hardware planning for continuous replication Benefits of SAN-based storage in Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Tutorial: SAN storage for Microsoft Exchange Server Why boot an Exchange server from a storage area network (SAN)? Exchange 2007 memory and hardware configuration best practices Configuring multiple front-end servers in an Exchange cluster Best practices for using Outlook .PST files on portable USB drives How to design an Exchange Server architecture model with System Center Capacity Planner How to configure Exchange 2003 as a front-end server Preparing for Exchange Server 2007 Microsoft Exchange Server Hardware Management Research RELATED RESOURCES 2020software.com, trial software downloads for accounting software, ERP software, CRM software and business software systems Search Bitpipe.com for the latest white papers and business webcasts Whatis.com, the online computer dictionary DISCLAIMER: Our Tips Exchange is a forum for you to share technical advice and expertise with your peers and to learn from other enterprise IT professionals. TechTarget provides the infrastructure to facilitate this sharing of information. However, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or validity of the material submitted. You agree that your use of the Ask The Expert services and your reliance on any questions, answers, information or other materials received through this Web site is at your own risk.