New System Exchange2003/2007 & Winserv2003/2008

[Gekko_uk]

Hello,

I have to install a new IT system for a company of 1ooish users.

Currently they operate across three offices with numbers split as:

Office 1 (HQ) 66

Office 2 - 20

Office 3 - 20

Currently Each office has a seperate domain and users have 2 or 3 accounts at each office.

Email is currently outsourced to a third pary company and is accessed via pop3 into PST files on each users system.

I have proposed Exchange and a linked domain enviroment.

Luckily all new hardware is going to be used so existing system can continue to run until I need to copy data accross.

Obviously some work will have to also be done with MX records in regard moving from hosting company to in house.

few questions for you, be good to get a feel for what people think?

Should I go for Windows Server 2008?

Not much experience with it more comfortable with 2003, the 64bit stuff is also a worry for me in terms of compatability and tourbleshooting.

In relation to exchange I have speced 2 x identical servers to host it on, is it viable to host it at HQ and have other users logging in via either webmail of via VPN's? I have a 12Mb down 833K up connection at head office and 6MB down 333K connections at each office?

Should I go for Exchange 2007 or 2003.

I have experience with 2003, but 2007 I have done nothing but read up on it.

Again, 64bit requirement does concern me as does lack of experience with it.

A few others have commented that noone would fit a new exchange server and chose 2003 for it.

THanks in advance, I have a feeling I will be coming back to this post/forum a lot over the coming months.

Thanks

Andy

[cluberti]

The question should start with whether or not you need patches, bugfixes, and support from Microsoft - if so, you really cannot consider Server 2003 or Exchange 2003, as both are entering extended support next year. Honestly, for single-purpose servers like an Exchange server, going Server 2008 R2 and Exchange 2010 should be fine as you shouldn't really be doing anything else with it anyway, so compatibility shouldn't be an issue. As to one central server versus distributed, I'd say you could probably get away with a central office server only assuming the clients were running Outlook 2007 as well, as Exchange 2010 + Outlook 2007 (or Outlook 2010, soon) work quite well even over slow links (and OWA on Ex2010 is fairly zippy on slow links as well). You could always have an Edge server + 3 CAS servers as well, one for each office (edge + CAS at HQ, CAS only at each branch office) and get a bit zippier experience for the end user at each office, but that'd require 4 servers.

[chilifrei64]

Defiantly go with the latest and greatest. Server 2008 R2 and depending on when you deploy this... Exchange 2010. There is no reason NOT to go with it if you are requirements other than "you are unfamiliar with them" Isnt that always the case with new software anyways.. And embrace x64. everything MS is coming out with now is x64 and there is a great reason behind it. So I would say just get used to that, things are good enough with it now where you really wouldnt notice to much of a difference between x86 and x64

As far as your remote sites.. you should be more than fine with the connection you have to your remote office...

I have 2 remote sites, one in Belgium and one in Shanghai with about 40 users at each site(about 300 at the main site) and we are still running off Server/Exchange 2003 using cached mode over 2mbps links.. Now.. I would not say that is an optimal setup by any means, we are gearing up for exchange 2010 once it is released but it works, and users arent complaining. Now.. your upload speeds are a little slower at the main branch but you also have half the amount of people so you'd prolly be alright..