Exchange 2000 to 2003 - keep IM question

  • Thread starter Thread starter Bill
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Bill

We're going to be moving from server 2000/exchange 2000 to SBS2003.
Fewer than 1/2 of our employees have internet access so licensing
Communications Server just so 50 people can use IM internally doesn't make
any sense.
Is there a way to keep messaging available?
If not does anyone have suggestions for an alternative which doesn't involve
letting everyone have internet access?

Bill
 
In Bill had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:
We're going to be moving from server 2000/exchange 2000 to SBS2003.
Fewer than 1/2 of our employees have internet access so licensing
Communications Server just so 50 people can use IM internally doesn't
make any sense.
Is there a way to keep messaging available?
If not does anyone have suggestions for an alternative which doesn't
involve letting everyone have internet access?

Bill
Click to expand...

I've been using this - though not in the same environment...

InterChat:
http://www.snapfiles.com/reviews/InterChat/interchat.html

You could even wrap it in an MSI and push it out over the network? I'm not
entirely sure it will do what you're looking for - as in tie in with SBS
with finding and away functionality that ties into stuff like Office but it
does a decent job at allowing communication over the network here.

--
Galen - MS MVP - Windows (Shell/User & IE)
http://dts-l.org/ http://kgiii.info/

"Chance has put in our way a most singular and whimsical problem, and
its solution is its own reward." - Sherlock Holmes
 
Thanks for all of the suggestions. We don't allow external IM and wanted to
find a way to keep at least the basic functions (chat & small file transfer)
without having to get the full blown MS solution. Communications Server is
cost prohibitive for small internal users. I was hoping there was a way to
"sneak" in the IM capabilities of 2000, maybe with a non-integrated 2000
installation and dummy mailboxes or something like that.

Jonathan,
Did you mean for me to install Exchange 200 on a virtual machine and somehow
tie my users into that installation? How could that be set up?

Bill
 
Hi Bill,

Yep that's exactly what I mean. I know it's possible, but I'm afraid I'm probably not
completely qualified enough to answer your question as theirs plenty of VM and Exchange MVPs
which can better answer this. Of course you don't necessarily need a VM, you could just use
a separate machine too.

--
Jonathan Kay
Microsoft MVP - Windows Messenger/MSN Messenger/Windows Live Messenger
Associate Expert
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/
Messenger Resources - http://messenger.jonathankay.com
All posts unless otherwise specified are (c) 2006 Jonathan Kay.
You *must* contact me for redistribution rights.
--
 
Thanks Jonathan,
After looking further it appears that I can leave Exchange 2000 running on a
Server 2000 machine connected to a 2003 environment.
The problem is that I can't find what needs to be "turned off" or
uninstalled on the old server in order to avoid potential conflicts.

I'll re-post under a different title for that info.

Bill
 
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