Installing Exchange overnight, oh my!

Last night spent 6 or so hours installing Microsoft Exchange on our home server, so that I can *finally* be able to synchronize my mail, calendar and tasks through my laptop when I go off to various places.
It all really hit home when, for my upcoming birthday(today!), I asked (and got) permission spend the funds to upgrade an old computer into a Windows Media Center at home. That also meant *finally* getting a wireless network setup at home so things are starting to actually look like something here.
It was my first time installing exchange and boy was that not a piece of cake! But, 6 hours in, with the help of some friends on line, I was able to make it. It actually says a lot, that someone with virtually no experience installing the thing can get up and running with such a complex server system in less than a full night's work.
I pretty much bet that this would not have been as easy with Linux, though I really can't be too sure.
Kudos for making the installation guide actually usable, Microsoft.
Published Wednesday, August 17, 2005 3:11 AM by RoyOsherove
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Comments

Wednesday, August 17, 2005 12:19 AM by Christopher

# Re: Installing Exchange overnight, oh my!

Happy Birthday you old fart! (j/k (about the old fart part(I have no idea how old you are)):)
Wednesday, August 17, 2005 2:24 AM by Eran Sandler

# re: Installing Exchange overnight, oh my!

I beg the differ ;-)

You CAN an exchange equivalent server in Linux in 6 or less hours.

Just check out one of the followings:
Novell GroupWise
OpenXchange
and a bunch of other worthy replacements that I can't remember their name at the moment ;-)
Wednesday, August 17, 2005 5:30 AM by Roy Osherove

# re: Installing Exchange overnight, oh my!

I'm 30 today. I bet *someone* thinks that's old.
Wednesday, August 17, 2005 8:10 AM by Dennis van der Stelt

# re: Installing Exchange overnight, oh my!

I think 30 is when man are at their best, most goodlooking, technically still able to keep up with those younglings that just left school, but most wise from experience in the field. Best of both worlds, is what they call that, I think. I cannot think of a more beauitful age to be at.

I'm 30 by the way ;)
Wednesday, August 17, 2005 8:10 AM by Dennis van der Stelt

# re: Installing Exchange overnight, oh my!

Oh, and now I totally forgot, congrats!
Wednesday, August 17, 2005 11:00 AM by Sahil Malik

# re: Installing Exchange overnight, oh my!

Hey I did exactly that yesterday, it's a real pain in the butt I agree.
Wednesday, August 17, 2005 4:36 PM by Baron

# re: Installing Exchange overnight, oh my!

You wouldn't have to do this in Linux. Why should you have to install a massive piece of software just to keep a few simple bits of data synchronized? Take off the blinders, you don't need a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

Repeat after me: Ten. Minutes. It would take you more time to decide among the available alternatives than to implement one of them. There's more than one way to do it.