December 2007 - Posts

• Backup and Recovery in Sharepoint

  In the past, third-party utilities or regular SQL backups were used. Now a more robust utility is available to aid in the backup of sites and lists appropriately. Although none of these options back up customized site definitions, features, and resources, each has their individual purpose. Options available for Recovery and Backup: Recycle Bin SQL Server stsadm command line tool Microsoft Office Sharepoint Designer 2007 Central Administration Backup Recycle Bin: Recycle Bin is available as a two-stage repository of deleted items. This is the preferred mechanism for restoration, as it offers item-level backup of information. It allows users to proactively restore content they have deleted without having to call tech support and deal with lengthy separate server restores and custom utilities to extract the specific document or document version they deleted, which could even be out of date. When the user deletes items from their recycle bin, a secondary recycle bin stores that content at the site collection level. So at most, the site collection owner would need to assist the user in restoring their document. Recycle Bin policies (Length of time and storage quota) are set in Central Administrator. SQL Server Backups: Since SQL is the back-end server for Office Sharepoint Server 2007 content, the logical choice for most companies is to utilize their current SQL backup plan to backup Sharepoint. Since no extra training is required on Sharepoint products (beyond back-end storage database locations) time and money can be saved. If the configuration database is backed up, topology can be backed up. This was the traditional way to do backups within the SPS realm, but is not a recommended backup mechanism anymore. STSADM Command line: The stsadm utility has been a useful backup utility. With this command-line utility, a top-level site can be backed up onto a flat file and easily restored. Although this requires a little knowledge of the web site at hand and some tweaking when the restore takes place, this is a more viable option than even the stsadm of SPS 2003. In particular, full or differential backups can be created using this utility. Microsoft Office Sharepoint Designer 2007: The Sharepoint Designer backup utility is a graphical backup similar to the stsadm utility. This is not a recommended tool to use, but it is there in case no IT staff is on hand, and backups need to be performed. Central Administration Backup: Using the Central Administrator Backup Utility is the best option when an entire farm of servers should be backed up, and there is no need to segregate sites on the same web application further than the existing content databases have done so. Note that without the appropriate provisioning of new servers, the central administration backup will not work. If a farm fails because a server goes down, restoring the farm will not work until a new server is in place to replace the existing server. Customizations in 12 Hive The site definitions, features, and resources that are stored in the 12 Hive or not backed up by any of the backup mechanisms mentioned above. These have to be backed up manually or via a third party utility. These components are developed using "Share Point Designer" and Visual Studio 2005 that both have their own backup utilities built in. SPD has a backup option built in as mentioned previously and Visual Studio uses "Visual Source Safe" as a repository. Related Blogs Sharepoint Server Topologies Sharepoint - The 12 Hive Installing MOSS with a remote SQL Server Overview of features, templates, site definitions, solutions in SharePoint Posted Dec 30 2007, 09:19 AM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Sharepoint

• Creating a Pivot Table in Sharepoint

  Pivot Tables are one of the most powerful features that Microsoft has ever developed for MS Office. Initially it only formed part of Excel, but due to it's popularity it was eventually converted to a "Service" that could be used in Word , Access and many other applications. With the advent of "Excel Services" in MOSS 2007 Enterprise edition, we can now use pivot tables in Sharepoint, running server side. Before we can view a pivot table embedded as a web part in a Sharepoint site, we first have to create one in MS Excel 2007 and then save the spreadsheet into a document library. The initial steps would therefore be as follows: Create a site in Sharepoint Create a Document Library to store the spreadsheet Create a "New" spreadsheet from the document library To simulate a proper use of a "Pivot Table" in an enterprise environment I am going to use a back end database as the source of the spreadsheet. Once the spreadsheet has opened in MS Excel, navigate to the data tab on the ribbon and select "From Other Sources". There is a whole range of data source options to choose from and in a perfect world everyone would be running some form of BI cube on "Analysis Services", but unfortunately that is not the case. I will therefore be using a more realistic example like a SQL Server database. Once you selected the option, a wizard will start the will guide you through the rest of the process. Step1: Specify the SQL Server name that you will be connecting too and the Log-on credentials. Step 2: Select the database of your choice from the drop down list and then select the table or view that will be the source. Step 3: Note that the connection string will be stored as a ODC file and will be automatically uploaded to Sharepoint when we publish. What we need to do now is look at how the users will be authenticated. Select the button at the bottom of the screen called "Authentication Settings". Step 4: Once the Pivot Table is published to Excel Service in Sharepoint the authentication will be done server side. The default option is NTLM, but the SSO (Single Sign-on Service) can also be used if it has been configured. "None" can only be used if the data is already in the spreadsheet itself. Select "OK" to close this dialogue box and then select "Finish". Step 5: The final part of the wizard is used to determine how and where you would like to display the data retrieved from the database. In this case we want a "Pivot Chart and Report" and the location can be any cell in the current sheet. Click "OK" Using the "Pivot Table" wizard in Excel, build a Pivot table to display some data. I am assuming that you know how to do this, otherwise why are you reading this blog. Once you are done, it should look something like this: Now that the Pivot Table is complete, we need to publish it to Excel Services running on Sharepoint. To do this , select the "Pearl" in to the top left hand corner of Excel, navigate down the list to an option called "Publish" and then select "Excel Services". This will open the "Save As" dialogue box with some additional options. The spreadsheet will automatically attempt to save back to the document library from where it was initiated. Give to spreadsheet a name, but don't click save yet, there are some additional options that need to be configured. Select the "Excel Services Options" button. In the drop down list on the Show tab, select the option called "Items in the Workbook". Then select the checkboxes next to the "Chart" and "Pivot Table" objects. We only want to publish these objects to Excel Services, not the entire workbook or sheets. Click "OK and then "Save". Close Excel and navigate to the site in Sharepoint. Select "Edit Page" from the "Site Actions" menu and then select "Add Web Part" in a Zone of your choice. This action will then launch the "Web Part Gallery" selection screen. The web part that we are interested in is called "Excel Web Access". Select the web part from the list by selecting the checkbox and then click "Add". This will then snap the web part into the zone. Once the web part appears, you will notice that it has a hyperlink called "Click here to open tool pane". By selecting this option a tool pane will open on the right hand some with a whole set of configuration options. One of the options is called "Workbook" with a browse button located next to it. Browse to the spreadsheet that we created earlier and saved to a document library. Once this is done, select "OK" and exit edit mode on the page. The pivot table should then appear displaying the "Chart" by default. You can toggle between the chart and pivot table by selecting them from the "View" menu on the toolbar. All the filtering capabilities are also available as if you were working in Excel. The data from the database can also be refreshed by selecting "Update" from the menu. This is one of the core components used to build Digital Dashboards and it is a vast improvement on Office 2003 OWA (Office Web Components) that use to download as Active X Controls. Related Office 2007 Blogs: Building a KPI List using Excel in Sharepoint Publishing PowerPoint slides to Sharepoint Creating a Pivot Table in Sharepoint Publishing a Blog from Word 2007 into Sharepoint The importance of Outlook 2007 as a user interface into Sharepoint Migrating an Access 2007 Database to Sharepoint Posted Dec 29 2007, 04:36 PM by Neil with 2 comment(s) Filed under: Sharepoint, Office 2007

• Course 6459A: First Look: Visual Studio 2008

  This one-day instructor-led clinic introduces students to new development features available in Visual Studio 2008 that can be used to create and consume application services, build ASP.NET Web sites, create engaging desktop applications, design workflow's, expose services and enhance Microsoft Office applications. Audience This clinic is intended for .NET programmers who have experience working with Visual Studio and C# or VB.NET. At Clinic Completion After completing this clinic, students will be able to: Explain new development features in Visual Studio 2008 and how they can enhance developer productivity. Explain new language enhancements available in C# 3.0 and VB.NET 9.0. Explain how Visual Studio 2008 can be used to target multiple versions of the .NET Framework. Explain how Language Integrated Query (LINQ) can be used with the LINQ to SQL Designer. Describe new Web development features and controls available in ASP.NET 3.5 and Visual Studio 2008. Explain how ASP.NET AJAX has been integrated into ASP.NET 3.5. Explain how WPF, WF and WCF applications, workflow's and services can be built using Visual Studio 2008 templates and visual designers. Describe how to build UAC aware applications for Windows Vista. Describe how Visual Studio 2008 can be used to create custom Microsoft Office ribbons, task panes and Outlook form regions. Prerequisites Before attending this clinic, students must have: Experience creating .NET applications using Visual Studio 2003 or Visual Studio 2005. Experience working with the C# or VB.NET programming languages. Microsoft Certified Professional Exams No Microsoft Certified Professional exams are associated with this course currently. Course Materials The student kit includes a workbook and other necessary materials for this clinic. The following software is provided in the student kit: Lab exercise files. Course Outline Session 1: Visual Studio 2008 and Language Features Overview This module describes new .NET Framework application development features available in Visual Studio 2008 including multi-targeting support, C# and VB.NET language enhancements, Language Integrated Query (LINQ) and the LINQ to SQL Designer. Session 2: Building Web Applications with Visual Studio 2008 This module describes new Web application development features available in Visual Studio 2008 and ASP.NET 3.5. Topics covered include design, editing and CSS features, new ASP.NET 3.5 controls, ASP.NET AJAX integration and support for JavaScript IntelliSense and JavaScript debugging. Session 3: Building WPF, WF and WCF Applications with Visual Studio 2008 This module walks students through new editor and designer features available in Visual Studio 2008 that allow engaging Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) applications to built along with robust application workflow's and cross-platform services. Topics covered include the Visual Studio 2008 WPF designer, building User Account Control (UAC) aware applications for Windows Vista, using the Windows Workflow designer, and creating and consuming Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) services. Session 4: Visual Studio 2008 Office Development Features This module describes new Microsoft Office 2007 development features available in Visual Studio 2008. Topics covered include customizing Office ribbons, creating Office task panes, developing Outlook form regions, integrating Sharepoint workflow's into Office applications, deploying Office add-ins and calling managed code from VBA. For a complete list of Visual Studio Courses available from Microsoft click here: Visual Studio Courses Posted Dec 29 2007, 01:21 PM by Neil with 2 comment(s) Filed under: Courses, Visual Studio

• Course 6156: What's new in SQL Server 2008

  This half day instructor-led clinic introduces students to new features available in Microsoft SQL Server 2008. This clinic will introduce students to new features in the relational database, business intelligence and development environment. Audience This clinic is intended for SQL Server administrators and developers who have experience working with previous editions of SQL Server. At Clinic Completion After completing this clinic, students will be able to: Explain new development features in SQL Server 2008 and how they can benefit from these in application development Explain new enhancements to database administration features in SQL Server 2008. Explain new features and enhancements in a SQL Server 2008 Business Intelligence platform Explain how SQL Server 2008 benefits from Visual Studio integration and provides enhancements to work with location data. Prerequisites Before attending this clinic, students must have: Experience developing applications on SQL Server 2000/2005 Experience managing and administering databases on SQL Server 2000/2005 Microsoft Certified Professional Exams No Microsoft Certified Professional exams are associated with this course currently. Course Materials The student kit includes a workbook and other necessary materials for this clinic. The following software is provided in the student kit: Lab demo files. Session 1: SQL Server Platform Vision This module describes the SQL Server 2008 platform vision and describes the new features added to SQL Server 2008. Session 2: Enterprise Data Platform This module describes the enhancements in the SQL Server Enterprise Data Platform. Topics covered include High Availability Enhancements, Hardware Support, Secure Data Features, Policy based management and System Auditing Enhancements. Session 3: : Dynamic Development This module walks students through the development enhancements of the SQL Server Database Platform. Topics covered include the .NET Platform integration as well as the capability to build data synchronizing applications using the .NET Compact Framework 3.5 and the .NET Entity Framework. Session 4: Beyond Relational This module describes new features that go beyond the relational engine, available in SQL Server 2008 Topics covered include the FILESTREAM storage, extensions to working with user defined types, and database enhancements that include new data types such as data/time data. Session 5: Pervasive Insight This module describes new SQL Server 2008 features for Business Intelligence.Topics covered include the new Report Designer, integration with Virtual Earth and Location data tracking, enhancements to Analysis Services as well as new features in Integration Services. For a complete list of SQL Courses available from Microsoft click here: SQL Courses Posted Dec 29 2007, 01:20 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Courses, SQL Server

• Office Communication Server 2007 Exam Available

  If you're so inclined, you may now certify on OCS. It takes one exam to earn Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS): Office Communications Server 2007. The one exam in question is Exam 70-638: TS: Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007, Configuring. A prep guide is in the works, but in the meantime: Below is a breakdown of how the exam will be structured: Installing and Managing Office Communications Server (OCS) 2007 (20%) Determine the differences between the Standard Edition and the Enterprise Edition. Prepare the environment for OCS 2007. Request and configure certificates. Configure address book service. Manage coexistence between Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005 and OCS 2007. Configure security features. Deploying and Configuring OCS 2007 Clients (19%) Deploy and configure Office Communicator 2007 clients. Deploy and configure Communicator Web Access 2007. Deploy and configure the Microsoft Office Live Meeting 2007 client. Manage Office Communicator client migration. Configuring Conferencing (15%) Configure the A/V Conferencing Server. Configure the Web Conferencing Server. Configure the Conferencing Server policy settings. Configure external conferencing access. Configuring Enterprise Voice Functionality (14%) Configure outbound routing. Configure location profiles. Configure phone number normalization. Configure the Mediation Server. Configure PC-based audio peripherals. Configuring External Connectivity (18%) Configure the Edge Server. Configure Public IM Connectivity (PIC). Configure federation. Configure remote user access. Monitoring and Maintaining OCS 2007 Monitor server resource utilization. Isolate issues related to OCS 2007. Back up and restore OCS 2007. Configure event logging. Install and configure IM archiving. Install and configure Meeting Compliance. There are official course available that you can attend at any CPLS capable of offering these courses: Course 5177A: Implementing and Maintaining Instant Messaging Using Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 Course 5178A: Implementing and Maintaining Audio/Visual Conferencing and Web Conferencing Using Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 Course 5179A: Implementing and Maintaining Telephony Using Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 Posted Dec 27 2007, 06:58 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: OCS

• The Importance of Site Columns in Sharepoint

  To understand "Site Columns", we must first understand the purpose behind Sharepoint. For many years developers have been writing standalone web based applications that do not share data between them. Once these applications have been written, they then attempt to integrate them to each other using some kind of back-end process. Sharepoint creates a common development platform that allows all these applications to be hosted on the same "Engine" and therefore making it much easier to share data between them. Let us look at the classical development process: Developers create a database Tables are designed with column definitions , rules and constraints Views and Stored Procedures are created to extract the data. Assemblies are created using ADO.NET to extract and manipulate the data. User interfaces are created using ASP.NET to display the data and allowing to the users to interact with the data. This is a very time consuming process and many components are repeated over and over again for each new application. Many developers acknowledge this problem and many solutions have been created to solve it. I am referring to things like: Design Patterns, SOA, Object Stores, Reusable components etc. Microsoft internally also faces the same problem and that is why they created "Sharepoint" to run all their web sites. Let us look at how Sharepoint does things: The Content database already exists when a new Web Application is created There are already tables defined in the database that will act as an object store. New Columns defined, are stored as metadata in these tables. Views can be created on the fly within Sharepoint and additional query's can be written if required. Assemblies have already been written and optimised to handle the data extraction. New user interface can be created on the fly by clicking and dragging without any additional code required. Complicated interfaces can be created using the concept of "Web Parts" in addition to Lists and Library's Based on the fact that all columns in Sharepoint are stored as metadata, it makes it very easy to integrate and share information between applications. This is called "Site Columns". Problem with previous Sharepoint Windows Sharepoint Services V2 provided no way to define a column type that could be used across multiple list definitions. That means developers often created a redundant column definition in multiple lists definition that had the exact same characteristics, default values, rendering and validation. Windows Sharepoint Services V2 also made it difficult or impossible to store heterogeneous types of content inside a single list or document library. For example, a document library can only have one document template although many companies would like to store many different types of documents inside the same document library. Also, when you add a custom column to a document library to associate metadata with documents, that column applies to every document in the document library. Windows Sharepoint Services V2 can not track different types of metadata for documents stored within the same document library. How it works in Sharepoint 2007 A site column is a column definition that can be created and then reused across multiple lists, document libraries and content types. A site column has a name which is also always the name of columns that are based on the site column. A site column also defines the column type, its default value, any special rendering requirements and validation. Site columns are stored inside the Site Column Gallery of the current site. While a site column is scoped at the site level, it is visible to all the sites below it inside the current site collection. That means a site column defined in a top-level site can be thought of as being scoped to the current site collection. To find the "Site Columns Gallery", navigate to a Top Level site in Sharepoint and select "Site Settings" from the "Site Actions" menu. Let's take a look at the Site Columns Gallery. Select the Hyperlink named "Site Columns" This is a list of all the default columns that exists in a Site Collection and all these columns are used somewhere in a standard list or document library that ships with Sharepoint. It is possible to create you own column definitions or edit existing columns definitions. To create a new column, select "Create" from the toolbar at the top of the page. There are a number of options that can be configured on this page and the options will change depending on the data type selected. All you really have to do is give the column a name and choose a data type. The process is very similar to creating a table in a database except that these columns only exists as metadata in a fixed table called "Lists" in the content database. I could give you a breakdown of each data type and it's purpose, but I reasoned that if you have read this blog this far and understood what you read. The rest should be self explanatory. From this point onwards these columns form the basis of everything else built in Sharepoint like Lists, Document Library's , Content Types, Query's etc. Related Blogs: Content Types the Core of ECM in Sharepoint Posted Dec 27 2007, 04:26 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Sharepoint

• Overview of User Profiles in Sharepoint

  User Profiles is a feature carried over from SPS 2003. User profiles represent data in a Microsoft Office Sharepoint Server-specific database which contains information about site users. This information allows user to describe themselves to other users and it also allows users to discover things about each other. User profiles can also be used by developers to target content to interested parties. Very similar to "FaceBook" if you think about it! Sharepoint maintains user profiles in SQL Server. User profile data can be imported from various identity stores such as Active Directory or LDAP repositories. User profile data can be extended by adding custom properties for application-specific purposes. Using the BDC, profile information can also be imported from external "HR" databases. There are two built-in Microsoft Office Sharepoint Server features that rely on user profiles: Audience targeting and the My Site infrastructure. User profiles can also be exploited in many other ways through custom code. These I will discuss in some future blogs. To setup user profiles an SSP needs to be created first. After launching the SSP admin web site, you will find various options that can be configured regarding profiles. My intention in this blog is not to take you through every single option that is available concerning "Profiles", but to give you an overview and the basic steps to getting it configured. The sequence of the hyperlinks provided in the SSP admin web site is deliberate and must be done in sequence. To get the "Profile" imports configured and scheduled, select the hyperlink called "User profiles and properties". The page is basically divided into two parts. The top part gives you a summary of the current configuration with some hyperlinks to reconfigure and the bottom part gives us options to configure new settings. The first thing that we need to do is view the current import connections and possibly create additional ones. We can do this by selecting the link called "View Import Connections" By default there will already be an import connection defined that is linked to the domain that the Sharepoint server is configured to use during the installation process. Even thought the connection is established during installation the import is never run as no schedule is defined by default. The import can be run manually by selecting the link called "Start Full/Incremental Import" from the "User Profiles and Property's" page. To establish a new connection to an alternative source of user profile information, select the "Create New Connection" button from the toolbar. There are a lot of options that can be configured on this page, but I will only be focusing on the connection settings. The "Type" option allows us to specify the type of connection that we are trying to create. Active Directory - this allows you to import user profiles from another domain, useful in "Forest" configurations LDAP - typically used with non Microsoft networks like Novell and Unix BDC - you can establish an connection to an external databases using the BDC and then use that to import the profile information. It is also possible to specify an alternative port number, thereby controlling the protocol used to collect the information. The time-out is important to prevent resources being lock indefinitely. When you are defining multiple import sources, it becomes important to generate an unique key to compare against. This must also be processed server side to prevent duplication of records. Select the checkbox called "Enable Server Side Incremental" to enable this check. You will also note that the key is generated using the unique name of the user. Leave the rest of the options as they are and select "OK" to create the new connection. Return to the "User Profiles and Properties" page. The last thing that we need to do is schedule the imports to occur automatically on a regular basis. This is done by selecting link called "Disabled (click to configure)" next to the label "Import Schedule Full". This page is almost identical to the one that we used to create the new connection. It is effectively the "Edit" page of an existing connection, but I want to focus on the scheduling options at the bottom. There are two options available: Full Import Schedule - this should be done once only or in a disaster recovery scenario. Incremental Import Schedule - this should be scheduled on a regular basis like once a week. Once you are done, select "OK" to active the schedule. After the import has run, all the user information should now be in the SSP Database and can be used to define Audience's and "My Site" configurations. Related Blogs: Audience Targeting in Sharepoint Overview of Shared Service Providers in Sharepoint Sharepoint Server Topologies Posted Dec 26 2007, 10:58 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Sharepoint

• Overview of Shared Service Providers in Sharepoint

  Shared Service Providers (SSP's) are an important architectural piece of Microsoft Office Sharepoint Server. As the name suggests, the SSP is a set of services that is shared between multiple web applications. This prevents the need of configuring the same services for each portal site that you create as it is only done once. SPS 2003 used an approach where one portal was deemed as the master to do the work to be shared across portals. Other portals were configured as slaves so that they could use the indexes and MySite provisioning of the master. However, this architecture was not flexible and it was very fragile when it came to backup and restore. The new architecture is much better because an SSP is defined and configured independently of any portal site. A new SSP can be created by launching the Sharepoint 3.0 Central Administration application and then navigating to the Application Management tab. There you find a hyperlink called "Create or Configure this farm's shared services". By selecting this link it will open the "Create" page for the SSP's. Before being able to use portal features in a Microsoft Office Sharepoint Server farm, someone must create and configure the default SSP. The image above shows the page on the Sharepoint 3.0 Central Administration application that is used to create and configure an SSP. All new web applications will automatically be associated with the default SSP when they are initially created. Note that it is possible to create more than one SSP. That means different portals and team sites can be configured to use different content sources in their searches or different MySite provisioning. However, each Web application (and all the sites on it) must be assigned to the same SSP. For two sites to use different SSP's, they must be created on different Web applications. Web applications can also be re-associated at any time by selecting the "Change Associations" button on the toolbar. Once an SSP is created, the SSP web site can open launched by selecting the new hyperlink that is created in the navigation bar on the left. The SSP admin web site allows you to configure all the sub-systems that make up the SSP. These would include the following: Profiles and MySite - this imports information from an external source about all the users and creates a private web site for each individual called "My Site" Search and Indexing - this service allows you to index all the information stored in the content database as well as external sources like file servers, web servers, mail servers etc. The users will then use a "Search Centre" to find the information stored in the Catalog. Usage Reporting - this service records all activity on the portal sites and what the users are doing. The information is then aggregated and displayed as web based reports. Audiences - this service allows you to target certain information published on portal sites to a selected group of people regardless of permissions. This is based on the profile import and rules defined to create the audience. Excel Services - this allows a user to publish spreadsheets to Sharepoint and have them run server side. The individual sheets are also rendered as web pages removing the need for the user to have excel installed before interacting with the spreadsheet. Business Data Catalog - this feature allows you to connect an external database to Sharepoint and then display that data as lists. Different SSP's can also be scaled out over various servers. Read the blog "Sharepoint Topology's". This blog is also a more detailed explanation than the one I explained in the blog "Installing MOSS". In a future blog I will explain each of these sub systems in more detail. Related Blogs: Installation Procedure for MOSS Sharepoint Server Topologies Joining a WFE server to a Sharepoint Farm Overview of User Profiles in Sharepoint Posted Dec 26 2007, 12:05 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Sharepoint

• Sharepoint Server Topologies

  Sharepoint can be installed in multiple configurations ranging from a "Single Server Deployment" all the way into a "Load balanced Farm". Many people are not aware of the fact that Microsoft has converted most of their web sites to Sharepoint. They are running approximately 800 servers in a farm supporting about 5 000 000 users. The functionality to scale out the solution into a farm is done via the core WSS technology and MOSS just leverages from this. This means that a farm can be built with WSS alone and MOSS is not required. The base Sharepoint topology consists of a load balanced web front end as well as application servers and back end databases. For Search specifically, Microsoft Office Sharepoint Server provides two application servers roles – indexer and query. Base topology Web front-end servers App servers Database servers App servers Indexer Service Query Service Single Server Deployment When installing Sharepoint on a server, you are prompted with the question to install Sharepoint either as a "Single" server or as a "Farm". If you select "Single" server, then all of the components are loaded on the same box and cannot be changed in the future without a re-install. The following components will be installed and configured when doing a "Single" server deployment: The binary's (DLL's and Exe's) are installed into the 12 Hive. SQL Server embedded edition is installed if you do not have SQL server already installed. The Admin web site is created with all its databases. The SSP's will run on this box with their databases. All Web Applications with their content databases will run on this box. This deployment is only functional in small company's with a limited amount of users. It is still a good idea to install a single server as a "Farm" configuration so that you can split the servers in the future if required. Farm Deployment The components that are installed for a "Farm" deployment are almost identical to that of a "Single" server deployment with one major difference. The components are scaled out over multiple servers thereby distributing load and allowing more concurrent users. Components can be split in the following manner: User Interface - the client components are IE 6,7 and Office 2007 that also help and splitting the load. Web Front Ends - these are the web servers that can be bound together using a Network Load Balancing Cluster configuration. Application Servers - these are the back-end servers running the "Shared Service Provider" components. The SSP's control: Search , Indexing, BDC , Profiles, Forms Services, Excel Servers and any other components shipped by 3rd party vendors. You can spit out as many SSP servers as you like. For searching and indexing it is particularly important to do this. Database Servers - the admin console and SSP components will create a number of databases, but they will stay relatively small in size. Each web application has by default one content database and that is where all the information will be stored. In large configurations these databases can easily go into the terabyte range and therefore it might become a good option to split them across multiple databases servers. The detailed steps on how to actually install this configuration can be found in a blog titled "Installing MOSS". Related Blogs: Installation Procedure for MOSS A developer's 101 to installing Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Joining a WFE server to a Sharepoint Farm Installing MOSS with a remote SQL Server Overview of Shared Service Providers in Sharepoint Posted Dec 26 2007, 09:54 AM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Sharepoint

• The importance of Outlook 2007 as a user interface into Sharepoint

  Microsoft Outlook has been much more than an email client for many years. It gives us the ability to manage our email, tasks, contacts and calendars. With the release of Sharepoint 2003 it started to become and interface into Sharepoint, but the functionality was limited. With the release of Office 2007 and Sharepoint 2007 it evolved to the next level. In this blog I am going to illustrate the integration points between Sharepoint and Outlook 2007. I will create a quick list as a reference point: Alerts - email notifications received from Sharepoint Document Library - keep an offline copy of documents in Sharepoint Tasks - share tasks between members of a site instead of just with yourself. Calendar - share calendars between staff, like boardrooms Contacts - have shared contacts between members instead of only private contacts.  RSS Feeds - subscribe to blogs posted on Sharepoint to get all the updates. The process starts by creating a site in Sharepoint and then creating a number of web parts by selecting "Create" from the "Site Actions" menu. Create one of each of the following web parts: Document Library Contacts Calendar Tasks You can also create a Blog site to test the RSS feeds. Document Library Navigate to the document library and select the "Actions" menu option. On this menu there is an option called "Connect to Outlook" that will link the document library to outlook. This is exactly the same procedure to follow with all the other web parts like tasks, calendar and contacts. Once this option is selected, it will launch Outlook 2007 and pop-up the following dialogue box. Once you select "Yes", the document library will be linked to outlook and all the documents will be synchronized to create an offline copy in your OST or PST file. This feature allows you to work on your documents offline whilst away from the office. When you return to the office and download your email, the documents will automatically synchronise with the Sharepoint document library. I have found that people in JHB love this as they can now go and work on weekends. For some reason this features evokes no response in CPT and DBN, maybe someone can explain this to me. Calendar The concept of sharing our calendars is not a new one, but in my experience it doesn't work for the following reasons: We create this shared calendar called "Board Room" maintained by someone and then we expect people to send emails to this person to book the resource. There are a number of reasons this does not work: People forget to email, their dates are double booked as they do not confirm, the email "Mysteriously" disappears. The setup of the Shared Calendar is manual and people do not know how to do this. There are sync errors on a regular basis as people use the calendars in their outlook PST files and not the Exchange mailbox calendar. Fortunately this problem is now solved using the shared calendar in Sharepoint. It is a simple matter of creating the calendar in a Sharepoint site and then linking it to outlook as explained earlier in this blog. The new calendar will now appear next to your own private calendar in outlook. The integration between the outlook calendar and Sharepoint is bi-directional, meaning that you can schedule meetings from here. These meetings will then automatically cascade into all the other people's outlook via their link to the same calendar in Sharepoint. By selecting the checkboxes on the left of the screen in outlook, you can remove the calendar of your choice from the display area. The calendars can also be overlayed so that any double bookings can immediately be noticed, look closely at the screen shot for the tool tip. Tasks Tasks has always been a popular feature for organising you own personal and work life, but it falls far short of expectation were team collaboration is concerned. Lets think about how we typically work everyday: You remember to do something and you add a task. If you never get round to it you deleted it. Who will know? If you are an advanced user, you will right drag a new mail onto the task pane, thereby creating a new task with the attachments. Yea Right!!! If we need to tell someone else to do something we send them a mail so that they can add it to their tasks manually. What mail? When a task is overdue and flashing in red, change the date, no one will know. What accountability? You can either agree or disagree about tasks and how they work in you organization, but you would have to agree that there are some problems with tasks in outlook in stand-alone mode. To collaborate properly, we need a central task list that is automatically updated and transparent to everyone! Create a new task list in a Sharepoint site and link it to outlook as explained earlier in this blog. Once again the task list is bi-directional. Therefore tasks can either be added from the web interface or directly from outlook. All the members of the site appear in a column called "Assigned To" and now tasks can be allocated to anyone without having to send an email. This creates complete transparency and now no one can hide from their work! Filters can also be created to focus on specific users or dates. Tasks can also be re-assigned and then email notifications are automatically generated. Contacts Contacts is a great way of keeping track of people and how to contact them. We sync it with our mobile phones and PDA's and pretty much schedule our meeting invites , task allocations and many other things around it. The question is, how up to date is your contact list details? When one of your contacts changes their details. How do you know about it? Many of you colleagues have the same contacts in their outlook. If they change the details, you will not be informed. We have tried to solving the problem by adding contacts onto the Exchange Global Address list. This does not work as it needs to be maintained by the IT department. Do you still email that company phone extension list as a spreadsheet or do you pay expensive web developers to maintain the "Intranet". There is a better way to do it using shared contact lists in Sharepoint linked to outlook. Create a contact list in a Sharepoint site and link it to outlook as explained earlier in this blog. Once again the connection between Outlook and Sharepoint is bi-directional. Any contacts added is automatically updated in Sharepoint and then cascades to everyone else connected to this list. Therefore any changes made to contact details is shared among everyone in the office without having to notify any one. It then becomes a simple matter of syncing your phone and away you go. RSS Feeds The word RSS stands for "Really Simple Syndication" and for the layman this still means nothing, so I will explain the concept to you. In short, it is a way for your PC to be notified if something on a web site has changed without you having to go and look for yourself. A lot of us have our favourites in IE and we go and visit certain web sites every day, like this one (it better be on your favourites). Quite often we navigate to the web site to find that nothing has changed and waste quite a lot of time and bandwidth doing so. Wouldn't it be nice if your PC can be informed by the web site that something has changed and give you a brief description of what has changed. In the case of Sharepoint, this can be done to Blog and Wiki sites. The steps to set up a RSS feed is quite simple: Navigate to a Web site that offers an RSS Feed with the following icon Click on the icon to create a subscription to the site. Your PC will then be scanned for your default RSS Reader that could be Outlook. As new posts are made to the web site, your RSS reader will automatically be updated assuming that you are connected to the Internet or Sharepoint. To read the entire article, select the link called "View Article" and you will be taken to the web site. Alerts Sharepoint can generate a lot of email from various locations, it all depends on what features have been enabled. Here is a list of some of the features that Sharepoint uses to generate emails: Adding a new user to a site Allocating a task to a user Sending and email to a document library for archiving. Setting up Alerts on Documents and Lists. All the emails generated by Sharepoint end up in your inbox as email. If you analyse the emails, you will find that they all contain hyperlinks regarding the topic at hand that will open the correct page in Sharepoint when selected. I hope this blog has illustrated the importance of Outlook 2007 to a Sharepoint deployment. Related Office 2007 Blogs: Building a KPI List using Excel in Sharepoint Publishing PowerPoint slides to Sharepoint Creating a Pivot Table in Sharepoint Publishing a Blog from Word 2007 into Sharepoint The importance of Outlook 2007 as a user interface into Sharepoint Migrating an Access 2007 Database to Sharepoint Posted Dec 24 2007, 05:58 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Sharepoint, Office 2007

• Course 5054A: Designing a High Availability Messaging Solution using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007

  This 2-day course teaches messaging engineers to design a high availability messaging solution using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007. Students will create a high availability design to meet service level agreement requirements and learn strategies for gaining approval for the design. They will learn how to identify risks and create mitigation plans to maintain the business continuity of the messaging system. Students will also learn how to design a backup strategy, disaster recovery procedures, and test plans for those procedures. Audience This course is intended for people with 3 or more years experience working with previous versions of Exchange Server and experience implementing Exchange Server 2007. Most students will have managed enterprise-level Exchange Server organizations. Students are expected to be new to participating in designing high availability solutions for Exchange Server 2007 or be planning to design high availability solutions for Exchange Server 2007 in the near future. Students may have done some design for Exchange 2000 Server or Exchange Server 2003 deployments but want to learn how to design Exchange Server 2007 environments. Students may have experience in designing and managing high availability solutions for other network services. At Course Completion After completing this course, students will be able to: Describe foundational high availability concepts for messaging. Evaluate high availability messaging technologies for Exchange Server 2007 Create a high availability messaging strategy. Design the messaging portion of a business continuity plan. Design backup for a high availability messaging environment. Ensure recovery readiness of a high availability messaging environment. Prerequisites Before attending this course, students: Must have a basic understanding of high availability concepts. For example, how clustering works at the operating system level (Windows clustering) and how network load balancing works. Must have a basic familiarity with deriving business requirements. For example, gathering business requirements and understanding that business needs come from a variety of sources (direct personnel needs, regulatory, business operations requirements). Must have a basic understanding of backup systems. For example, types of backups (disk to tape, disk to disk, Storage Area Networks (SAN) snapshot, imaging, etc.), backup rotation schemes, and offsite backup procedures. Must already know how to use: Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Management tools Exchange Best Practice Analyzer (ExBPA) WinNT backup (ntbackup.exe) Microsoft Visio or Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2003 (to create infrastructure diagrams) Must understand hardware concepts. For example, what redundant array of independent disks (RAID) is, what a storage area network (SAN) is, processor options, memory requirements, how disk I/O functions and the limitations of disk I/O, and storage options for Exchange server. The differences in addressable memory spaces between 32 and 64 bit architectures. Must have extensive detailed knowledge of Active Directory concepts and design principles. For example, site replication, integrated authentication, schema extension, Domain Name Systems (DNS), group and organization unit structure and inheritance, etc. Must have working experience with designing and implementing Active Directory directory services in Microsoft Windows Serverâ„¢ 2003. Must understand Exchange architecture. For example, the purpose of server roles, functions of specific server roles, how message routing and queuing works in Exchange, standard messaging protocols (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol [SMTP], Internet Message Access Protocol version 4rev1 [IMAP4], Post Office Protocol version 3 [POP3]), how Exchange replicates data stores, client access methods, etc. Must have working experience with Exchange 2000 Server or Exchange Server 2003 and Exchange Server 2007. For example, must have installed, maintained, and supported a production Exchange environment. Must already know how to use: Exchange Server 2007 management tools Exchange Best Practice Analyzer (ExBPA) Microsoft Visio (to create infrastructure diagrams) Must have familiarity and experience with a Windows scripting or command line scripting Course Outline Module 1: Foundational High Availability Concepts for Messaging This module explains the concept of service level management and how it relates the maintenance of Exchange Server 2007. As well, an overview of the high availability technologies for various network and data center components. Lessons Introduction to Service Level Management Overview of High Availability Technologies Lab: Foundational High Availability Concepts for Messaging Exercise 1: Discussion: Refining the Scope of SLA Requirements After completing this module, students will be able to: Explain service level management. Describe high availability technologies. Module 2: Evaluating High Availability Technologies for Exchange Server 2007 This module explains how to evaluate the high availability technologies for Exchange Server 2007. Options for Mailbox and non-Mailbox servers are covered. Lessons Evaluating High Availability Options for Mailbox Servers Evaluating High Availability Options for Non-Mailbox Servers Lab A: Evaluating High Availability Messaging Technologies Exercise 1: Configuring LCR Exercise 2: Configuring CCR Lab B: Evaluating High Availability Messaging Technologies Exercise 1: Testing CCR Exercise 2: Discussion: Recommendations for Using the High Availability Solutions After completing this module, students will be able to: Evaluate high availability options for Mailbox servers. Evaluate high availability options for non-Mailbox servers Module 3: Creating a High Availability Messaging Strategy This module explains how to create a high availability messaging strategy. This includes creating solutions for Mailbox and non-mailbox servers. Lessons Designing a High Availability Strategy for Mailbox Servers Designing a High Availability Solution for Non-Mailbox Servers Lab: Creating a High Availability Messaging Strategy Exercise 1: Designing High-Availability Improvements for a Messaging Infrastructure Exercise 2: Justifying Messaging Infrastructure Design Decisions After completing this module, students will be able to: Design a high availability strategy for Mailbox servers. Design a high availability solution for non-Mailbox servers. Module 4: Designing the Messaging Portion of a Business Continuity Plan This module explains how to design the messaging portion of a business continuity plan. As well, information about identifying threats to the messaging organization and mitigating those threats is covered. Lessons Overview of Business Continuity Planning Identifying Threats to the Messaging Organization Mitigating Threats to the Messaging Organization Designing the Business Continuity Plan Lab: Designing the Messaging Portion of a Business Continuity Plan Exercise 1: Identifying Risks to a Messaging Environment Exercise 2: Discussion: Mitigating Risks to a Messaging Environment After completing this module, students will be able to: Describe business continuity planning. Identify threats to the messaging organization. Mitigate threats to the messaging organization. Design the business continuity plan. Module 5: Designing Backup for a High Availability Messaging Environment This module explains how to identify the backup requirements and design the backup procedures for a high availability messaging environment. Lessons Identifying Backup Requirements Designing Backup Procedures Lab: Designing Backup for a High Availability Messaging Environment Exercise 1: Identifying Backup Requirements Exercise 2: Discussion: Creating Backup Procedures After completing this module, students will be able to: Identify backup requirements. Design backup procedures. Module 6: Ensuring Recovery Readiness of a High Availability Messaging Environment This module explains how to ensure recovery readiness of a high availability messaging environment by designing recovery strategies and evaluating disaster recovery readiness. Lessons Designing Recovery Strategies Evaluating Disaster Recovery Readiness Lab: Ensuring Recovery Readiness of a High Availability Messaging Environment Exercise 1: Defining Recovery Procedures Exercise 2: Evaluating Disaster Recovery Readiness After completing this module, students will be able to: Design recovery strategies. Evaluate disaster recovery readiness. Related Blogs: Course 5047A: Introduction to Installing and Managing Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5049A: Managing Messaging Security using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5050A: Recovering Messaging Servers and Databases using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5051A: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5054A: Designing a High Availability Messaging Solution using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Posted Dec 23 2007, 10:19 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Exchange, Courses

• Course 5051A: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Microsoft Exchange Server 2007

  This two-day workshop teaches messaging specialists to monitor and troubleshoot an Exchange Server 2007 messaging system. Students will learn how to correlate client and server issues and resolve those issues. They will also learn how to monitor systems and create reports from the monitoring data. Audience The audience for this course includes people with experience with Exchange Server 2007 or previous versions of Exchange Sever. These people will have experience installing and configuring Exchange Server, configuring recipients and mailboxes, and supporting Exchange Server clients. People coming into the course are expected to have at least three years experience working in the Information Technology field—typically in the areas of network administration or Windows Server administration—and one year of Exchange Server administration experience. At Course Completion After completing this workshop, students will be able to: Use the Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Management Pack for Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) 2005 to monitor Exchange servers. Monitor and troubleshoot client performance and connectivity. Identify and resolve issues related to access of resources and messages. Monitor and troubleshoot mail flow. Monitor and troubleshoot Mailbox servers. Monitor and troubleshoot external and additional services. Identify trends in a messaging system. Prerequisites This workshop requires that students meet the following prerequisites: Fundamental knowledge of network technologies including DNS and firewall technologies. Experience administering Exchange Server 2007. Experience with the Windows Server 2003 operating system. Experience with Active Directory directory service in Windows Server 2003. Experience with managing backup and restore on Windows Servers. Experience using Windows management and monitoring tools such as Microsoft Management Console, Active Directory Users and Computers, Performance Monitor, Event Viewer, and IIS Administrator. Experience using Windows networking and troubleshooting tools such as Network Monitor, Telnet, and NSLookup. Microsoft Certified Professional Exams This course will help the student prepare for the following Microsoft Certified Professional exam: Exam Exam 70-236: Implementing: Troubleshooting Exam and Maintaining a MS Exchange Server 2007 Infrastructure.: Course Materials The student kit includes a comprehensive workbook and Student Materials compact disk for this class. Course Outline Unit 1: Introduction to Exchange Server Monitoring and Troubleshooting After completing this unit, students will be able to explain how to monitor Exchange servers using Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) and explain an Exchange troubleshooting model. Topics Overview Introduction to Microsoft Operations Manager Introduction to Troubleshooting Exchange Server 2007 Demonstration: Using MOM to Monitor Exchange Servers Lab: Introduction to Exchange Server Monitoring and Troubleshooting Developing a Monitoring and Troubleshooting Process After completing this unit, students will be able to: Describe how this unit provides the basis for the information to be presented in the other units in the workshop Describe what MOM is. Provide an example of efficient troubleshooting logic for Exchange Server 2007. Explain how to monitor Exchange Servers using MOM. Unit 2: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Client Performance and Connectivity After completing this unit, students will be able monitor and troubleshoot mail flow. Topics Overview Tools for Monitoring Client Performance and Connectivity Process for Troubleshooting MAPI Clients Process for Troubleshooting Client Access Server Clients Lab: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Client Performance and Connectivity Monitoring Client Connectivity Troubleshooting AutoDiscover Issues Troubleshooting a Client Access Server Issue After completing this unit, students will be able to: Identify tools for monitoring client performance and connectivity. Describe the process for troubleshooting MAPI clients. Describe the process for troubleshooting Client Access server clients. Configure Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) to monitor client connectivity issues. Identify the cause for an Autodiscover issue and resolve the issue. Identify the cause for a remote client connectivity issue and resolve the issue. Unit 3: Troubleshooting Access to Resources and Messages After completing this unit, students will be able to troubleshoot access to resources and messages. Topics Overview How Public Folder Access Works How Calendaring Works Process for Troubleshooting Client Access Server Issues Lab: Troubleshooting Access to Messaging Contents Troubleshooting a Public Folder Access Issue Troubleshooting a Calendaring Issue Troubleshooting an Outlook Web Access Issue After completing this unit, students will be able to: Describe how public folder access works. Describe how calendaring works. Explain the process for troubleshooting client access server issues. Unit 4: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Mail Flow After completing this unit, students will be able to monitor and troubleshoot mail flow. Topics Overview Discussion: Tools for Monitoring Mail Flow Demonstration: Troubleshooting Message Transport Using Exchange Server 2007 Tools Process for Troubleshooting Internal Mail Flow Process for Troubleshooting External Mail Flow Lab: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Mail Flow Configuring MOM to Monitor Message Flow Troubleshooting Internet E-Mail Delivery Troubleshooting Spam Filtering Troubleshooting Outbound Internet E-mail Delivery After completing this unit, students will be able to: Identify tools for monitoring mail flow. Describe how to troubleshoot message transport using Exchange Server 2007 tools. Describe the process for troubleshooting internal mail flow. Describe the process for troubleshooting external mail flow. Configure Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) to monitor message flow. Identify and resolve the reason that messages are not being delivered to and from the Internet. Identify and resolve the cause for spam filters blocking messages. Unit 5: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Mailbox Servers After completing this unit, students will be able to monitor and troubleshoot mailbox servers. Topics Overview Tools for Monitoring and Troubleshooting Mailbox Servers Process for Troubleshooting Mailbox Servers Demonstration: Troubleshooting Mailbox Server Performance Issues Lab: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Mailbox Servers Configuring the monitoring of Mailbox servers Troubleshooting a Mailbox Logon Issue Troubleshooting a Hard Disk Failure Troubleshooting a Mailbox Database Mounting Issue After completing this unit, students will be able to: Identify the tools for monitoring Exchange Mailbox servers. Implement a process for troubleshooting Exchange Mailbox servers. Describe the guidelines for resolving performance issues for Exchange Server roles. Configure Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) to monitor Mailbox servers. Identify the cause for users not being able to log on to their mailboxes and resolve the issue. Identify the reasons why a mailbox store cannot be mounted and resolve the issue. Identify the reasons why a user cannot access a message and resolve the issue. Unit 6: Monitoring and Troubleshooting External and Additional Services After completing this unit, students will be able to monitor and troubleshoot external and additional services. Lessons Overview Discussion: External and Additional Services Required by Exchange Server 2007 External Services Required for Unified Messaging in Exchange Server 2007 Monitoring External Services with MOM 2005 Lab: Monitoring and Troubleshooting External and Additional Services Configuring the Monitoring of External Services Troubleshooting an External Services Dependency for Exchange Server 2007 Discussion: Impact of External and Additional Services on Exchange Environments After completing this unit, students will be able to: Identify external and additional services that Exchange Server 2007 requires. Identify external services required for Unified Messaging in Exchange Server 2007. Identify the MOM 2005 tools for monitoring external services. Configure monitoring for external services required for Exchange Server 2007. Identify why Exchange Server 2007 services failed to start and resolve the issue. Troubleshoot scenarios in which the failure of external services results in Exchange Server 2007 failures. Unit 7: Identifying Trends in a Messaging System After completing this unit, students will be able to identify and address trends in a messaging system. Topics Overview Tools for Identifying Trends in a Messaging System Exchange Server 2007 Management Pack MOM Reports Discussion: Information Required to Identify and Resolve Trends Lab: Identifying Trends in a Messaging System Evaluating Messaging Reports Recommending Configuration Changes After completing this unit, students will be able to: Describe tools for identifying trends in a messaging system. Describe the monitoring reports available with the Exchange Server 2007 Management Pack. Apply considerations for identifying and addressing trends. Analyze monitoring reports to identify trends. Create proposals for addressing identified trends. Related Blogs: Course 5047A: Introduction to Installing and Managing Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5049A: Managing Messaging Security using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5050A: Recovering Messaging Servers and Databases using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5051A: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5054A: Designing a High Availability Messaging Solution using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Posted Dec 23 2007, 10:19 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Exchange, Courses

• Course 5050A: Recovering Messaging Servers and Databases using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007

  This one-day course teaches messaging specialists to recover Exchange mailboxes and servers in a variety of disaster scenarios. Students will learn how to perform full and dial-tone recoveries of a mailbox server, as well as repair a mailbox database. They will also learn how to perform a full recovery of Client Access servers, Hub Transport servers, Unified Messaging servers, and Edge Transport servers. Audience The audience for this course includes people who have experience with Exchange Server 2007 or previous Exchange Server versions. These people will have experience installing and configuring Exchange Server, configuring recipients and mailboxes, and supporting Exchange Server clients. People beginning this course are expected to have at least three years experience working in the Information Technology field—typically in the areas of network administration or Windows Server administration—and one year of Exchange Server administration experience. At Course Completion After completing this course, students will be able to: Recover messaging databases. Prepare for and recover from Mailbox server failures. Prepare for and recover from non-Mailbox server failures. Prerequisites This course requires that students meet the following prerequisites: Working knowledge of malware. Examples include approaches to scanning for viruses (client-based, SMTP-based, Exchange-based); methods that worms use to propagate; and basic concepts of spam, phishing schemes, and unwelcome message content. Working knowledge of how PKI is managed in the directory. Working knowledge of Windows Server 2003 operating system. For example, how storage is configured, basic backup and restore techniques, and what a client/server application interaction means. Working knowledge of network technologies. For example, what TCP/IP and DNS do and how to use them, basic routing concepts (WAN vs. LAN, router vs. switch vs. hub). Working knowledge of Active Directory directory service. Examples include how user objects are managed, what is stored in Active Directory partitions, basic architectures (domain, forest, sites, etc.), and how domain controllers are managed. Additionally, site and site connector configuration, schema and configuration partitions, and Global Catalogs. Working knowledge of Exchange Server 2007. For example, what the different server roles are, how the different server roles interact, what protocols the server roles use to communicate, what roles the clients connect to, and how to configure messaging recipients and Exchange Server 2007 computers. Conceptual understanding of firewalls. For example, how SMTP messages are allowed through a firewall. Conceptual understanding of e-mail technologies. For example, that SMTP is a protocol used for e-mail, and the differences between transport protocols and client access protocols (POP, IMAP, SMTP). Experience using these tools and applications: NT Backup NSLookup Microsoft Windows Explorer Microsoft Management Console (MMC) Active Directory Users and Computers Active Directory Sites and Services Internet Information Services (IIS) Admin Microsoft Office Outlook Completion of the following equivalent knowledge: Course 5047A: Introduction to Installing and Managing Microsoft Exchange Server 2007. Microsoft Certified Professional Exams This course will help the student prepare for the following Microsoft Certified Professional exam: Exam Exam 70-236: Implementing: Troubleshooting Exam and Maintaining a MS Exchange Server 2007 Infrastructure.: Course Materials The student kit includes a comprehensive workbook and a Student Material compact disk for this class. Course Outline Module 1: Recovering Messaging Databases After completing this module, students will be able to recover messaging databases. Lessons Overview of Database Recovery Scenarios Recovering a Messaging Database Using Dial-Tone Recovery Lab: Recovering Messaging Databases in Exchange Server 2007 Performing a Storage Group Backup Performing a Dial-Tone Recovery Repairing a Damaged Database After completing this module, students will be able to: Describe messaging database recovery scenarios. Recover a messaging database using dial-tone recovery. Module 2: Preparing for and Recovering from Mailbox Server Failures After completing this module, students will be able to prepare for and recover from Mailbox server failures. Lessons Preparing for a Mailbox Server Recovery Recovering Mailbox Servers Overview Lab: Preparing for and Recovering from Mailbox Server Failures Performing a Mailbox Server Backup Recovering a Mailbox Server Recovering Mailbox Server Data After completing this module, students will be able to: Prepare for a Mailbox server recovery. Recover Mailbox servers. Module 3: Preparing for and Recovering from Non-Mailbox Server Failures After completing this module, students will be able to prepare for and recover from non-Mailbox server failures. Lessons Preparing for a Non-Mailbox Server Recovery Recovering Non-Mailbox Servers Lab: Preparing for and Recovering from Non-Mailbox Server Failures Performing a Non-Mailbox Server Backup Restoring a Client Access Server Certificate Restoring a Hub Transport Server Restoring an Edge Transport Server After completing this module, students will be able to: Prepare for a non-Mailbox server recovery. Recover non-Mailbox servers. Related Blogs: Course 5047A: Introduction to Installing and Managing Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5049A: Managing Messaging Security using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5050A: Recovering Messaging Servers and Databases using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5051A: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5054A: Designing a High Availability Messaging Solution using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Posted Dec 23 2007, 10:18 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Exchange, Courses

• Course 5049A: Managing Messaging Security using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007

  This one-day instructor-led course provides messaging specialists with the knowledge and skills to manage messaging security and policies. Students will learn how to manage messaging and connection security. They will also learn how to manage spam, anti-virus, and content filtering. And finally they will learn how to install and configure a gateway server. Audience This course is intended for enterprise-level messaging administrators who have at least 3 years experience working in the Information Technology field, including administering Exchange Servers. Others who may take this course include IT generalists and help desk professionals who want to learn about Microsoft Exchange Server 2007. Administrators should have some experience with Exchange Server 2007. At Course Completion After completing this course, students will be able to: Manage anti-spam and antivirus features. Configure edge transport servers. Implement messaging policies. Prerequisites This course requires that students meet the following prerequisites: Working knowledge of malware. For example, approaches to scanning for viruses (client-based, Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP)-based, Exchange-based), methods that worms use to propagate, basic concepts of spam, phishing schemes, and unwelcome message content. Conceptual understanding of firewalls. For example, how SMTP messages are allowed through a firewall. Working knowledge of how Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) is managed in the directory. Experience using these tools and applications: NTBackup command. NSLookup command. Windows Explorer MicrosoftManagement Console (MMC) Active Directory Users and Computers Active Directory Sites and Services Internet Information Services (IIS) Admin Outlook Working knowledge of Windows server operating system. For example, how storage is configured, basic backup and restore techniques, and what a client/server application interaction means. Working knowledge of network technologies. For example, what Transmission Control Protocol (TCP/IP) and Domain Name System (DNS) do and how to use them, basic routing concepts (Wide Area Networks (WAN) vs. Local Area Network (LAN) router vs. switch vs. hub). Working knowledge of Active Directory. For example, how user objects are managed, what is stored in Active Directory partitions, basic architectures (domain, forest, sites, etc.), and how domain controllers are managed. Also, site and site connector configuration, schema and configuration partitions, and Global Catalogs. Working knowledge of Exchange Server 2007. For example, what the different server roles are, how the different server roles interact, what protocols the server roles use to communicate, what roles the clients connect to, how to configure messaging recipients and Exchange Server 2007 computers. Conceptual understanding of e-mail technologies. For example, that SMTP is a protocol used for e-mail and the differences between transport protocols and client access protocols (Post Office Protocol (POP), Internet Access Message Protocol (IMAP), and SMTP). Completion of the following equivalent knowledge: Configure and manage a messaging environment in accordance with technical requirements. Microsoft Certified Professional Exams This course will help the student prepare for the following Microsoft Certified Professional exam: Exam Exam 70-236: Implementing: Troubleshooting Exam and Maintaining a MS Exchange Server 2007 Infrastructure.: Course Materials The student kit includes a comprehensive workbook and a Student Materials compact disk for this class. Course Outline Module 1: Maintaining Antivirus and Anti-spam Systems After completing this module, students will be able to maintain antivirus and anti-spam systems. Lessons Introduction to Antivirus and Anti-Spam Management Implementing Anti-spam Features Implementing Antivirus Features Lab: Maintaining Antivirus and Anti-Spam Systems Reviewing the Contents of the Spam Quarantine Discussion: Modifying Spam and Antivirus Settings Modifying Spam and Antivirus Settings After completing this module, students will be able to: Explain how to manage antivirus and anti-spam. Implement anti-spam features Implement antivirus features. Module 2: Configuring Edge Transport Servers After completing this module, students will be able to configure edge transport servers. Lessons Deploying Edge Transport Servers Configuring Internet Message Delivery Configuring Security for Internet E-Mail Lab: Configuring Edge Transport Servers Configuring SMTP Connectors to Secure SMTP E-Mail Implementing Secure/Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (S/MIME) After completing this module, students will be able to: Deploy edge transport servers. Configure Internet message delivery. Configure security for Internet e-mail. Module 3: Implementing Messaging Policies After completing this module, students will be able to implement transport rules. Lessons Introducing Messaging Policy and Compliance Implementing Messaging Records Management Implementing Transport Rules Lab: Implementing Messaging Policies Configuring Domain Security After completing this module, students will be able to: Describe messaging policy and compliance. Implement messaging records management. Implement transport rules. Related Blogs: Course 5047A: Introduction to Installing and Managing Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5049A: Managing Messaging Security using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5050A: Recovering Messaging Servers and Databases using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5051A: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5054A: Designing a High Availability Messaging Solution using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Posted Dec 23 2007, 10:18 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Exchange, Courses

• Course 5047A: Introduction to Installing and Managing Microsoft Exchange Server 2007

  At the end of this three-day course, students who are new to Microsoft Exchange Server will learn how to configure and manage a messaging environment in accordance with technical requirements. Students will learn how to install Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 and manage routing, client access, and the backup and restore of databases. They will also learn how to manage addressing and recipient objects such as mailboxes, distribution groups, and contacts. Audience IT Professionals, IT generalists, and help desk professionals who want to learn about Exchange Server 2007 are the audience for this course. IT Professionals, IT generalists and help desk professionals should have at least 3 years experience working in the IT field—typically in the areas of network administration, help desk, or system administration. No experience with Exchange Server is necessary. At Course Completion After completing this course, students will be able to: Describe how Exchange Server 2007 and the Active Directory directory service work together. Install Exchange Server 2007. Configure Mailbox server roles. Manage recipient objects. Manage e-mail and address lists. Manage client access. Manage Messaging Transport. Manage availability, backup and recovery. Maintain the message system. Prerequisites This course requires that students meet the following prerequisites: Experience using these tools and applications: NTBackup command. NSLookup command. Windows Explorer Microsoft Management Console (MMC) Active Directory Users and Computers Active Directory Sites and Services Internet Information Services (IIS) Admin Outlook Working knowledge of Windows server operating system. For example, how storage is configured, basic backup and restore techniques, and what a client/server application interaction means. Working knowledge of network technologies. For example, what Transmission Control Protocol (TCP/IP) and Domain Name System (DNS) do and how to use them, basic routing concepts (Wide Area Networks (WAN) vs. Local Area Network (LAN) router vs. switch vs. hub). Working knowledge of Active Directory. For example, how user objects are managed, what is stored in Active Directory partitions, basic architectures (domain, forest, sites, etc.), and how domain controllers are managed. Also, site and site connector configuration, schema and configuration partitions, and Global Catalogs. Conceptual understanding of e-mail technologies For example, that Simple Mail Transport Protocol (SMTP) is a protocol used for e-mail and the differences between transport protocols and client access protocols (Post Office Protocol (POP), Internet Access Message Protocol (IMAP), SMTP). Microsoft Certified Professional Exams This course will help the student prepare for the following Microsoft Certified Professional exam: Exam Exam 70-236: Implementing: Troubleshooting Exam and Maintaining a MS Exchange Server 2007 Infrastructure. Course Materials The student kit includes a comprehensive workbook and a Student Materials compact disk for this class. Course Outline Module 1: Overview of Exchange and Active Directory After completing this module, students will be able to describe how Exchange Server 2007 and Active Directory work together. Lessons Overview of Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 and Active Directory Directory Service Introduction to the Integration of Active Directory and Exchange Server 2007 Lab: Overview of How Active Directory and Exchange Server 2007 Work Together Discussion: Explaining How Exchange and Active Directory Work Together After completing this module, students will be able to: Describe the core components of the Active Directory directory service. Describe the integration of Active Directory and Exchange Server 2007. Module 2: Installing Exchange Server 2007 After completing this module, students will be able install Exchange Server 2007. Lessons Introduction to the Exchange Server 2007 Server Roles Installing Exchange Server 2007 Completing the Exchange Server 2007 Installation Lab 1: Installing Exchange Server 2007 Preparing the Environment for an Exchange Server 2007 Installation Installing Exchange Lab 2: Verifying an Exchange Server 2007 Installation Verifying an Exchange Server 2007 Installation After completing this module, students will be able to: Describe the Exchange Server 2007 server roles. Install Exchange Server 2007. Module 3: Configuring Mailbox Server Roles After completing this module, students will be able to configure Mailbox Server roles. Lessons Overview of Exchange Server 2007 Implementing Mailbox Server Roles Managing Public Folder Databases Lab: Configuring Mailbox Servers Configuring Storage Groups and Database Files Configuring a Public Folder and Store Referrals After completing this module, students will be able to: Describe the Exchange Server 2007 Administration Tools. Implement Mailbox Server roles. Manage Public Folder databases Module 4: Managing Recipient Objects After completing this module, students will be able to manage recipient objects. Lessons Managing Mailboxes Managing Other Recipients Overview of Managing Public Folders Lab: Managing Recipient Objects Modifying Existing Mailboxes Configuring New Mailboxes and Mail-Enabled Objects Managing Resource Mailboxes Managing Mailbox Removal After completing this module, students will be able to: Manage mailboxes. Manage other recipients. Manage public folders. Manage Mailbox removal. Module 5: Managing E-Mail Addresses and Address Lists After completing this module, students will be able to manage e-mail and address lists. Lessons Configuring E-Mail Address Policies Configuring Address Lists Overview of Bulk Recipient Management Tasks Lab: Managing E-Mail Addresses and Address Lists Managing E-Mail Address Policies Managing Address Lists Performing Recipient Bulk Management Tasks After completing this module, students will be able to: Configure e-mail address policies. Configure address lists. Describe bulk recipient management tasks. Module 6: Managing Client Access After completing this module, students will be able to manage client access. Lessons Implementing Client Access Servers Implementing Client Access Features Implementing Outlook Web Access Introduction to Implementing Mobile Messaging Lab: Managing Client Access Configuring Client Protocols Managing Outlook Web Access Connectivity Managing Mobile Device Connectivity After completing this module, students will be able to: Implement client access servers. Implement client access features. Implement Outlook Web Access. Implement Mobile Messaging. Module 7: Managing Messaging Transport After completing this module, students will be able to manage messaging transport. Lessons Introduction to Message Transport Implementing Message Transport Lab: Managing Messaging Transport Troubleshooting Local Message Delivery Troubleshooting Remote Message Delivery Discussion: Troubleshooting Message Transport After completing this module, students will be able to: Describe how Message Transport works in Exchange Server 2007. Implement Message Transport. Module 8: Managing Availability, Backup and Recovery After completing this module, students will be able to manage availability, and backup and recovery. Lessons Implementing High-Availability for Mailbox Servers Managing a Backup Solution Managing a Recovery Solution Lab: Managing Backup and Recovery Backing Up and Restoring Mailbox Databases Restoring Mailbox Databases using Local Continuous Replication (LCR) Restoring Data using the Recovery Storage Group After completing this module, students will be able to: Implement high-availability for mailbox servers Manage a backup solution. Manage a recovery solution. Module 9: Maintaining the Messaging System After completing this module, students will be able to maintain the message system. Lessons Overview of Implementing Change Management Overview of Updating Exchange Servers Lab: Maintaining the Messaging System Determining the Information Necessary for Change Management Request After completing this module, students will be able to: Describe implement change management. Describe how to update Exchange Servers. Related Blogs: Course 5047A: Introduction to Installing and Managing Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5049A: Managing Messaging Security using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5050A: Recovering Messaging Servers and Databases using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5051A: Monitoring and Troubleshooting Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Course 5054A: Designing a High Availability Messaging Solution using Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Posted Dec 23 2007, 10:16 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Exchange, Courses

• Microsoft Hardware Devices and Client Software for OCS

  The Unified Messaging concept is a very large field of study. It ranges from "Exchange 2007" to "Office Communication Server 2007" to vendor specific "PBX's" and "VOIP Gateways" and even includes some Microsoft Specific hardware devices. In this blog I will introduce you to some of the new hardware that Microsoft is making available for communication and some of the software versions that do the same thing. The list of items that I will be discussing is the following: "Tanjay" IP Phone "Roundtable" conferencing device. Office Communicator client on the PC Office Communicator Mobile Client Office Communicator Web Access Office Communicator Client for the PC The Office Communicator Client software is a fundamental part of the modern day MS Office deployment. The rich client allows a integrated experience with the Microsoft Office System by integrating into Outlook, Word, Excel and many other applications. This application allows me to communicate with any of my contacts in real time using the following features: Presence - The colour coded "Bubbles" next to each persons name informs me whether that person is available to communicate with or not. IM (Instant Message) - I can instantly send that person a message that will pop-up on their screen and then they can reply. Much faster than e-mail. Voice Call - I can make a telephone call to the other person using a head-set and microphone on my PC instead of a real phone. Video Call - The same concept has a telephone call with the added benefit of a webcam attached to my PC. I can see you!!!! File Sharing - I can instantly drop a file from my PC into the other persons "My Documents" folder. E-mail attachments take too long. Live Meeting - By installing the "Live Meeting Client" on your machine, you can now setup conference calls between multiple people and share any application on you PC for everyone to view. Send email - you can launch your e-mail application directly from here. The important thing to remember is that all of the above feature built into "Office Communicator" automatically appear in all you "Office 2007" applications once it is installed on you PC. You can therefore make a "Video" call straight from an email in "Outlook 2007" "Tanjay" IP Phone Some people are just too attached to their phone and the concept of swapping their hand-set for a head-set and a webcam is just inconceivable. For those die hard people that don't watch futuristic movies, we have just the thing for you. The "Tanjay" IP phone plugs into you PC and gets it's own IP Address. It also registers with the OCS server and has the same screen interface as "Office Communicator"   The Communicator phone experience simplifies everyday calling features such as User-centric phone Setting presence OC look and feel Scrolling through the status of people on users’ buddy lists Initiating a call simply by touching a name Setting up impromptu conference calls More devices can be found from vendors partnering with Microsoft like Polycom "RoundTable" conferencing device This device solves to problem of hosting a meeting with multiple people at the same time and sharing applications that is the focal point of the discussion. A typical scenario would be a board room meeting where each person does not have a PC with a webcam attached. This sounds wonderful, but a couple of things need to be put in place: The "Live meeting client" software needs to be downloaded from the MS web site and installed on a PC at each end-point. A "Round table" device needs to be purchased and installed in the board room connected to a PC. A high band-width connection needs to connect the two end-points. The term High-bandwidth is relative to were in the world you are located. In South Africa that would be about 512 Kbps dedicated. Live Meeting Client The "Live Meeting Client" allows you conference in many users form your contact list at the same time. It also provides you the ability to do the following: Create a voice conference call with everyone or only some people Setup a video call with all the people involved. Share a file like and "PowerPoint" presentation Draw a diagram using the "White Board" feature. Share you desktop with any application running on it. Round Table Device If you are in a board room scenario were the people in the conference call are not sitting at their individual PC's, then you need to buy one of these. It is a speaker phone with a 360 degree camera built into the top that is placed in the middle of the boardroom table. In this way we can always hear and see the speaker regardless of how many people are in the meeting. This device can be purchased from any MS Hardware reseller, but not until June 2008 in South Africa. In usual fashion we are waiting for ICASA approval. The retail price should be about $3000, but that could change. Live Conference Call The last thing that we need to do is combine the "Live Meeting Client" software with the "RoundTable" device. Install the "RoundTable" device onto the PC in the boardroom. Create a "Live Meeting" conference call and start a video conversation. Open the "Panoramic View Pane" to see all the people around the table. Share the application of you choice. Have the meeting!!! Any people connected to the meeting from a remote location (PC with webcam) will also have the same view. The person that is currently speaking (local or remote), will be displayed in the "Active Speaker" window. The rest of the people in the board room will be displayed in the "Panoramic View" at the bottom of the screen. The device also does facial recognition, therefore only people will be displayed and not inanimate objects. Office Communicator Web Access There are still some people in this world that either refuse to use a Microsoft OS, or do not have access to one. Do not fear, MS caters for you too. The web based version of "Communicator Client" is called CWA (Communicator Web Access). This allows you to connect to a web site hosted by the OCS server and communicate from the browser. It is browser independent and can therefore be used by IE, Firefox, Netscape, Safari and many more. This can also be used as a solution external from the office, but that can be solved by installing an OCS Edge server. Office Communicator Mobile In today's society people are becoming more and more mobile and they want to take their office with them. Microsoft has release many versions of their OS call "Windows Mobile" that runs on hand-held devices like smart phones. It therefore makes sense that people want to use their "Office Communicator" on their phone. Download it from the MS web site and install it on you phone. You will need at least Windows Mobile 5.0 and above for the software to install. At the office you will need to deploy an OCS Edge server. I hope this blog gives you a better understanding of the Hardware and Software required to deploy the client interface to OCS. Related Blogs: Acronyms used in Unified Messaging Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 1 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 2 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 3 Posted Dec 23 2007, 02:02 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: OCS, Exchange

• Business Data Web Parts in Sharepoint

  In some of the previous blog's that I posted on this site I explained the benefit and architecture of the "Business Data Catalog" . I even wrote a step by step guide on how to implement a connection to an external database and display the data in Sharepoint. The above mentioned information can be found in the following blogs: BDC High Level Architecture BDC Low Level Architecture Connecting and External database to Sharepoint using the BDC One of the things that I did not explain was the use of the various individual "Business Data Web Parts" and why you would use them. That I will now explain in this blog. Microsoft Office Sharepoint Server 2007 includes five default Business Data Web Parts: Business Data List Business Data Item Business Data Item Builder Business Data Related List Business Data Actions Types of Business Data Web Parts with Description of their function: The following list provides a brief description of the standard Business Data Web Parts: Business Data List - Displays a list of entity instances from a business application registered in the Business Data Catalog. For example, you can use a Business Data List Web Part to display the customers or orders from the AdventureWorks database. Business Data Item - Displays the details of an entity instance from a business application. For example, you can use a Business Data Item Web Part to display the details of a particular customer or order from the AdventureWorks database. Business Data Related List - Displays a list of related entity instances from a business application. For example, you can use a Business Data Related List Web Part to display all the orders for a particular customer from the AdventureWorks database. Business Data Actions - Displays a list of actions associated with an entity as defined in the Business Data Catalog. For example, you can use a Business Data Actions Web Part to display all the actions that portal users can perform on the Customer entity. Some examples of these actions are to send an e-mail message to a customer or to edit the address of a customer. Business Data Item Builder - Creates a Business Data item based on parameters in the query string and provides it to other Web Parts. This Web Part is used only on Business Data profile pages. These Web Parts rely on the Business Data Catalog, and offer three main benefits: No required coding, and reusability - These Web Parts enable you to display business data on your portal site without writing any code. Also, these Web Parts are generic and reusable and can show any type of data (entity) registered in the Business Data Catalog. Connectability - These Web Parts support Web Part connections and make it easier to create Master-Detail applications without writing any code. For example, you can display customers and their details using the Business Data List and Business Data Item Web Parts by simply connecting them. These Web Parts can also be integrated in dashboards. Customisation - These Web Parts support WYSIWYG editing in Microsoft Office Sharepoint Designer 2007 and can be customized using XSLT transformations. Related Blogs: Connecting an External Database to Sharepoint using the BDC BDC Low-Level Architecture in Sharepoint BDC High Level Architecture in Sharepoint  Business Data Web Parts in Sharepoint Posted Dec 22 2007, 03:29 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Sharepoint

• Call and Message Flow in Unified Messaging

  Many companies purchase expensive PBX software packages to handle their "Voice Messages". There is nothing wrong with that, but there are some fundamental flaws with the concept that Microsoft is trying to address with Exchange 2007 Unified Messaging. The fundamental concept behind "Unified Messaging" is based on the following situation: To answer phone calls, most people have a phone on their desk or a Cell phone in their pocket. To receive emails we tend to use en e-mail application like MS Outlook on our PC. To Received faxes we tend to use a fax machines that is shared between multiple people in the office. If you think about it carefully, wouldn't you want one central point to manage all three? That is were Exchange 2007 Unified messaging comes in. It has the ability to integrate into existing PBX systems and consolidate all you messages into your inbox using Outlook 2007. Now you voicemail, email and faxes are all sitting in one location. The diagram below illustrates the integration between Exchange 2007 and a PBX to route a phone call into a voicemail that is stored in your inbox. Step 1: The first step occurs when an outside caller dials the number of someone inside the business. The circuit is initiated when the caller lifts the receiver and dials the phone number. The call is routed to the central office, then to the appropriate customer site, and in this case, to their PBX. The PBX, using its call processing and the DID number, routes the call to the appropriate desk phone which then rings. In this case, the recipient of the call is not at their desk and the call goes Ring no Answer. The PBX then uses its call coverage information, to check to see where the unanswered call should be routed. In this case the call coverage information says that unanswered calls from this phone should be routed to the Pilot Number for the Exchange Unified Messaging, which is also the pilot number for the Hunt group that goes to the VoIP gateway. Step 2: So, in the second step the call is returned from the telephone and sent to the pilot number of the VoIP gateway. Step 3: During the third step, the VoIP gateway converts the circuit-switched protocols to packet-switched protocols, and uses the information about the Exchange Unified Messaging environment, configured as part of the VoIP gateway installation, to route the call to the appropriate Exchange Unified Messaging server. The now VoIP-based packet switched call is received by Exchange Unified Messaging Server. Step 4: In the 4th step the Exchange Unified Messaging server, contacts the Active Directory to get the email address information. This Active Directory look-up is done using the combination of dial plan plus extension number, which provides a unique identifier. This identifying information is included in the Active Directory proxy address record of Exchange Unified Messaging users, so that the correct email address can be found from call information. With this information the UM server contacts the user’s mailbox to play the individual’s greeting for the caller. Then the UM server completes call answering and captures the voice message. It then packages this message into a voice message for Exchange. Step 5: Having the completed voice message, it is then sent to the Exchange Hub Transport server role for delivery to the appropriate Mailbox server. Step 6: The Exchange Hub Transport server role then routes the voice message to the user’s mailbox, where it is stored in the user’s Exchange mailbox. The message, as well as the full contents of the mailbox are accessible to the Unified Messaging subscriber via Outlook Voice Access, Outlook, Outlook Web Access, or Exchange ActiveSync. Related Blogs: Acronyms used in Unified Messaging Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 1 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 2 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 3 Posted Dec 21 2007, 06:15 AM by Neil with no comments Filed under: OCS, Exchange

• Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 3

  The blog is an continuation of the previous blog called "Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 2". Therefore please read the previous blog if you have not done so, before continuing. VoIP Gateway A gateway is the term used to describe a device that connects two incompatible networks. It provides protocol conversion so the two networks can communicate. In the Telephony and Voice Mail section we’ve mentioned that with traditional PBXs, Exchange Unified Messaging requires a VoIP gateway. The VoIP gateway connects a telephone network with a data network. It acts as the protocol translator between the networks. The telephone side is using what is called “circuit switching” and the data network side is using “packet switching”. The VoIP gateway makes it possible for the telephone and data networks to communicate with each other and work with Exchange Unified Messaging. A traditional PBX delivers voice onto a circuit-switched line. Session Initiated protocol (SIP) initiates and maintains the session (and later tears it down). The VoIP gateway converts the circuit-switched voice into IP-based packets that can be transported by the data network. These IP-based packets are transported using a protocol called Real-Time Transport Protocol (RTP). The VoIP gateway delivers the IP-based voice packets via the network to Exchange Unified Messaging server. Exchange Unified Messaging natively supports only packet-switched voice and fax over IP protocols. Customers with traditional, analog or digital PBXs must have a VoIP gateway to do the needed protocol translation for Exchange Unified Messaging. Circuit Switching Historically, circuit switching is how phone calls have worked over traditional phone lines. In its simplest form, a circuit is started on one end, when you pick up the receiver to dial. You dial the number. Then, when the recipient picks up their phone on the other end, the circuit is completed. You have exclusive use of that circuit while the phone call occurs. There aren’t other calls utilizing that same circuit. Once the call is over and the receivers are hung up, the call is terminated and the circuit becomes available to someone else. The exclusive use of a given circuit is one of the big differences between circuit-switched telephony networks and packet-switched data networks. A disadvantage of circuit-switching is that peak load capacity has to be provisioned but it cannot be re-purposed at off-peak times. Thus, it often sits idle. Packet-switching has the advantage that it can be re-purposed at off-peak hours. Exchange Unified Messaging uses a VoIP gateway to translate from circuit-switching protocols to packet-switched protocols. Analogue Transmission Analogue Circuit switching maintains the voice and signaling (DTMF) as actual sound and sends it over a twisted pair wire. A VoIP gateway is designed to convert Analogue to digital and is used when Analogue transmission to the VoIP gateway is required. Digital Transmission Digital transmission techniques were implemented as a way to get higher transmission rates across twisted pair wires. It also provides transport over longer distances without the need for amplifiers. Spoken voice is sampled at various locations and converted to digital data. Generally voice is encoded using a standard audio codex, G.7.11. However, digital call setup and signaling protocols may be proprietary to a given PBX. This is why digital PBXs often have their own branded proprietary phones which can create this information. This means that any translation device along the way, like a VoIP gateway, has to have the ability to translate from the proprietary information into standard protocols. This capability is often referred to as “digital set emulation”. In other words, it can emulate the proprietary digital phone set. This need for a given digital set emulation, is one of the reason that VoIP gateways are specific to the PBX and protocols it supports. With voice messaging, calls are being diverted from the recipient’s phone to the voice mail system, which is accomplished by telling the call to go to another number, the pilot number of the voice messaging system. Without the retention of the called party extension and information on call diversion, the voice messaging system would have to have the caller re-enter information on who the message was for. In order to alleviate this, protocols were developed which provide called party and call diversion signaling information which make voice messaging seamless to the caller. The VoIP gateway uses digital voice data and signaling information when converting to IP-based calls. This is often done using digital set emulation, which will be specific to the customer’s digital PBX. T-1 and E-1 Lines T1- and E1-lines are high-bandwidth phone lines that can carry multiple voice channels on a single line. T1-lines are made up of 24 channels providing a total data rate of 1.544 megabits per second. 23-24 channels are available for voice transmission, depending on the protocol being used for signaling. T1-lines are found primarily in North America, Hong Kong and Japan. E1-lines are made up of 32 channels. Providing a total data rate of 2.048 megabits per second. 30 channels are available for voice transmission. Of the additional two channels, one is dedicated to timing information. The other channel is used for signaling information. E1- lines are primarily in Europe, EMEA, Latin America and elsewhere. As a note, the channels being described are virtual channels, they are not separate physical wires or channels, but are virtually created when the voice and/or data is put onto the T1- or E1-line. T1- or E1-lines are typically used from the PBX to the VoIP gateway when voice channel need is greater than approximately 16 channels or ports. The term “port” is often used here rather than channel, since it is at an entrance or exit to another system and/or network. In this case at exit of the PBX and entrance to the VoIP gateway. High-bandwidth lines in Japan are known as J1. J1 includes both 1.54 Mbps as well as 2 Mbps speeds and is similar to T1 and E1, except for some small physical nuances. Trunk and Tie Lines Trunk and Tie Lines are specialized names given to T1- or E1-lines that connect to PBXs. A Trunk Line is the name of a line that connects a corporate PBX back to the phone company’s central office switch. You may still occasionally find non T1- or E1- trunks, such as analog or ISDN basic rate trunks, but typically T1- or E1-lines are now used to connect to PBXs. A Tie Line, sometimes called Tie Trunk, is typically a T1- or E1-line that is used to connect two or more corporate PBXs. As a result of running interPBX network signaling or protocols, the PBXs then act as if they are a single PBX. You’ll typically find T1- and E1-Trunk and Tie Lines as part of medium- to larger-sized customer’s PBX environment. Fractional T1- and E1-lines, which allow customers to lease a portion of the T1- or E1- line of channels are often available when less capacity than a full T1- or E1-line is needed. Time Division Multiplexing Time Division Multiplexing or TDM is a technique for transmitting a number of separate voice signals simultaneously over a single physical, high-bandwidth phone line. Using this technique the line can be virtually divided into multiple, smaller bandwidth channels, each carrying its own voice signals. This improves the transmission productivity of the high bandwidth line. This is how T1- or E1-lines are divided into channels. A VoIP gateway is used to de-multiplex the voice, so that it can be converted to a packet-switched protocol. Called Party and Call Diversion Information Called party and call diversion information is need with voice messaging systems so that the system knows who the message is for. Let’s look at what this means in terms of a call. An outside caller dials the number of someone inside the business. The call is routed to the central office, then to the appropriate customer site, and to their PBX. The PBX routes the call to the appropriate desk phone which then rings. The recipient of the call is not at their desk and the call goes Ring no Answer. The PBX then uses its call coverage information, to check to see where the unanswered call should be routed. In this case the call coverage information says that unanswered calls from this phone should be routed to the Pilot Number for the Exchange Unified Messaging, which is also the pilot number for the Hunt group that goes to the VoIP gateway. So, the call is returned from the telephone and sent to the pilot number of the VoIP gateway. Circuit-Switching Protocols There are a number of Circuit-Switching protocols. We will be specifically talking about those which provide the level of information needed to support voice mail, which requires that called party and call diversion information be maintained. Traditional PBXs typically use one or more of these protocols to signal for call creation, manipulation, and tear down. A VoIP gateway interprets and translates this information. VoIP gateways are not generic, but rather are specific to a given protocol and/or PBX. You will need to recognize these protocols by name or basic concept in order to have a discussion regarding which VoIP gateway is appropriate for a given PBX when implementing Exchange Unified Messaging. - Analogue PBX's generally use Inband DTMF or out-of-band RS232 signaling to support voice mail and Exchange Unified Messaging. Inband DTMF signaling defines a protocol where the call signaling is made up of DTMF tones. These are within the voice frequency range and are carried in the same channel as the voice itself. The call diversion information is supplemental signaling, but needed to support voice mail. Out-of-band RS232 signaling defines a supplementary protocol where the call signaling is carried on a separate channel from voice, typically on a separate wire or serial connection using RS232, an electrical signaling specification. This is also known as the Simplified Message Desk Interface or SMDI. - Digital PBX's generally use the following protocols: Set emulation. Set emulation is an approach used when the signaling protocol is proprietary to the PBX vendor. In this case the VoIP gateway needs to have the interpretive knowledge of a propriety digital phone set, and be able to interpret the proprietary protocol, just as a phone set does when an individual receives a call from such a PBX. Q Signaling or QSIG. QSIG is a signaling protocol, based on ISDN Q.931 standards that is used between corporate PBXs, which allows multiple PBXs to operate together in a feature transparent way. Thus, large and distributed corporations can appear to have a single phone system even though there are multiple PBXs. QSIG can also be used as the circuit-switched protocol translated by the VoIP gateway. Channel Associated Signaling or CAS. CAS is a signaling protocol that is associated with each channel of voice in a T1 environment. Within the channel, bits are “robbed” and replaced with basic call signaling information which could be in the data form of Inband DTMF or RS232. However, basic CAS does not include the signaling requirements for voice mail, so these are provided through Inband DTMF or RS232 Signaling. A VoIP gateway can support these protocols. VoIP gateway models are specific for given PBXs and protocols. Voice over IP Protocols (VoIP) There are a number of voice related IP-based protocols. We are going to look at 3 used by Exchange Unified Messaging: SIP RTP T.38 There are other VoIP protocols, like H.323. But, we will only be looking at the protocols used by Exchange Unified Messaging Please read the blog titled "Acronyms used in Unified Messaging" to get the translation. Real-Time Facsimile or T.38 Real-Time Facsimile or T.38 is a Fax transport protocol for the Internet. T.38 defines procedures for facsimile transmission, when a portion of the path includes an IP network. It is used when relaying a fax that originated over a voice line, across an IP network in real time. It was issued by the International Telecommunications Union in 1998. This is the protocol that Exchange Unified Messaging uses for fax transport. Exchange Unified Messaging initially assumes all calls are voice, so a fax call originates as a voice call using RTP. Once the Exchange Unified Messaging server detects fax tone, the call is converted to T.38 for fax transport. Related Blogs: Acronyms used in Unified Messaging Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 1 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 2 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 3 Posted Dec 20 2007, 12:26 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: OCS, Exchange

• Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 2

  The blog is an continuation of the previous blog called "Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 1". Therefore please read the previous blog if you have not done so, before continuing. Dial Plan The dial plan is the set of rules that a PBX uses to determine what action to take when it receives a set of dialed numbers. For example, a “9” is often used to trigger call setup on an ‘outside line’ in order to call a public telephone network phone number. When the first number is not a “9”, the PBX needs to know how many numbers to collect before taking action. If internal extension numbers are 3 digits long, it needs to listen for just 3 numbers before taking action. Within a dial plan there may be a specific range of numbers used for phone extension numbers: say 300-699. Each individual will be allocated a unique extension number from this range. Users covered by a given dial plan can reach all others in the plan by just dialing an extension number. In a company with multiple PBXs, the dial plan can span multiple PBXs so users only have to dial an extension to reach other users, even though they are on different PBXs. Exchange Unified Messaging utilizes certain PBX dial plan information. In Exchange Unified Messaging users are placed into logical dial plans and this is entered as part of Exchange Unified Messaging configuration. The specific dial plan plus the extension number provides the unique user identifier for each subscriber. This unique identifier lets the message from the answered call be routed to the correct Exchange mailbox. Using the combination of dial plan plus extension number as the unique identifier, makes it possible to include users who have the same extension numbers, but who are part of different dial plans, in a single forest deployment of Unified Messaging. Hunt Group A hunt group is a set of channels or extensions that are defined as a group. The PBX “hunts” across the group to find an open channel or extension onto which it can route the call. There are a number of algorithms by which the PBX can hunt: round robin, most idle, or always starting with the lowest number. More broadly, a hunt group represents a set of identical resources that are shared by an application or a group. This gives more efficient access to applications like voice mail or an auto attendant, so that callers don’t experience a “busy” signal, rather the PBX “hunts” for an open line to connect them. Hunt groups are also used to distribute calls to business groups that have identically capable endpoints like telesales or support. By sharing the resource, open channels can be found so that busy signals are received less often. A hunt group is implemented between the PBX and the VoIP gateway, when a VoIP gateway is needed for Exchange Unified Messaging. This hunt group is utilized for accessing Exchange Unified Messaging. It is also the coverage path target for diverted calls for an automated attendant or after an extension has gone ring no answer or is busy. Pilot Number A pilot number is the way the PBX identifies a hunt group. In other words, it is the address or label for the Hunt group. It is a “dummy” extension, one that doesn’t have a person or phone associated with it. It is the number a coverage path uses to route a call to. For example, there may be a specific extension number 3900 for “sales”. It is the pilot number for the hunt group of telesales extension numbers. When a call comes into the 3900 sales number, the PBX recognizes it as a pilot number and searches for an available line within the sales hunt group. The PBX then delivers the call to an available sales extension number. You’ve often used a pilot number without knowing that it was one. The phone number you use to call into voice mail, and now into an Exchange Unified Messaging server, is a pilot number. Say it’s 8 am and many people are calling voice mail at the same time. Pilot numbers facilitate automated routing to available circuits (the hunt group) so there are fewer busy signals. More than one pilot number might point to the same set of shared channels. The PBX, when used with Exchange Unified Messaging, uses a pilot number to target a diverted ring no answer or busy call to exchange Unified Messaging so a message can be taken. This same pilot number or a different one can be used by subscribers to access the messages in their Exchange mailbox. A pilot number is also used for top level access to an Exchange Unified Messaging auto attendant. Coverage Path A PBX has a set of directions, configured for each extension, telling the PBX where to route a call that is not answered or when the phone is busy. These PBX directions are called a “coverage path”. If the DID call comes to the Exchange Unified Messaging user’s desktop phone and the line isn’t answered in a certain number of rings or is busy, the PBX knows to send the call to a number that points to the VoIP gateway. The call is routed through the VoIP gateway to the Exchange Unified Messaging Server, where a voice message is taken. The voice message is then packaged into a message and sent to the Exchange mailbox of the Exchange Unified Messaging user. Unsupervised Transfer Calls are routinely transferred from one extension to another. One type of transfer is known as an “unsupervised transfer”. In an unsupervised transfer, the call is given to the next extension without determining whether the extension is answered. A transfer to voice mail on ring no answer or busy is an unsupervised transfer. Unsupervised transfers are also known as “blind transfers”. Exchange Unified Messaging uses unsupervised transfers. For example, if the Automated Attendant transfers a call, or if an Exchange Unified Messaging subscriber uses Exchange Unified Messaging to call another subscriber, the call is sent to the appropriate extension using an unsupervised transfer. Call Answering Call Answering automates the answering of a phone which has gone ring no answer or is busy so that a caller can leave a message. In other words, the call is answered by voice mail, now Exchange Unified Messaging. When the telephone is not answered, the PBX utilizes information it has on where to send the call next. This is known as the coverage path, which we talked about in the last section. In this case, call coverage information would direct the call to the pilot number of Exchange Unified Messaging. For an Exchange Unified Messaging user, the pilot number is the same as the pilot number for the Hunt group of the VoIP gateway. The call proceeds through the gateway to the Exchange Unified Messaging server role, where the caller hears a personalized greeting and is asked to leave a message. Subscriber Access A subscriber is an internal business user or network user who is enabled for unified messaging. Subscriber Access is used to access OVA from an Exchange Server 2007 UM perspective. There are other unified messaging solutions that also have Subscriber Access to access their content. When you enable subscriber access for Exchange Server 2007 UM-enabled users, you must install the Exchange Server 2007 Unified Messaging server role on the computer that is running Exchange Server 2007 and verify that at least one of each of the following have been created: UM dial plan UM mailbox policy UM IP gateway UM hunt group When you configure subscriber access, you configure the UM dial plan with a subscriber access number. The telephone number or number that is configured on the UM dial plan is the telephone number that subscribers will use to access their Exchange Server 2007 mailboxes over the telephone using Outlook Voice Access. The subscriber access feature included with Exchange Server 2007 Unified Messaging is similar to other unified messaging solutions. However, Exchange Server 2007 offers more advanced features than other unified messaging solutions. Outlook Voice Access Outlook Voice Access is the new Exchange Server 2007 Unified Messaging feature that lets subscribers access their Exchange Server 2007 mailbox. There are two Exchange Server 2007 Unified Messaging user interfaces available to subscribers: the Telephone User Interface (TUI) and the Voice User Interface (VUI). In Exchange Server 2007 these two interfaces together are called Outlook Voice Access. Outlook Voice Access can be used when a subscriber accesses the Unified Messaging system from an external or internal telephone to access their individual mailbox, including their personal e-mail, voice messages, contacts, and calendaring information in their Exchange Server 2007 mailbox. More info: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/exchange/E2k7Help/e1aa7101-16bd-40b1-82dc-727352d18e22.mspx?mfr=true Fax Receiving Fax receiving has traditionally meant receiving a fax via a piece of paper from a fax machine. This can be problematic if one travels, and the piece of paper is sitting at a fax machine at a home office. The travelling recipient may not know the fax is waiting for them, or has to have it re-faxed in order to see it at their current location. It also leads to security issues, with faxes sitting on fax machines and easily viewable by a wide variety of employees. Exchange Unified Messaging supports electronic fax receiving. A fax can be sent from a standard fax machine to a given Exchange Unified Messaging subscriber and the fax is electronically received and sent to the recipient’s Exchange mailbox for viewing and printing. Exchange Unified Messaging has call-answering fax receiving built into the Unified Messaging server as part of the product. The initial release of Exchange Unified Messaging does not support fax sending, although customers using Office will have the built-in ability to send faxes using an Internet fax service. Speech Recognition Speech recognition is the ability of a computer system to understand spoken words and take action on them. Exchange Unified Messaging includes US English speech recognition, only, as part of the initial release. Subscriber’s can use it rather than DTMF to manage their Inbox including email, voice messages, calendar, and contacts. This is especially valuable for mobile phone users. It is also available for use with the auto attendant. Text-to-Speech Text-to-Speech is speech synthesis software that converts electronic text into spoken word. Exchange Unified Messaging provides Text-to-Speech capabilities. A subscriber, using Outlook Voice Access, can have their e-mail messages, calendar, and contacts read to them. Exchange Unified Messaging will release text-to-speech languages beyond English covering all the Exchange Server languages at the first release. Automated Attendant (Auto Attendant) An automated attendant, supplies information and performs an action, without the need for an individual to do the action. We all know them: “Thanks for calling the XYZ Company. If you would like to talk with Sales press “1” now, if you would like to talk with Product Support, press “2” now….” An automated attendant may be used by companies that don’t have DID numbers as a way of offloading work from a company’s operator. Automated attendants are often part of a voice mail system. They may also come as part of a PBX or as a stand-alone application, too. Exchange Unified Messaging provides an auto attendant as part of the Exchange Unified Messaging product. The auto attendant can be optionally deployed, and have single, multiple or linked configurations. It supports speech-enabled or dial-by-name directory searches for people. It can also be configured as a single digit departmental directory. It includes the ability to use custom prompts.  At this point the blog is getting a bit long, so I will continue in the next blog "Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 3" Related Blogs: Acronyms used in Unified Messaging Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 1 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 2 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 3 Posted Dec 20 2007, 12:23 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: OCS, Exchange

• Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 1

  A lot of blogs I am busy writing and will be writing in the future will require a basic understanding of some telephony concepts and therefore I need to explain them before I post any more articles. These topics were covered when I attended the "BPIO Ignite Training" in Prague and they are very important to understand before doing either the "Exchange Unified Messaging" or "Office Communication Server" courses. The following list will outline some of the concepts that I am going to explain: What is a Central Exchange (Centrex) What is a Key Telephone System What is a Private Branch eXchange (PBX)? What is Direct Inward Dialing? What is a telephone dial plan? What is a hunt group? What is a pilot number? What is a coverage path? What is circuit-switching? What is Voice over IP (VoIP)? What is a VoIP gateway? What is Session Initiation Protocol (SIP)? What is Real-Time Transport Protocol (RTP)? Central Exchange (Centrex) Centrex is a phone service that phone companies lease to businesses. It eliminates the need for the business to purchase customer premises telephone systems. It uses the phone company’s central office Exchange to route internal calls back to an extension. It’s typically used by small offices that rent Centrex services on a line-by-line, and month-by-month basis. Centrex is sometimes seen in larger organizations, in South Africa we only have one option (HellKom). IP Centrex is a new flavour of Centrex. At the phone company’s central office or at a service provider, the call is sent through a VoIP gateway. We’ll be talking more about the details of VoIP gateways and protocols later in this blog. But, this VoIP gateway translates the call into packets which can be sent via the Internet to the customer site. Key Telephone System The name Key System dates to the age of the telegraph, when a mechanical key was used to open and close a circuit. This concept continued into the age of telephone operators when operators manually swapped wired connections on their switchboard consoles. Today, Key Telephone Systems generally have manual routing keys in the form of buttons that, when pushed, close electrical circuits that allow the user to place or answer internal or external calls. Because of the on-off electrical routing, a key routes a call through a specific telephone line. Thus, a key phone only has access to the phone lines associated with the buttons on the phone. With Key Telephone Systems, individual users share lines across phones, so users and callers can experience more frequent busy signals. Key Telephone Systems are typically used by small offices, where internal call volume is high, but external call volume is low.    Private Branch eXchange (PBX) PBX systems typically are connected to the phone company’s central office using special telephone lines: T1- and E1-lines. These T1- and E1-lines have multiple channels. We’ll talk a little more about how these channels work later, but they allow the central office or the PBX to put multiple calls over the same line for greater efficiency and with simplified wiring. A PBX can also work with analog or ISDN lines. Within a company, the PBX is able to route a specific dialed phone number to a specific phone, so employees can have their own individual phone number, called a Direct Inward Dialed number (DID). The telephone company sends the DID number to the PBX using Dialed Number Identification Service (DNIS). With DNIS, there is no need for operator intervention in call routing; the PBX has the information needed to know which phone to route a given call to. In larger organizations, PBXs make it possible for fellow employees in distributed locations to be reachable by just dialing an extension number. This may involve multiple PBXs networked together. Dialing an extension is more cost effective and easier than dialing long distance. The PBX may also provide an application, known as an automated attendant, which automatically answers and directs calls based on caller input, without the need for operator involvement. The PBX is connected to the phone company’s central office with T1- or E1-lines. These are also known as Trunk Lines. Using the PBX, you can control how many channels you devote to calls coming from external callers and/or how many to devote to calls from inside callers. This type of shared resource allocation helps prevent busy signals. It also lets channels be devoted to specific applications such as call centers. This resource sharing is cost effective because it saves on the number of lease lines needed, a key benefit of PBXs.    Today, there are a number of different types of PBXs. This is the result of a number of technological advances in PBXs over time. Analog PBXs send voice and signaling information, like the Touchtones of dialed phone numbers, as actual analog sound. The sound is never digitized. In order to direct the call, the PBX and the phone company’s central office has to “listen” for the signaling information. Touchtone is more technically known as Dual Tone Multi Frequency (DTMF). Pushing a Touchtone key on a phone produces two separate tones, one of high frequency and one of low frequency. Human voice, generally has only a single tone or frequency at any one time. By sending two tones of different frequencies together, DTMF was designed to minimize the likelihood of the signaling tones being interpreted as human voice or human voice being interpreted as a signal. Digital PBXs came to market beginning in the 1980s. Digital PBXs encode analog sound into a digital format. They typically encode the voice using a standard industry audio codec, G.711. Once encoded the digitized voice is sent on a channel using circuit switching. Digital PBXs can also support analog trunks. Circuit switching sets up an end-to-end open connection. It leaves the channel open for the length of the call and for the callers’ exclusive use. PBX manufacturers may have their own proprietary signaling method for call setup.    IP PBXs are designed to carry voice over data networks. The IP phone contains a Network Interface Card so it is part of the network. The phone converts voice into digitized packets and then puts the digitized packets onto the data network. The voice packets are sent via packet switching, a technique which lets a single network channel handle multiple calls. The development of real-time Internet protocols have made it possible to successfully put voice over a data network. Voice requires real-time protocols so that the delivery order and timing of data packets can be maintained. Without this control, spoken voice would be broken up by silent and garbled periods. These new protocols were introduced in the 1990s. They have the potential to eliminate the functional differences between the telephony and data networking worlds. Hybrid PBXs generally provide both Digital and IP PBX capabilities. This hybrid approach allows a customer to run a mixture of digital and IP-based communications. This allows a more gradual migration to IP-based telephony and voice messaging. Most modern PBXs are or can be (with an upgrade) in this Hybrid category.  Direct Inward Dialing (DID) A DID phone number is unique and assigned to a given person within a company. It lets that individual be called directly from an external phone without the need for the call to be transferred. This makes telephone communications more personalized and simpler for the average employee and their callers. Exchange Unified Messaging does not require DID use for individual extensions, but the caller’s experience is better with DID use. This is no different than with traditional voice mail. If DID numbers are used, an outside caller hears a personalized greeting when the called extension goes ring no answer or is busy. Without DID numbers, the call goes to an automated attendant (or alternately a receptionist) where the caller is asked to select, using dial by name or spoken name, the person they are calling. Then as a second step, the call is sent to the extension, where after going ring no answer, or is busy, the caller hears called person’s personalized greeting. UM does require DID numbers for targeted custom automated attendants, such as one set up to take the caller to a specific group, such as “sales”.  At this point the blog is getting a bit long, so I will continue in the next blog "Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 2" Related Blogs: Acronyms used in Unified Messaging Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 1 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 2 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 3 Posted Dec 20 2007, 12:21 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: OCS, Exchange

• Acronyms used in Unified Messaging

  As all IT people know, we are probably the industry with the most amount of acronyms known to man and it increases on a daily basis. Microsoft has an entire marketing team just thinking up new names for the technology they are developing. I have always thought that we should bring out an dictionary of IT terms, but then I realised that it would probably be outdated before it was printed. Recently I have started giving courses to students about Unified Messaging in Exchange 2007 and Office Communication Server 2007. Most IT professionals are quite comfortable with the acronyms used as far as networking and servers are concerned, but the telephony concepts seem to be a different matter. This is quite understandable as very few IT people have worked with telephony in the past. I have therefore decided to create a short list of acronyms that are commonly used when working with telephony systems: CAS: Channel Associated Signaling CLEX: Competitive Local Exchange Carrier CO: [Phone company] Central Office CPE: Customer Premises Equipment DID: Direct Inward Dialling DNIS: Dialled Number Identification Service DTMF: Dual Tone Multi Frequency IP: Internet Protocol ISDN: Integrated Services Digital Network LAN: Local Area Network MIME: Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension OSI: Open Systems Interconnection PBX: Private Branch eXchange QSIG: Q Signaling RTP: Real-time Transport Protocol SIP: Session Initiation Protocol SMDI: Station Message Desk Interface SMTP: Simple Mail Transfer Protocol SRTP: Secure Real-time Transport Protocol T.38: Real-Time Facsimile Protocol TCP: Transmission Control Protocol TDM: Time Division Multiplexing TLS: Transport Layer Security VoIP: Voice over Internet Protocol WAN: Wide Area Network G.711: Compression Codex used on high bandwidth networks G.723: Compression Codex used on low bandwidth networks that is free G.729: Compression Codex used on low bandwidth networks that is sold by various vendors. So the next time I get blank stares and people ask me what I am saying, I will refer you to this blog! Related Blogs: Acronyms used in Unified Messaging Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 1 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 2 Foundation Concepts for Unified Messaging Part 3 Posted Dec 19 2007, 01:24 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: OCS, Exchange

• Publishing a Blog from Word 2007 into Sharepoint

  The term "Blogging" is a very popular word as well as an activity these days. With the exponential growth that the Internet has been experiencing over the last couple of years, new technology's have become available to make it easier for the end user to participate. In the past you needed to understand HTML and various other technology's, to create a web page to publish you though's. Today there are many "Blogging" engines that allow you to upload your content directly from your PC onto the web without any knowledge of web technology's. This site for example is uses an "Blogging" engine called "Community Server" and the authoring tool that I am using is called "Windows Live Writer". Both these tools are free downloads from the Internet and do not require any additional licensing costs. On the other hand, many company's are deploying either WSS or MOSS internally and almost every user has MS Word installed on their PC. In this blog I will show you how you can use Sharepoint 2007 as the "Blogging" engine and MS Word 2007 as the authoring tool. Once again we start by creating a new site in Sharepoint. The blogging component in Sharepoint is deployed as a site template and not a web part, therefore there is no other option but to create a new site with the correct template. To create the site, complete the following prompts: Give the site a "Title" Fill in the optional description of the site. Give a proper URL for the site relative to where you are. Select the "Blog" template" from the collaboration tab. Supply the "Administrator" account for the site Click "Create" Once the creation process has been completed the following sample site should appear. A sample blog is created to serve as an illustration of what a blog looks like. You can delete this later. Also note that an "Admin Links" web part is located on the right hand side of the screen. The links located here allow you to create, administrate, moderate and secure blogs directly from the browser, but this is not that user friendly. We want a rich user interface that gives us lots of features to format, insert content and use the new features in Office 2007 like smart art. Therefore we are going to launch MS Word 2007 independently from Sharepoint and create a blog. Once Word 2007 has opened with a blank new document. Select the following options to create a blog: Click on the "Pearl" in the top left hand corner of Word 2007. Navigate down the list until you come to the option called "Publish" Click on the option called "Blog" Word will now switch from normal view into a "Blog" template view. A number of dialogue boxes will now pop-up that we need to complete. Once a blog has been created, it needs to be uploaded to a blogging engine. Before you can do that, you need to register as a user. Some engines are free like WSS and "Community Server" and others you need to pay for. Once you have selected the "Register Now" button the following dialogue box will appear. Using the drop down box, you can select from a number of "Blogging" engines to upload you blog too. In our case we will be using Sharepoint and click "Next". The next dialogue box will prompt for the URL of the blog site we created earlier. You can copy and paste this from the browser. Click OK Word 2007 will now attempt to establish an connection to Sharepoint. If all the options have been configured correctly and Sharepoint allows blogs, the following pop-up should appear. All that we need to do now is use all the powerful features that Word 2007 has to offer to create the blog itself. The process is no different than creating a normal word document. In this example I used some smart art to make the blog look pretty, but many other features are available from the ribbon. The options that will not be supported by the "Blogging" engine have been removed. When the blog has been completed, select the "Publish" button on the left of the ribbon on the "Blog Post" tab. This will then initiate the process of uploading the blog to the "Blogging" engine. Once this has been completed, switch to the browser and view the site in Sharepoint. You might have to refresh the web page. Now that the blog has been posted, other people can read it and post comments. Security and moderation can also be applied using the features in this site. Happy blogging!!!! Related Office 2007 Blogs: Building a KPI List using Excel in Sharepoint Publishing PowerPoint slides to Sharepoint Creating a Pivot Table in Sharepoint Publishing a Blog from Word 2007 into Sharepoint The importance of Outlook 2007 as a user interface into Sharepoint Migrating an Access 2007 Database to Sharepoint Posted Dec 17 2007, 09:45 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Sharepoint, Office 2007

• Migrating an Access 2007 Database to Sharepoint

  Many years ago I was an avid "Access" developer when "Access" was still in version 2.0 and running on "Windows 3.1". In a period stretching from 1995 to 1997 I probably developed 25 commercial applications for company's that solved some critical business problems using MS Access. Over the years I became an SQL Server expert and the concept of using MS Access faded into memory, but it is still an undeniable fact that MS Access is a very powerful and popular tool in the industry. In the last 2 years I have been dedicating most of my time with a product called "Sharepoint" in all it's various forms like WSS and MOSS. Office 2007 has become an intrinsic part of any Sharepoint deployment and therefore I was forced to learn a lot about Office 2007. In my exploration of MS Access I found some incredibly powerful features that solve some serious limitations that MS Access always experienced. In this blog I will show you how to integrate MS Access 2007 with Sharepoint (WSS or MOSS). The example I will be using for the explanation will be based on our old favourite "Northwind", but any database of your choice can be used. The starting point however will have to be in Sharepoint itself. Therefore the first step is to navigate into Sharepoint and create a new site. MS Access is going to upload so many things into Sharepoint that it is a fairly good idea to dedicate a site to a database and not share it with other content. In the site we need to create a document library by selecting "Create" from the "Site Actions" menu. This library will be used to store a copy of the Access database once it is uploaded. At this point it might be a good idea to explain in brief terms what is going to happen: All the tables and views in the Access database will be uploaded into Sharepoint as lists. The lists will then be linked back to the Access database as attached tables. A copy of the database will then be uploaded into the document library to make the Forms and Reports available. Now that the site is ready we need to create or open the Access database that we intend to use. Open MS Access separate from Sharepoint. To create a new sample database from the "Northwind" template, complete the following steps: Select the "Pearl" in the top left hand corner of the screen and the select "New" Select "Sample" from the the navigation bar on the left and then click on the "Northwind" icon. Specify the name and the path of the database and click the "Create" button. The database will be created and when completed an "Security Alert" dialogue box will pop up. This is a security measure that disables all code and macro's contained in the database by default (anti virus protection). Select "Enable this content" and then click the "OK" button. The Northwind database has been designed with a login screen that will automatically pop up based on an "Auto Start" macro. Select any user name from the drop down list and click "Login". The Northwind database will now be active in all it's glory and if you have worked in MS Access before, you will notice that everything has changed. This does not look anything like an MS Access database that we used before. I will give you a brief run down on some of the more critical changes: The toolbars have been replaced by the "Ribbon" just like the rest of Office 2007 Many additional features have been added to integrate into Sharepoint The forms have been moved from a purely "win32" feel to an HTML interface. The back end engine actually uses "SQL Express" and not only Jet 4.0 All the .NET framework classes are available inside the application. The navigation bar is customisable to reflect a more user friendly structure (Tables are listed as "Supporting Objects") To gain access to the Sharepoint features select the "External Data" tab on the ribbon. To start the Sharepoint migration process, select the "Move to Sharepoint" button on the far right of the ribbon. This will launch the Sharepoint Wizard.   Two things need to be configured before the process can begin: Provide the URL to the Access site we created earlier in Sharepoint (unfortunately no browse button). Browse to the "Document Library" that we created in the site. This is were a copy of the database will be uploaded too. Select next to start the upload process and then go and have some coffee or a smoke as this is going to take a while. A number of things are being done behind the scenes: The schema structures of the tables and views are being converted to meta data and stored as Sharepoint Lists The individual settings of the columns and rules are being uploaded The list are being attached back to the Access database as attached tables. The new Access database is being uploaded to the document library. All the data in the tables, is transferred as items into the Sharepoint Lists. Once the wizard has completed, close MS Access and open the Sharepoint site in Internet Explorer. Initially the home page of the site will be empty as no web parts have been embedded into the page. To view the list of tables click on the link in the navigation bar on the left called "View All Site Content". This will then display all the lists that now represent the tables that used to be in the MS Access database. To view the records now contained in a particular list, click on any of the links provided. In my illustration I will be using the "Customers" list. You can format the columns, create different views, change the sort order and many other things by using the "List Settings" found under the "Settings" menu on the toolbar. New records can also be created by selecting  "New Item" from the "New" option on the toolbar. Sharepoint will automatically generate an HTML input screen to capture the data based on the column definitions. I know what you are thinking. The interface does not nearly look as good or is a functional as the "Forms" and "Reports" that you spent days building in MS Access. So where are they? On the right hand side of the toolbar there is an option called "View" that provides a list of drop down options. Normally this would be used in Sharepoint to create different views and filters for the list. In the case of MS Access, this now creates links back to the "Forms" and "Reports" that you created previously in the MS Access database. By selecting one of these links the following will happen: A copy of the database will be extracted from the "Document Library" on this site and copied to your computer. The databases will then be opened in MS Access on your machine (Yes, you still need MS Access on your machine). The appropriate "Form" or "Report" that you selected in Sharepoint will then be opened. You can now use the database as per normal as if you are running in stand-alone mode. The major difference is that all the data created is now stored back into Sharepoint via the attached tables to the lists. I could elaborate on how this new feature in MS Access 2007 solves so many problems experienced in previous versions of MS Access, but that would probably require a new blog. I will therefore leave you to figure out the advantages yourself. Related Office 2007 Blogs: Building a KPI List using Excel in Sharepoint Publishing PowerPoint slides to Sharepoint Creating a Pivot Table in Sharepoint Publishing a Blog from Word 2007 into Sharepoint The importance of Outlook 2007 as a user interface into Sharepoint Migrating an Access 2007 Database to Sharepoint Posted Dec 17 2007, 07:57 PM by Neil with no comments Filed under: Sharepoint, Office 2007

• Connecting an External Database to Sharepoint using the BDC

  One of the most powerful features in Sharepoint, is the ability to connect to an external database and display the data without having to write additional applications or reports. This is done through a feature called the "Business Data Catalogue" that ships as part of MOSS Enterprise Edition. In some of my previous blogs on this site I explained the High and Low level architecture of the BDC. In this blog I will explain to you step by step on how to actually implement an external connection to a database and display the data in an Sharepoint Site. Unfortunately there are no built-in tools in Sharepoint to actually create the connection strings to the database or write the queries required. The only thing that Sharepoint allows you to do is import an XML file called an "Application Definition File" that already contains all of the information required. The trick therefore, is how do I create this file? Almost a year ago I faced the same problem and the idea of using notepad or even Visual Studio did not appeal to me, so I went and searched the Internet. I found a web site called: http://www.bdcmetaman.com where someone wrote a GUI tool in .NET that generates this file for you. Recently Microsoft posted an update to the MOSS SDK that also contains a tool that generates the "Application Definition File". The SDK can be downloaded from the following location: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=6D94E307-67D9-41AC-B2D6-0074D6286FA9&displaylang=en In this blog I will be using the "BDCMetaman" tool and that is were we will start. This tool allows you to do the following things: Connect to an existing database of your choice as long as you have the drivers installed. Select the objects you want to query from the database and drag them onto the design pane. Create relationships between entities even if there are none defined in the database itself. Select the exact columns that you would like to query. Define the location of the output file, "Application Definition File". Generate the "Application Definition File" based on you selection. Once the ADF file has been generated you can open it in IE to see the XML Schema. It is not my intention to explain the details of the ADF file in this blog, but I will point out the main sections of the file: There is a properties section that defines the parameters for the connection string to the database. There is a method section that defines the SQL query that will be executed against the database. There is a parameter sections that defines that arguments that can be passed like a where clause. There is a schema section that defines all the columns retrieved and their data types. Once the ADF is created we need to import it using the BDC options in the SSP admin web site. In the SSP admin web site there are a number of options that can be configured: Import Application Definition - this screen allows you to import the ADF file we created earlier. View Applications - this screen will display a list of applications that have already been connected. View Entities - this shows the individual objects per application that are available for use. Business Data Catalog Permissions -  allows the admin to specify which users are allowed to connect to the BDC. Select the option called "View Applications". This will open the following screen. This screen allows you to configure individual settings for each ADF connection that exists: You can view the entity structure that comprises the application. Individual permissions can be set per application. The entire definition stored in the metadata database can be exported to and ADF file. The application can also be deleted. To import the ADF file we created earlier select the button on the toolbar called "Import Application Definition" On the top right hand corner there is a browse button than will allow you to select the ADF file generated earlier. The "File Type" option allows you to specify wether you are connecting to a database (Model) or an XML web service (Resource). The ADF file is based on a database and therefore I will leave it on model. All the information in the ADF will be imported into the BDC metadata database that is located in the SSP database. The last three checkboxes on the screen allow you to specify how much information is imported. By default all three options are selected and it is better to leave it that way. When all the options are configured, select the "Import" button and wait for the process to complete. Now that Sharepoint has been connected to the database, we need to build a site to display the data. Complete the following steps in an existing web application: Create or use an existing site in a site collection. Switch the page into edit mode by selecting the option from the "Site Actions" menu. Select the "Add a web part" button in any zone on the page. Scroll done the list of web parts until you come to a section called "Business Data" There are a number of "Business Data" web parts to choose from and in the future I will write another blog explaining the differences between them. For this illustration I am going to select the web part called "Business Data List", that will act as a database grid. Select the checkbox next to the web part can click the "Add" button. The web part will now appear in the zone on the page with a hyperlink that says "Open tool pane". Click the link. The business data list tool pane will open on the right hand side of the screen with a number of options that can be configured. I will only focus on the most relevant at this stage: Type - next to this textbox is a browse button that allows you to select the ADF connection and entity that we created earlier in the SSP. XSL Editor - this option allows you to apply an XSLT style sheet to the data list to format it to your liking. Parameters Editor - this option allows you to define default values for the parameters defined in the entity. Once all the options are configured, apply them by selecting the "OK" button. The last thing we need to do is to test that it works. Exit "Edit Mode" on the page. To test the web part, click on the green button called "Retrieve Data". The results from the database should then appear as HTML on the page. The drop down options that appear on the top of the web part can be used to pass parameters to the underlying source. Test some scenarios. I hope this gives you a good starting point into how to use the BDC in Sharepoint. In the future I will write some more blogs on this topic to explain some of the finer details of using the BDC. Related Blogs: Connecting an External Database to Sharepoint using the BDC BDC Low-Level Architecture in Sharepoint BDC High Level Architecture in Sharepoint  Business Data Web Parts in Sharepoint Posted Dec 17 2007, 08:51 AM by Neil with 1 comment(s) Filed under: Sharepoint