Exchange 2007 looks like a really nice product. We only moved to Exchange 2003 back in June after 7 years on Exchange 5.5. I didn't think we would even think about 2007 for quite awhile, but after seeing the demos, I think we may well implement it this year.

Some of the features I liked we could have used in Exchange 2003, but they have been made much better in 2007 so it is worth the upgrade. Here are the ones that took my eye.

With Outlook 2007, users can set themselves up to an Exchange server. It will look for their login details and will find them on the server. Three clicks and they are setup.

Mobile Devices are handled much better in 2007.

We may move our voicemail system to Exchange. Users will be able to listen to their voicemail messages from within an email. They can even dial in and have the Exchange server read them their mail.

Remote users are able to click on links to documents even if they are inside the network without a VPN.

One application has been taken away and that is Exmerge. I love Exmerge. We use it for brick level backups. With only 300 users it is quick and simple. I will have to see if their is another way of doing this.

We will be installing a test server over Christmas. Hopefully, I will have some comments on how that goes early in 2007. One thing to note. The only version of Exchange 2007 that is supported by Microsoft is the 64 bit version. You can use the 32 bit version for testing, but it is not supported. To run the 64 bit version, you must also run Windows Server 64 bit. If you are in the Software Assurance program, you will be able to get this version free.