I have the dubious task of finding a solution in the event that our Exchange 2003 breaks down.
Our situation
1 – W2K3 DC Server
1 – W2K3 Exchange with roughly 50 Users Accounts.
1 – New Unused Server at my disposition which will eventually be located off-site in case of fire/theft etc….. This machine does NOT have exactly the same config as server N?2 Although they are from the the same manufacturer.
After searching the web I have seen notably 2 solutions.
1 : Expensive and difficult to setup MS Clustering. ( Out of the question due to price and knowledge required).
2: Expensive software mirroring solutions. ( Can’t get the finance manager to give me the budget)..
Are there any other alternatives.
In the best world scenario I would like to have all emails from our Exchange Server forwarded to and stored on the backup exchange server. ( Don’t care about shared folders, its the Inbox and Sent Items that are important).
The backup exchange server would only be used in the event that the Exchange Server is no longer available. We don’t require a 2 minute failover solution. If I could have the backup server fully operational in less than 3 hours the solution would be accepted.
What backup/failure scenarios are you using that you have tested and are reasonably cost effective.
I have scoured the “Software Solutions” and “MS Advisory Technotes :-(“, to no avail.
I am sure that there must be a reasonable solution for Small business’s and would be most grateful for any advice that you have to offer.
Cheers Roy