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My company got a app that we develop, a big part is the email function on it(sending only). So far we have been able to handle everything on just regular smtp service(in house so to speak) in the windows server 2008. I kinda wonder and want your opinions on if Exchange Server is gone do us any good? Keep in mind that we only send email. If you think it would be good, please I would appreciate motivation too.

EDIT: What benefits would we have for our app if we use the Exchange server for email? We have developed this app and it work's great. Now we had a meeting and want to expand the app and maybe use other software like the exchange server and so on. I can read about the server but sometimes just hearing about it from other people and thoughts gives u a other perspective.

sorry if my tags are crazy on this one, and sorry for the badly asked question, to my defense I was tired ;)

Thanks guys

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4 Answers 4

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You don't need Exchange server at all. You can use SMTP service built into Windows Server to send or tap into an SMTP server that is already in use at the company (which may be needed in case of firewall restrictions on outgoing SMTP traffic).

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    Agreed. Exchange is a massive overhead if all you're doing is sending emails. Mar 2, 2010 at 4:53
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I'd rethink the premise of the question. If all you do is send email then all you really need is the .net framework and an ISP with a mail relay. You don't need SMTP on the windows server at all for simply sending email. I'd instead suggest you think about what- if anything you could get for value if you had an excahnge server available for your app. For instance would a message tracking function (by sender not receipts) be valuable? Is there any archiving requirements? per sender handling functionality? Exchange (like many microsoft products) isn't just an application but a platform in its own right. The other thing to think about when working with the microsoft platforsm is that the value isn't in any one app but in the entirety of the stack from the client side on up. One of the ways to get instant value add for your application is to tap into the stack, rather than just create an app that solves problem X (Eg MyApp is the best solution for creating widgets and optionally integrates with exchange )

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  • The question was badly asked. I was more into the awnser you started on here. What benefits I would have? We have developed this app and it work's great. Now we had a meeting and want to expand the app and maybe use other software like the exchange server and so on. I can read about the server but sometimes just hearing about it from other people and thoughts gives u a other perspective.
    – Dejan.S
    Mar 2, 2010 at 13:51
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Exchange server is a lot more then email. If all you need to do is send email have you looked at linux A its free B its all you need to send email.

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Exchange is fantastic at what it does. But using it as just a SMTP bridgehead for an app would be like using an ocean-going passenger cruise ship in your bathtub. Not only is it going to be expensive for your needs, it's going to be clumsy to configure it properly and keep it secure when all you want is a small portion of its functionality - a small portion that is available elsewhere easier.

If you're looking at Exchange this implies that you're already using Windows? If so I'd certainly look at the simpler SMTP solutions available for Windows, including the one that I think is still there built right into IIS, which I think is what you are doing already? Do you have a reason to be unhappy with that at the moment, or is your question more along the lines of "I hear about this exchange thing all the time so I was just wondering what it was about"?

We are an exchange house, but even so our helpdesk software, for example, actually uses blat to send emails, simply because that's all it needs.

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