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ChrisWillis

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Multiple site, single domain, want multiple exchange servers...advise please

I have 3 sites all connected directly to the inter via full T1.  I have VPN tunnels connecting the offices together through the internet.  Every site has 2 domain controllers.  

Currently the mail site hosts exchange for all 3 sites, with all users connecting via MAPI either locally or via the VPN tunnels.

What I would like to do is install an additional exchange server in each site and have a full copy of both the mailbox and public stores available for all users no matter where they log on

In the setup I want fault tolerance, so each server should be aware the other two exist and how to route mail to them.

DNS will be setup for all three boxes for failover resolution....

1) can I do this without enterprise exchange version
2) can I do this without a frontend/backend solution
3) how do I point outlook to another server if the users local is down

Thanks for any help you guys/girls can give....
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Vahik

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ChrisWillis

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ok, based on what you said this is what I understand....

I can install exchange in all three locations and use priority based DNS via public DNS entires for fault tolerance.  Provided the exchange servers are all in the same routing group then the messages will automatically get delivered to the correct server hosting the mailbox store the user's mailbox resides in.  I can also use public folder replication to replicate a copy of the public store on all servers.  

What I can't do is make redundant mailbox stores (without clustering)....I can live with that.

So my public would look like this

smtp1.company.com    IP address of primary exchange server on most reliable connection     priority 5
smtp2.company.com    IP address of secondary exchange                                                        priority 15
smtp3.company.com    IP address of other exchange                                                                priority 30

Inside I would make all exchange servers members of the same routing group and organization

I would then point users at each site to the exchange server at that site

sound correct?
Beautifull.Just make sure every site has a GC and DNS.Even if ur exchanges are in diff routing group
they will still be deliverd u just need connectors.
excellent...thanks for the help.....points are yours.....

Cheers
Thanks and cheers to u too.