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Exchange 2007 pop3/imap connectors?

Hello gurus

One of our customers has signed to GoogleApps in addition to his production Exchange 2007.
All the MBX's has been created on both places, when the MX's are pointing at cost 0 to the Exch, and the rest to the GoogleApps servers.

All is working great, and now the last obstacle is to set a connectors from GoogleApps to the Exchange MBX's.

Is it possible to set a pop3 connectors as the Exch 2003? if not which alternatives do i have on the server-side.
I strongly prefer NOT TO setup an additional pop/imap account on the clients-side, mostly due to security breaches.

Thx
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Bembi
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Your configuration sounds like you use google apps as backup mailbox?
The first MX points to your Exch, the second MX to google, that means, if your exchange is unreachable, the mail is send to google.

If the google accounts are pop3 postboxes, there is no other way than pulling them down, either on server side or on clients side. On server side you can use the pop3 connector (if you have an SBS) or any other pop3 downloader, you can find in the internet.

The other option is, to setup the pop3 mailboxes to forward the mail to your exchange, which means, that the mails will go to the goggle postbox (if Exch is unavailable) and then forwarded to your exchange as far as it is back.

The more usual way is, to use a backup SMTP queue. That means, the backup service don't host mailboxes, but only a queue, which is forwarded to your server. The MX szenario is the same, but the mails will (in case of inavailablr Exch) to the provider queue and then forwarded to your server, as far as EXCH is reachable again. This method forwards everything, therefore it is maintenance free, but has the lack of a timeout. A usual timeout is something about 2 days, if your server do not come back within 2 days, older mails are lost.

POP3 backup has not timeout, because the mails are permanentely stored there, but has more maintenance effort, as you have to configure every new user this way. Can be done with every provider. Needs any kind of pull down mechanism.

SMTP queue backup ist offered in most of the cases by your provider (talk to your provider, ask if this is possible), maintenance free (as it is only a additional backup mail queue), but the retention time is limited (also ask your provider).

These are the possibilities.  
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ASKER

Bembi, thx for the detailed reply.
The server is not an SBS, it's a win 2008 std (DC) + Exch 2007.

What's the best practice to use pop3 connector in this setup?

Thx again
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Bembi
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