Re: [TCLUG:14915] Re: Help! Help! Save me from M$ Exchange!

[chewie@wookimus.net]

On Mon, Mar 20, 2000 at 09:04:16AM -0600, Eric M. Hopper wrote:
> Kelly Black wrote:
> > I have been given a week to come up with hard evidence that HP's OpenMail
> > would not be the kiss of death for the company I work for.  The only other
> > alternative they will consider is Exchange (shudder).  In order to allow
> > our company to go with OpenMail instead of exchange would be some real life
> > experiences anyone out there might have had with OpenMail in a company of
> > our size.

From my experience, Exchange server is one of the worst email servers out
there.  The only reliable experience I have with exchange server is if you have
a LOT of disk space and a low user volume.  You also need quite a bit of
resources, dedicated memory.  This can be a problem if you want to use an older
computer (a 486 will do fine with Linux and any MTU for up to a couple hundred
users).

If they will only consider commercial products, tell them to look at Sendmail
Pro as well as HP OpenMail.  Also, during this week, join a couple email lists
and start asking questions from the users themselves.  Ask for phone numbers and give these people calls.  Gather, my man, gather data.  You'll be very happy you did.

If OpenMail does run on Linux, I'd push for that instead of Exchange, most
definitely.  I don't use OpenMail, but ANYTHING's got to be better than
Exchange.  Besides, we had Exchange here for a while, and NO ONE used the full
potential of the server itself.  Micro$oft wanted Exchange to be a
file/infomation/email server, a Lotus Notes info sharing server replacement.
The problem with that is that no one really NEEDS to have a server do what
standard file sharing can do.

Anyway, here's the short synopsis of price to utilities:

OS's
	Linux Operating System (any dist)		$   0.00
	Windows 2000 Adv. Server w/25 clients		$3395.95

Windows Hardware Required
	PII or PIII class Server 			$2000.00 to
	w/128-256MB RAM, 9.1GB SCSI, 1 NIC		$3500.00

Linux Hardware Required
	486DX33+ w/16MB RAM, 9.1GB SCSI, 1 NIC		>$500.00

Windows Email Software (Requires windows OS)
	Exchange Server License w/Outlook 2k (25 Users)	$1799.95
	Exchange Server CALs (5 users)			$ 366.95
	HP OpenMail						?

Linux Email Software
	HP OpenMail					$????.??	
	Sendmail Switch (http://www2.sendmail.com/switch/)
							$  99.99
	Sendmail (std free edition, any # clients)	$   0.00
	Qmail (free, any # clients)			$   0.00
	Postfix (free, any # clietns)			$   0.00

Since Exchange Server also supplies Newsgroup serving:

Linux Newsgroup Software
	INN (any # newsgroups/users)			$   0.00



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Chad Walstrom                         mailto:chewie@wookimus.net 
a.k.a ^chewie, gunnarr                http://wookimus.net/chewie

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