[CLUE-Tech] the ongoing search for an exchange replacement

[Jim Ockers]

Mike:

Mike Staver wrote:
> 
> I would like to get some opinions on your favorite mail/calendar servers
> available for linux.  I know a church that I've offered to do some
> network/server work for since they can't afford to actually hire
> somebody to come in, and it probably goes without saying that they won't
> want to shell out cash for Windows 2000 server and Exchange 2000 as
> well.  Everybody in their church office uses Outlook, and wants access
> to the standard calendar stuff that exchange offers.  I've heard about
> various Ximian projects, like Evolution.  But, from what I understand,
> evolution is simply the client that allows access for a linux box to
> connect to an exchange server. I'm wanting to do the reverse of this,
> have the linux box be the server and host the mail/calendar.  Does
> anyone know of a good server project that I could try?

Bynari makes a connector program that will let you use Linux groupware
and Outlook clients.  You have to license it by client, I think it's about
$15 per seat.  Then you can use Free software on the server side and do
not have to have Exchange server.

www.bynari.com

They probably have some ideas of Free server software you can use, if you
have a look at their web site.

We are switching our office to the Oracle Collaboration Suite groupware
which will run on Linux, and has a Linux fat client as well as an excellent
thin client (web browser) interface.  Naturally Oracle provides an Outlook
connector as well as part of the package.  You won't be interested in this
because it's an expensive server package and it sounds like you need free
software.  It also needs a fairly beefy server or cluster of servers.

Evolution does not support the right calendaring tool to talk to Oracle
but I don't know what other tools it might connect to for scheduling.

Good luck,
Jim

-- 
Jim Ockers (ockers at ockers.net)
Contact info: please see http://www.ockers.net/