12 Key Features of Microsoft Exchange Server 2010

by Nicholas Kolakowski

Exchange 2010 allows IT administrators to control the security, encryption, applications and network settings of devices connected to their network—some 45 policies in total—through Mobile Management Policies.

Exchange 2010 can e-mail a voicemail preview, with the first few lines transcribed into text, to a users inbox.

MailTips will flash warnings to users if they attempt to use e-mail in a way that could bite them later on, such as accidentally mass-sending an e-mail intended for only a few recipients within an organization.

MailTips can also warn about whether a recipient is currently out-of-office, or if the about-to-be-sent message will be rejected for some reason.

Microsoft has expanded Outlook Web Access premium support to Apple Safari.

A Conversation View in Exchange 2010 automatically groups message threads within the inbox “based on the natural conversation flow between parties,” according to Microsoft.

An Ignore Conversation feature lets people remove themselves from an unwanted e-mail or undesired reply-all threads.

Exchange 2010 offers several voicemail-related features, including protected voicemail (with control over who can access voicemail content) and the ability to control their inboxes with Outlook Voice Access by using a telephone keypad or voice prompts.

Multiple Exchange accounts in Office 2010 can be searched through simultaneously.

A new Personal Archive feature sets a specialized mailbox to appear next to the users primary mailbox in Outlook or Outlook Web App, allowing easier access to e-mail within the archive. Users can also set retention policies for specific items, conversations or folders within their Inbox.

E-mail in Exchange 2010 offers granular options, such as “Do Not Forward.”

Call Answering Rules let users set the way that calls are answered, so that important calls can be routed to, say, an attended line as opposed to voicemail. This feature also offers custom greetings and call transfer options, and can be modified depending on the callers ID, the time of day or Exchange free/busy status.