Problem
You want to install Exchange Management tools onto a workstation or server that isn’t running Exchange.
Solution
Using a graphical user interface
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Install and configure prerequisite services. See the “Discussion” section for the list of these services.
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Go to the Windows Update site and install any critical security patches.
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Load the Exchange Server CD into your CD-ROM.
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On the Start menu, click Run and then type <driveletter>:\setup\i386\setup.exe and click OK. <driveletter> is the drive letter of your CD-ROM drive. This path may vary for certain versions of Exchange Server such as MSDN or Select versions.
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On the Welcome screen, click Next.
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On the License Agreement screen read through the agreement and if you agree, select “I agree” and click Next.
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On the Component Selection screen, select Custom in the top row of the Action column. Next to Microsoft Exchange System Management Tools, select Install. Verify that the install path is correct for your installation and click Next.
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Review the Installation Summary screen and click Next.
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On the Completing the Microsoft Exchange Wizard screen, click Finish.
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Download and install latest Exchange 2003 service pack. As of the time of this writing it is Service Pack 2. See Recipe 22.4 for more information.
Using a command-line interface
Any Exchange Management Tool installations can be handled through the command line with the unattended installation process. You will need to generate and use the appropriate unattended install INI file. See Recipe 22.5 for more on creating an INI file.
Once you have an unattended file, use the following command to install:
> <driveletter>:\setup\i386\setup.exe /unattendfile <unattendfile>
Note that if there is an error during the install process it will be recorded in the Exchange Server setup log, which by default will be located in the root of the system drive, generally C:\.
Discussion
Exchange Server has several software prerequisites for the Exchange Management Tools software, without which they will refuse to install. You must have the Windows Server 2003 Administration Tools Pack (adminpak.msi) installed on Windows XP SP1+, Windows 2000 SP3+, or Windows Server 2003 along with the following services:
- IIS
- WWW Service
- SMTP Service
See the Windows Server Cookbook for Windows Server 2003 and Windows 2000 by Robbie Allen (O’Reilly) for more details on installation of these prerequisites.
Microsoft has a recommendation against installing Exchange tools on a machine that runs Outlook. We haven’t had an issue with loading the Exchange tools on a workstation that had Outlook, but it is a point that we must mention. See MS KB 266418 for more details.
Using a command-line interface
If you have only one or two machines you want to install the tools on, automating the Exchange Server Management Tools installation will probably not be any value to you. However, if you have several machines you need to load the tools on, using the unattended installation feature can certainly lead to time savings, efficiency, and consistency.