Appendix D: Northwind Traders Case Study

Contents Overview 1 Introduction to Public Folders 2 Creating Public Folders by Using Using Public Folder Servers 17 Using Exchange Server Public Folder Replication 30 Lab A: Creat

Contents

Overview 1

Introduction to Public Folders 2

Creating Public Folders by Using

Using Public Folder Servers 17

Using Exchange Server Public Folder

Replication 30

Lab A: Creating the Public Folder

Review 41

Module 2: Creating and Managing Public Folders

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Project Advisor: Janet Wilson

Project Lead and Instructional Designer: Anne Bockman (Excell Data Corporation)

Instructional Designers: Josh Barnhill (Volt Technical) and Jo Berry (Exchange)

Lead Program Manager: Greg Bott

Program Managers: Colleena Carr and Chris Boar (Intl Vendor)

Graphic Artist: Andrea Heuston (Artitudes Layout and Design)

Editing Manager: Lynette Skinner

Editor: Jennifer Kerns (S&T Onsite)

Copy Editor: Shari G Smith (R & S Consulting)

Online Program Manager: Arlo Emerson (Aditi)

Production Support: Irene Barnett (Barnett Communications)

Manufacturing Manager: Bo Galford

Manufacturing Support: Mimi Dukes (S&T Onsite)

Development Services: Kimber Dodge

Lead Product Manager: Mary Larson

Group Product Manager: Robert Stewart

Instructor Notes Module 2: Creating and Managing Public Folders

This module provides students with an introduction to public folders They will learn how public folders can be incorporated into a collaborative solution They will also learn how to create a new public folder and set its properties The module concludes with an introduction to how Microsoft® Exchange Server replication can be used to manage public folder data

Materials and Preparation

This section provides you with the materials and preparation needed to teach this module

Materials

To teach this module, you need the following materials:

Microsoft PowerPoint® file 1593a_02.ppt

Module 2, “Creating and Managing Public Folders”

Preparation

To prepare for this module, you should:

Read all the materials for this module

Read the instructor notes and margin notes for the module

Complete the lab

Presentation:

45 Minutes

Lab:

30 Minutes

Module Strategy

Use the following strategy to present this module:

Introduction to Public Folders Show where public folders reside in the hierarchical model that Exchange Server uses to organize resources Define the different ways that public folder collaboration servers can be deployed: as a dedicated public folder server, or as a shared messaging and public folder server Describe some of the ramifications of deploying each type

Provide a high-level overview of some of the public folder collaboration features

Creating Public Folders by Using Outlook 2000 Describe the different types of folders that can be created in Outlook 2000: file system folders and Outlook 2000 folders Review some of the basics of creating a new public folder and setting folder properties Describe how to use an existing folder as the basis for a new folder

Using Public Folder Servers Show some of the public folder collaboration features in more detail Set permissions for public folders Use the default form and default views for a public folder Define rules and show how to set condition and action properties of rules Describe the architecture of moderated folders and explain how they are implemented

Using Exchange Server Public Folder Replication Provide a brief overview of public folder replication Describe how the type

of collaboration server dictates the type of replication required by the application

Overview

At the end of this module, you will be able to:

Describe the differences between a dedicated public folder server and a shared messaging and public folder server

Create a new public folder and set the properties of that folder by setting permissions, establishing a default form, modifying views, and specifying a moderator

Use Microsoft® Outlook® 2000 to set permissions and rules for an existing public folder

Describe the role of Microsoft Exchange Server replication in managing public folder data

In this module, you will learn

how to create public folders

and use them in a

collaborative solution

Introduction to Public Folders

Public folders play a central role in the process of developing collaborative solutions by storing the data that is the basis of your solution Understanding the capabilities of public folders will help you design and develop effective collaborative solutions for your organization

Exchange Server Hierarchy

Organization

Site

Organization Site Site Site

Site

Site

Site

Microsoft Exchange Server uses a hierarchical model to organize resources

The top level of the hierarchy is the Organization, followed by the site, and then the server

The Organization Level

The largest administrative unit in Exchange Server is the Organization An Organization is a collection of all Exchange Server sites within a company As

a general rule there should be only one Organization within a company for ease

of administration Exchange Server does not support multiple-Exchange Organization configurations as a single installation

The Site Level

To simplify the administration of a large Organization, servers can be grouped into units called sites A site consists of one or more Exchange servers within a local area network (LAN) or high-bandwidth permanent wide area network (WAN) These servers work together to route messages and exchange supporting data Sites can be configured and managed as a single unit

The Server Level

Exchange servers are computers running Microsoft Windows NT® Server, with the Exchange Server software installed Exchange servers maintain all

messages, public folders, and other information for the site

Slide Objective

To present the hierarchical

model used by Exchange

Server

Lead-in

The Organization appears at

the top of the hierarchical

model that Exchange Server

uses to organize resources

Using Public Folders in a Collaborative Solution

computer, scalable hardware

needs

Outlook 2000 item folders can be either personal or public

those that are stored on the Exchange Server computer as part of your mailbox and those that are located on your local hard disk or on a file share server in a personal folder (.pst) file

and allow you to collect, organize, and share information with others on your team or across your organization

Public folder collaboration servers can be deployed in two ways: as a dedicated public folder server, or as a shared messaging and public folder server

Using Dedicated Public Folder Servers

A dedicated public folder server is an Exchange Server computer that is configured with only the Public Information Store services These servers are storage locations for the data that can be accessed through collaborative applications These servers can be dedicated to providing collaboration services

to a select department or group, or to an entire enterprise

The dedicated public folder server configuration allows groups to set up team workspaces and collaborative applications that are insulated from the

organizational Exchange Server infrastructure Yet, the stand-alone servers can still take advantage of the directory, security, and messaging services of the surrounding infrastructure These servers are optimized storage and publishing spaces for Microsoft Office documents, Web documents, and collaborative applications

Slide Objective

To describe the differences

between the two types of

Exchange Server

collaboration servers

Lead-in

There are two types of

collaboration servers that

can be deployed in your

solution: dedicated public

folder servers, and shared

messaging and public folder

servers

Advantages of Dedicated Public Folder Servers

Dedicated public folder servers have the following advantages:

there is no need to replicate the information

single computer, which prevents the application from having a potentially negative impact on the messaging environment

of the applications it supports

Disadvantages of Dedicated Public Folder Servers

Dedicated public folder servers have the following disadvantage

these servers be included in the enterprise backup solution

Using Shared Messaging and Public Folder Servers

This server configuration has all the functionality of the stand-alone group collaboration server It differs in that it provides messaging and public folder storage services for users and applications These servers not only provide messaging services for users in the enterprise but they also contain information that is used by a large number of people, so issues such as load bottlenecks, fault tolerance, and data replication need to be considered

Public folder services can be removed from the messaging servers at any time, allowing complete flexibility in how Exchange Server is deployed and managed for messaging and collaboration

Advantages of Shared Messaging and Public Folder Servers

Messaging and public folder servers have the following advantage

fewer servers in the enterprise to manage

Disadvantages of Shared Messaging and Public Folder Servers

Messaging and public folder servers have the following disadvantages

negatively impact the messaging environment

Public Folder Collaboration Features

Automating Folder Activity

Some collaboration features enable you to monitor what items get posted to a folder and to automatically perform an activity based on the characteristics of those items Some of these features include folder assistants, scripting agents, routing and workflow capabilities, and moderated folders

Folder Assistants

The Folder Assistant allows you to customize how a public folder responds to posted items Rules created with the Folder Assistant are similar to the rules that can be created for an Inbox in Outlook 2000 However, public folder rules allow business logic to be created, depending on the needs of the application For example, you can create a rule that checks whether a specific property is filled in on a custom form If the property is not filled in, the rule can automatically send the item back to the user who submitted it with an explanation of why the item could not be accepted

Slide Objective

To list some of the features

of public folder collaborative

applications

Lead-in

There are many built-in

features of public folders

that you can use to build

collaborative solutions

Scripting Agents

The Exchange Server Scripting Agent lets you use server-side scripts that run as

a result of events occurring in folders Events can take place in personal folders (mailboxes) or public folders A Scripting Agent can be applied to the

following four types of events:

building applications that need to check new items as they arrive

folder need to be synchronized with another data source such as a Microsoft SQL Server™ database or another Exchange Server folder

synchronization capabilities between different data sources and the public folder

Routing and Workflow

Routing is the ability to send a document to a sequence of recipients for review and to track the progress of the document through the cycle For example, a document routing and approval application can require all users to approve a document It can also provide time-out capabilities so that when a user does not approve the document within the specified amount of time, the system approves

Offline Folders

Offline folders are the quickest and easiest way to work offline with Exchange Server Exchange Server and Outlook 2000 support the ability to replicate public folder contents, views, and forms offline Replication allows an administrator to work with public folders while disconnected from the network, and to synchronize the changes made to the offline copy back to Exchange

Server This process is called synchronizing folders, or offline replication One

feature of offline folders is the ability to filter the items to be replicated offline

so that users do not have to replicate large amounts of content to their offline replica Instead, users can replicate the relevant information from the public folder

Offline folders are stored in the offline folder (.ost) file This file is located on your computer hard disk and is available even when the network is unavailable The ost file can be compacted to save space on your computer

For more information on setting up a public folder for offline use, search for “offline folders” in Outlook 2000 Help

Posting and Viewing Public Folder Information

Public folders allow you to choose which standard and custom forms to use for postings to the folder Often it is important to control what information is posted to a public folder For example, help desk applications require a certain amount of information to be collected You can ensure that all pertinent information is provided by specifying a custom form that requires users to fill

in the necessary information Furthermore, you can specify that only the custom

help desk form be allowed to post to the folder by using the Properties page on

a public folder Using forms in public folders also takes advantage of the replication features of Exchange Server so that the forms replicate with the folder to other public folder servers

Presenting Application Data to the User

Another aspect of developing a public folder collaborative solution is determining the best way to make your application’s data visible to the user Two common ways of presenting this information include:

find information in a folder

that allows public folders to be retrieved and rendered to the Web You can use this option to create folder home pages that display public folder information Furthermore, you can allow users to post information to the folder by using Outlook 2000 custom forms Microsoft provides an Outlook HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) Form Converter that will take the Outlook 2000 forms and convert them to Web forms for use in Web applications

Content Indexing

Another collaboration-related feature is content indexing with Microsoft Site Server Site Server can go through the Exchange Server Public Folders tree and index any objects contained there Site Server will full-text index the

attachments to items in a public folder Site Server provides an object library that exposes the indexes it creates, so a Web interface can be built to search and view the information stored across public folders by using the Site Server search engine

Setting Permissions

You can limit access to some or all of the folders within a public folder by setting permissions An individual can also set permissions for a personal folder Folder permissions use a role-based model, where each role determines the level of access a user has to the contents of a folder For example, the Reviewer role has read only permissions, whereas the Editor can create, read, modify, or delete all items and files

Note

Custom Forms

When you create a public folder, you can determine the type of data that can be posted into the folder by creating a custom form Once the form is created and published, you can specify which forms are associated with a folder You can also restrict which forms users can post to the folder

Message Tracking

Exchange Server supports more than delivery and read receipts When message tracking is enabled, Exchange Server keeps logs of the items that have entered the Exchange Server system from other systems Exchange Server also logs where items were routed to, which Exchange Server components routed them, and when the items were delivered to their final destinations Message tracking enables you to find the route of an item based on specific criteria such as the sender of the item, the intended recipient, or even the component of Exchange Server that handled the message This tool enables you to trace any item in your application and determine whether it reached its destination

Message tracking logs are created when message tracking has been enabled on

either the Information Store Site Configuration object or the MTA Site

Configuration object in the Microsoft Exchange Administrator program These

objects are in the Configuration container

The message tracking logs are stored in the \Exchsrvr\Tracking.log subdirectory This subdirectory contains logs for each day message tracking has been enabled The log files are named according to the day they were created For example, a log file created on 7/1/99 is named 19990701.log

Viewing the Tracking.log File

You can view the Tracking.log file by using one of two methods:

Message Tracking Center is used to selectively query the tracking log files and track a particular message to find out if or how it was delivered To

open the Message Tracking Center, on the Tools menu of the Microsoft Exchange Administrator, click Track Message

tab-delimited TXT format and can be viewed with any text editor or Microsoft Excel

The Tracking.log contains information such as Message ID, Event Type, Date/Time stamp, Length of Message, Recipients, and Status of all messages received/sent on the corresponding day

For more information about the event codes and fields contained in a log

file, see the Microsoft Exchange Administrator’s Guide

Note

Creating Public Folders by Using Outlook 2000

Creating a new Outlook 2000 folder is as simple as creating a new folder, modifying an existing folder, or duplicating a folder design

When developing a collaborative solution, it is a good idea to start with a new personal folder if you do not already have a folder design in place If you do so, users cannot accidentally use the folder before it is ready However, a personal folder offers only limited testing capabilities Personal folders are used as a starting place when you are testing forms, views, and rules To test security and scripting, personal folders must be converted to public folders You can convert

an Outlook 2000 personal folder to a public folder to quickly populate a public folder with existing items

Copying a Folder

To copy a folder:

1 On the View menu, click Folder List

2 Click the folder you want to copy

3 On the File menu, point to Folder, and then click Copy Folder name

4 In the Copy the selected folder to the folder list, click the location you

want the folder copied

You must use Exchange Server to use the Delegate Access feature and to share your personal Outlook 2000 folders The personal folders must be stored

in the Exchange Server mailbox, not in an Outlook 2000 personal folder or a pst file

Slide Objective

To outline this topic

Lead-in

You can use Outlook 2000

to create a new public folder

and set its properties, such

as granting permissions to

users and determining the

type of information that can

be stored in the public

folder

Note

Outlook 2000 Folder Types

Windows Explorer and inherit all of the native operating system properties and functionality

MailItem

Two types of folders can be created in Outlook 2000: file system folders and

Outlook 2000 folders

File System Folders

File system folders created in Outlook 2000 are equivalent to folders created in Microsoft Windows® Explorer, and inherit all of the native operating system properties and functionality To view or open any of the files on your computer

as well as on any network drive to which you are connected, on the Outlook

Bar, click Other or Other Shortcuts, and then click My Computer

Outlook 2000 Folders

Outlook 2000 folders can only be created within Outlook 2000 and are only visible from within Outlook 2000 There are six types of Outlook 2000 folders: Contacts, Tasks, Journal, Appointment, Note, and MailItem

Outlook 2000 folders are different from personal folders Personal folders are saved with the extension pst, and the items contained in your personal folders remain on your computer, not on the server In contrast, Outlook 2000 folders are part of your mailbox and are stored on the Exchange Server computer

Slide Objective

To describe the two types of

folders you can create by

using Outlook 2000

Lead-in

You can use Outlook 2000

to create two types of

folders: file system folders

and Outlook 2000 folders

This module focuses on

creating Outlook 2000

folders

Creating a New Public Folder

Create New Folder

Name:

Folder contains:

Mail Items Select where to place the folder:

Mailbox - Joe Howard Personal Folders Public Folders Favorites All Public Folders

You can create a new Outlook 2000 public folder when no folders exist with an appropriate design, or when only the standard options for a given folder type are required The new Outlook 2000 folder will typically function as a discussion folder, a tracking folder, or a reference folder

Creating a New Outlook 2000 Public Folder

To create a new Outlook 2000 public folder:

1 Make sure you are viewing the Public Folders tree

2 In the Public Folders list, right-click the personal folder where you want to create a folder, and then click New Folder on the shortcut menu

3 In the Name box, type a name for the folder

4 In the Folder contains box, do one of the following:

a Click Mail Items to create a folder that will contain items created with

E-mail Message, Post, or Microsoft Office Document forms, such as an invoice or purchase order form

b Click Appointment Items, Contact Items, Journal Items, Note Items,

or Task Items to create a folder that will contain items of the associated type For example, if you click Appointment Items, Outlook 2000 will

create a Calendar folder

5 Click OK

6 In the Add Shortcut to the Outlook Bar message box, click Yes or No to

indicate whether to create a shortcut to this folder in the Outlook Bar

Slide Objective

To present the Create New

Folder dialog box, which is

where a new Outlook 2000

folder is created

Lead-in

You can create a new public

folder by using the New

Folder command

Setting Folder Properties

Move Application Properties

This folder is available to:

Administration

Folder path:

Initial view on folder: Normal Drag/Drop posting is a: Move/Copy Add folder address to: Personal Address Book

All users with access permission Owners only

Folder Assistant

Moderated Folder

\Business Functions\Move Application

Agents

Use the Properties dialog box to define the attributes, actions, and properties of

a folder The Agent tab of the Properties dialog box is used to bind event scripts to public folders The Permissions tab is used to assign roles to users of

the public folder The following tables list the folder options for the remaining

tabs in the Properties dialog box

Using the Administration Tab to Set Folder Properties

The following table lists and describes the folder options on the

Administration tab

Item Function

Initial view on folder Choose between the built-in and custom views defined for

the folder

Drag/Drop posting is a Determine whether an item is forwarded, moved, or copied

when an item is dragged to the folder

Add folder address to Add the folder to the default address book, by default the

address will be added to the Contacts personal folder This is helpful if the address for the public folder is unavailable in the Global Address List

This folder is available

Moderated Folder Click this button to specify that a folder is moderated, and to

select moderators for the folder

Slide Objective

To present the Properties

dialog box

Lead-in

Folder properties are

configured in the Properties

dialog box

Using the General Tab to Set Folder Properties

The following table lists and describes the folder options on the General tab Item Function

Name Provides the name of the folder All visible public folders are

searchable by this field using the Find Public Folder feature

in Outlook 2000

Type Describes the type of items the folder contains

Location Specifies the name of the parent folder in which this folder is

located

Description Provides a description of the folder contents and function The

description field on a public folder is searchable using the Find Public Folder feature in Outlook 2000

When posting to this folder, use

Determines whether the folder will accept Posts or Forms Click Forms to use a custom form created for the folder

Automatically generate Exchange Server views

Enabled by default, this option will automatically publish table views to Outlook Web Access

Folder Size Display the size of the folder and any subfolders

Using the Home Page Tab to Set Folder Properties

Folder home pages are a new feature to Outlook 2000 that enable you to link an HTML page to any folder in the Outlook 2000 environment The following

table lists and describes the folder options on the Home Page tab

Address Type the Web page Uniform Resource Locator (URL) or

document path name for the folder home page

Using the Forms Tab to Set Folder Properties

By associating a form with your folder you can quickly and easily standardize the way information is distributed and collected The following table lists and

describes the folder options for the Forms tab

Manage Copies a form from a different forms library, sets up a new

form, enables an existing form to be exported as an fdm, deletes forms from selected form libraries, and sets form properties

Description Displays a description for the selected form

Allow these forms in this folder

Select the group of forms you want to use in the folder When

a user posts a message by using a form that is not in the groups of forms you selected, the message is returned to the sender

Duplicating and Modifying a Folder Design

folder, it merges the design components of the source folder and the destination folder

Create a new folder by copying an existing folder design when:

The existing folder contains the required design elements

A modified or upgraded folder design requires testing, but without disrupting access to the folder or workflow

Merging Folder Design Elements

Design elements of a folder include forms, views, permissions, folder descriptions, and rules You can reduce development time by basing a new folder on another folder that has the desired characteristics Once the new folder has been created, you can make any necessary changes to customize the folder

When Outlook 2000 copies the design of one folder to another, it merges the

design components of the source folder with design components of the destination folder The initial view of a folder and the folder home page is not copied with the folder design You must add these properties to the destination folder after it has been copied

Any conflicting properties on the destination folder will be replaced

by properties from the source folder Be certain you are aware which folder is the source and which is the destination

Slide Objective

To present the

circumstances for

duplicating or modifying a

folder design, and to present

the design elements of a

folder

Lead-in

When duplicating a folder

design, it is important to

know what design elements

are merged with the new

folder

Warning

Modifying a Folder Design

If a folder is in public use, it is best to modify the folder directly only if the changes are minor and will not disrupt users’ work Minor changes include adding permissions, adding a view, or changing a folder contact

To make more significant changes, such as modifying forms or rules, copy the design of the folder to another folder, modify the design, test to ensure the changes are working as expected, then copy the modified design back to the original folder As a final precautionary step, it is a good idea to do one final test to be sure your folders are working properly

Copying or modifying a folder requires the Owner right for the folder To

check permissions for a folder, right-click the folder, and then click Properties

on the Shortcut menu Permissions are displayed on the Permissions tab

Note

Using Public Folder Servers

Some of the most basic features of public folders can be implemented easily by using Outlook 2000 You can establish rules and moderators for a public folder

to control the type of information that is posted to the folder and how your solution responds to the information that is posted there You can establish the basic behavior of a public folder by setting permissions, setting the default form, and taking advantage of the default views

Slide Objective

To outline this topic

Lead-in

Now that you have learned

how to create a public

folder, you will see how to

implement some of its

features

Setting Permissions

Folder Properties

Administration

Permissions Roles: Author

None Own All

Using folder permissions, the public folder owner can assign a user permission

to access some or all of the folders within the public folder Similarly, if an individual user wants to share one of their personal folders with another user, they can set permissions for that user on their Outlook 2000 personal folder The extent of the activities a user can perform in a public folder or a shared personal folder depends on the role assigned them for the folder Sharing a folder involves identifying and assigning user roles and rights for a given folder

Outlook 2000 cannot support public folders or folder sharing without Microsoft Exchange Server Outlook 2000 requires Exchange Server for folder

permissions to be available

Viewing Folder Permissions

To view public and personal folder permissions:

1 Right-click the folder

2 On the shortcut menu, click Properties, and then click the Permissions tab

Default permissions allow any Exchange Server user to read and write to a public folder Personal folders, however, deny access to all users other than the owner

Slide Objective

To present the Permissions

tab on the Folder

Properties dialog box

Lead-in

Use the Permissions tab to

assign roles to give

predefined sets of

permissions to individuals or

groups

User Roles and Permissions

Use the Permissions tab to assign predefined roles, or to give custom

permissions to individuals or groups Default permissions will apply if a user attempts to access a folder without having explicit permissions for that folder The following table lists and describes user roles and their corresponding rights

Role

Create Items and Folders

Read Items and Folders

Modify Items and Folders

Delete Items and Folders Create Subfolders

Change Permission Levels

Created by Publishing Author

Author

Created by Author Non-editing Author

If a user is only given Create Items permissions, the Visible property will

automatically be set to True and the Contributor role will be applied Selecting

only the Read permission also sets the Visible property to True, but applies the

Reviewer role

Using Outlook 2000 Folder Permissions

There are many folder permissions unique to Outlook 2000 For example, in Outlook 2000 it is possible for an individual user to assign another user permission to schedule appointments and meetings on their behalf or to assign tasks on behalf of another user Granting a user the right to perform activities

on behalf of another user is called delegate access

Enabling Delegate Access for Outlook 2000 Folders

Outlook 2000 can only use the Delegate Access feature in conjunction with Exchange Server Using the Delegate Access feature requires a connection to the Exchange Server computer, and the add-in that contains the Delegate

Access feature must be installed Check to see whether the Delegate Access check box is available (on the Tools menu, click Options, click the General tab, and then click Add-In Manager) If the Delegate Access check box is not available, install the add-in To install the add-in, click Add-In Manager, click

Install, and then select the Delegate Access.ecf file

Note