Administer Exchange 2003 from Windows XP SP1

How can I manage my Exchange 2003 server from a Windows XP/2000/2003 workstation?

This article describes the steps to be taken in order to be able to administer an Exchange 2003 server from a Windows XP Pro computer that is installed with SP1 or SP1a or from a Windows Server 2003 Member Server.

Note: For an Exchange 2000 version of this page and for more background on this issue (with detailed screenshots) click on the following article: Administer Exchange 2000 from Windows XP SP1.

You can administer Exchange Server 2003 servers from a Windows computer by using Exchange Setup to install only Microsoft Exchange System Management Tools.

Note: If you have not installed an Exchange 2003 server in your organization, you must first run ForestPrep. ForestPrep extends the Active Directory schema to include Exchange-specific classes and attributes, and creates the container object for the Exchange organization in Active Directory.

To install Exchange System Management Tools ensure that the computer meets the following requirements:

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The computer is running Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows 2000 Professional, or Windows 2000 Server SP3.
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The computer name does not contain unsupported characters.
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The language version matches any previous installation of Exchange 2000 System Management Tools (except for upgrades from English to Korean, Traditional Chinese, or Simplified Chinese).
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Log onto the domain with an account that has local machine administrator permissions.

Depending on the version of Windows that is running on the computer, install the required services.

Windows XP Service Pack 1

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Internet Information Services Snap-In component
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SMTP Service component
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World Wide Web Service
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Windows Server 2003 Administration Tools Pack, AdminPak.msi

Windows XP SP2

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Internet Information Services Snap-In component
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Windows Server 2003 Administration Tools Pack (AdminPak.msi)

Windows Server 2003

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Internet Information Services Manager component

Windows 2000 Professional SP3

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Internet Information Services Snap-In component
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Windows Server 2000 Administration Tools Pack (AdminPak.msi)

Windows 2000 Server SP3

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Internet Information Services Snap-In component
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Windows Server 2000 Administration Tools Pack (AdminPak.msi)
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SMTP Service component
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NNTP Service component

Next, run Exchange Setup, located in the SETUP\I386 folder. On the Component Selection page, set the installation action to Custom, and then select Microsoft Exchange System Management Tools.



After the installation is complete go to the Start menu and see if the Microsoft Exchange folder and shortcuts have been successfully created.



Finally, you must install the latest Exchange 2003 Service Pack:

Exchange 2003 Service Pack 2 (SP2) was released on the 19th of October 2005. You can download SP2 for Exchange 2003 right here:

Download Exchange 2003 SP2 (109mb)