How to deploy Outlook 2003 RPC-over-HTTPS configuration?

[Toni Rantanen]

Hi,

In my organization there is both Exchange 2003 and Exchange 2007 in use, as
well as Outlook 2003 and Outlook 2007. We are now decommissioning Exchange
2003 servers. Our problem is that Outlook 2003 clients are still using
Exchange 2003 front end server as their RPC-over-HTTPS server. We have
created GPO to make the setting correct in Outlook 2007 clients, but is there
a way to deploy centralized solution (preferably via GPO) to change
RPC-over-HTTPS setting in Outlook 2003 clients?

Best regards,

Toni Rantanen

 

[Roady [MVP]]

How would the settings be any different by upgrading the Exchange 2003 Front
End Servers to Exchange 2007? There is no need to change your published
(external) addresses.

Anyway, you can use the ORK to create a prf-file. The methods of deployment
defer from logon scripts to cmw-files for Office 2003.

 

[Toni Rantanen]

Hi,

We haven't published Exchange to outside. So this address is only for
internal clients. We want Outlook's to connect to Exchange with HTTPS instead
of MAPI. RPC-over-HTTPS address refers to Exchange 2003 front end server and
the server will be decommissioned along Exchange 2003 decommision. So the
address needs to be changed to refer Exchange 2007 server.

I am interested of deploying PRF-file with logon script.

Is it possible to use PRF-file to change only some setting in Outlook 2003?
Or do I have to define all settings for Outlook profile? I ask this because
some users might have customized Outlook profile settings already and I don't
want to change these settings, only the RPC-over-HTTPS settings.

In our organization there is lot of different Outlook language versions. Do
I have to create one PRF-file for each language version or is PRF independent
of language version?

Creating and deploying PRF-file seems a bit time consuming solution for me.
I mean that it does take time to create and test it. Isn't there any easier
solution? Like some GPO .ADM template (as there is for Outlook 2007)...?

Thanks for your help!

Best regards,

Toni Rantanen

 

[Roady [MVP]]

Internal or external should not make a difference. You should consider using
functional aliases for services instead. Then when a service changes to
another server, all you have to do is point the alias to the other server.

You can partially update an existing mail profile. Are all the server within
the same Exchange organization or are the Exchange 2007 servers part of
their own Exchange organization?

A prf-file is language independent when it comes to deploying it to the
clients.

I'm not sure which GPO settings you are referring to for Outlook 2007. There
are indeed also policy templates for Office 2003. These are included in the
ORK but there are updated ones available as well which reflect the changes
made in SP3.

I don't see much of a difference between the use of a GPO or a prf-file; in
both cases the results need to be configured and tested. If you do that in
one interface or another, it doesn't make much of a difference as the
options you need to specify are the same.

 

[Toni Rantanen]

Hi Roady,

Thanks for your response. You are right, we should start using aliases for
services.

All servers are in same Exchange organization.

It seems that with prf-file we could make the necessary changes.

I meant that prf-file solution is much more complicated than using GPO and
that's why it's more time consuming.

Best regards,

Toni Rantanen