On 15th April, Microsoft announced the availability of Exchange 2010, the successor to Exchange Server 2007. According to Microsoft:

Exchange 2010 is part of the next wave of Microsoft Office-related products and is the first server in a new generation of Microsoft server technology built from the ground up to work on-premises and as an online service. This release of Exchange 2010 introduces a new integrated e-mail archive and features to help reduce costs and improve the user experience.

What’s new in Exchange 2010? Here’s some details:

• Integrated archiving capabilities
• Cross-browser support and integrated IM capabilities for OWA
• A conversation view which will enable users to collapse messages into groups, streaming and reducing clutter in the inbox
• Voicemail preview
• MailTips which Microsoft say will, “Warn users before they commit an e-mail faux pas such as sending mail to large distribution groups, to recipients who are out of the office or to recipients outside the organization, helping protect against information leaks and reduce unnecessary e-mail messages.”

The MailTips option certainly sounds interesting. I wonder whether it will prove to be more of a help or a hindrance.

You’ll be able to transition (no, an in-place upgrade is not an option) from either Exchange Server 2003 or 2007 but, if you’re running anything earlier, there will be no supported direct upgrade path all – but, no doubt, some third-parties will produce tools that will help make life easy for those wanting to switch from one of the ye olde versions.

You can grab a copy of the beta here. The Exchange 2010 TechNet forum is already open for business and can be accessed here. Be sure to let us know what you think.