Being a network/systems manager can be tedious, especially when the holidays arrive and new mobile devices hit the scene (and your manager's wallet). iPads, Android, WinMo, new laptops, etc. They will all keep us challenged throughout the season, and we are expected to get these devices to work no matter what - right?
Perhaps the biggest test of a device's mettle is the capability to bring forth your user's email...!
Microsoft supplies developers, admins and end-users alike with a fantastic web service that can test the connectivity to an Exchange server to determine if everything is working as it should.
- Exchange ActiveSync Connectivity
- Exchange Web Services Connectivity
- Office Outlook Connectivity
- Internet E-Mail
The two tests that are of particular interest to me are the ActiveSync and Outlook connectivity tests. Why? Mobile devices these days use Exchange ActiveSync (or the Outlook Web Access), while many people on PCs away from the office are using Outlook "on the go" (RPC over HTTP). Either way, if you experience difficulties getting email on your mobile devices, this may be the best way to figure out what is wrong.
Many times, any issues discovered are related to incorrectly configured firewall ports or perhaps the NAT isn't correct for your mail server IP address. Other times, the error can be quite difficult to track down. That's where this service really shines.
Take a look at the images below showing a connectivity test (one successful, one not).
Note: these images are from the Microsoft Exchange Team Blog - they are marked 'Beta', but these screenshots are a bit old.
The service is secure and is run by Microsoft, so you shouldn't have to worry about this being a phishing site - prior to testing your connectivity, it will prompt you for logon and mail server details. I suppose you could try things out with a test account/mailbox, unless you are running into an issue specific to a particular user.
0 comments:
Post a Comment