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Exchange Messaging Outlook
Volume 6, Number 4

Greetings! Welcome to Vol. 6, No. 4, of Exchange Messaging Outlook, a biweekly newsletter about Microsoft Exchange and Microsoft Outlook.

Today's highlights:
  • Exchange OWA patch
  • Going mobile with Exchange
  • Unblocking Outlook 2002 attachments
  • MEC registration open

Regular features:

  • Latest Outlook-related viruses
  • New utilities
  • Updated utilities
  • Other new resources

Exchange OWA patch

Microsoft Security Bulletin MS01-030, Incorrect Attachment Handling in Exchange OWA Can Execute Script, describes a vulnerability that could allow a malicious sender to run HTML code. The bulletin at http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms01-030.asp explains that this problem can affect both Exchange 5.5 and 2000 and offers a hotfix.

Those who downloaded and installed the first version of the fix, for Exchange 2000 only, late last week found that it drastically slowed down the information store. Microsoft pulled that fix and has since replaced it. As the MSKB article at http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q299/5/35.asp explains, the updated Exchange 2000 files should all have the version number 6.0.4419.27. The hotfix for Exchange 5.5 SP4 was added later and did not suffer from the performance problem.

Going mobile with Exchange

I'd like to welcome Hal Hostetler as a contributor to Slipstick.com and EMO. As a television engineer, ham radio operator and Exchange administrator, Hal is one of my favorite sources of information on gadgets of all kinds (a pursuit which came in handy the day he wound up guiding a lost bus driver from Bellevue to the main Microsoft campus a few miles away).

Hal's first contribution is a review of the solutions available to allow mobile users to work with their Exchange Server data. At http://www.slipstick.com/addins/mobile.htm, he goes through the different options for PDA synchronization, BlackBerry and a similar device, Wireless Access Protocol devices, and a few other solutions. I learned a lot myself by reading about the different offerings. For example, I didn't realize that you don't need Exchange Server to use a BlackBerry. There is a BlackBerry solution for individual Internet mail users as well - see http://www.blackberry.net/purchase/pricing/bbie.shtml.

Speaking of BlackBerry, I also found out this week about a couple of sites with add-ons and developer information for the BlackBerry mobile device:

Unblocking Outlook 2002 attachments

Since June 1, Ken Slovak's COM add-in for managing file attachment

blocking in Outlook 2002 (http://www.slipstick.com/outlook/esecup/getexe.htm#ol2002) has been downloaded more than 3,000 times. (It had thousands of downloads even before Microsoft released Office XP with its tighter Outlook security.) We want to thank Ken again for making it easy for Outlook 2002 users to get the attachments they need, using the new registry entries supported by Outlook 2002.

Note, though, that Ken's add-in works only for Outlook 2002. There is no equivalent tool for Outlook 2000 and won't be, because Microsoft doesn't provide a way for end users to control the attachment blocking once you add the Outlook Email Security Update or Office Service Pack 2 to Outlook 2000.

Also, the add-in does nothing to stop the "object model guard" prompts that appear when programs - even custom Outlook code - try to access the address book or send a message. If your PDA synchronization software triggers these prompts when you try to synchronize, contact the sync software vendor to see if an updated version is available to avoid the prompts.

MEC registration open

Registration is now open for MEC 2001 in Orlando, Florida, Sept. 30 - Oct. 4. Exhibits open Sept. 30, with conference sessions beginning Oct. 1. Microsoft is now billing MEC as the "premier Exchange, Windows, and .NET Enterprise Servers event." Register at http://www.microsoft.com/MSCorp/corpevents/mec2001/reg.asp by August 24 to get a discount.

MEC Europe will take place in Nice, France, Nov. 6-9. The web site at http://www.microsoft.com/europe/mec/ is expected to have registration details at the end of June.

MEC Japan will be in Tokyo, Aug. 14-17. No registration site yet.

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New Utilities

ADVOCATE 2002
http://www.advocate2002.com/advocate/advocate_welcome.htm
Case and billing management software that integrates with Outlook
2000's contacts, calendar, tasks and mail.

LOOK.WEB
http://www.symprex.com/lookweb/info.htm
Utility for viewing multiple Exchange Server mailbox Calendar folders
through a web interface. Data for the web display is maintained in a
database, which is automatically updated from the Exchange data. Also
provides a web lookup for user information. Works with Exchange 5.5 or
2000.

MAILSIGNAL
http://www.mailsignal.com/index.htm
Monitors your Internet mailboxes and delivers selected mail messages
to your computer even if you are not connected permanently to the
Internet.

SMSREMINDER
http://www.smsreminder.net/
Sends an SMS message to your mobile phone to remind you of
appointments in your Outlook calendar.

SYBARD/MAIL
http://www.dera.gov.uk/sybard/
Tool to prevent the spread of viruses via e-mail by requiring users
to confirm each message being sent. Hooks either into Mapisp32.exe or
into the POP/IMAP/SMTP protocols.

WHOZIN?
http://www.whozin.com/index.html
Automatically updated in/out display using Exchange data. Integrates
key user data, such as phone and department.

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Updated utilities

AGENDA/X
http://www.amrein.com/agendax/
Version 4.0 of this group calendar program for Exchange provides compatibility with Exchange 2000 and Oracle, creation of meeting requests in the web interface, filtering by category or meeting status, and many other improvements.

EXCHANGE CENTRAL
http://www.ms-add-on.com/
Version 2.3 improves the updating process and fixes a problem where some information from private appointments was not being hidden.

NEMX POWER TOOLS FOR EXCHANGE SERVER
http://www.nemx.com/downloads/powerpac/download.htm
Version 3.1 of this multipurpose add-on for Exchange 5.5 provides support for HTML content scanning, improvements to spam filtering, more actions for message triggers, and event log support. Nemx Power Tools now handles messages from non-MAPI clients, including OWA and POP clients. Can perform on-demand scans of private and public message stores.

PURPLECRM
http://www.purpleinc.com/
Version 1.7.1 of this contact management tool for Exchange, Outlook and SQL Server adds journaling of incoming messages against contacts, importing journal entries into PurpleCRM forms, and improvements to task features and message composition.

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Other new resources

INCORRECT ATTACHMENT HANDLING PATCH FOR OWA
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms01-030.asp
Security patch for both Exchange 5.5 SP4 and Exchange 2000 to close a vulnerability could allow users to open an attachment that could run malicious HTML script code, regardless of the type of attachment.

TOOLS FOR MOBILE ACCESS TO MICROSOFT EXCHANGE SERVER
http://www.slipstick.com/addins/mobile.htm
Wide range of utilities using server-based PDA synchronization, BlackBerry and WAP.

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ISSN 1523-7990
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Updated Dec 14 2009

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