Exchange Server 2003 lets you use Messaging API (MAPI) Remote Procedure Call over HTTP (RPC over HTTP—commonly referred to as Outlook over HTTP) to connect Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 to an Exchange server. When Microsoft released Exchange 2003, users lauded this functionality because they could finally connect Outlook to Exchange over more or less any network. However, the feature's administration capabilities were weak. The initial configuration was both tedious and error-prone; many registry keys required configuration on RPC proxy servers, domain controllers (DCs), and Global Catalog (GC) servers. Furthermore, ongoing administration was cumbersome, especially when you added or removed Exchange servers. (For information about general requirements and which registry keys you need to configure for RPC over HTTP before you install Exchange 2003 Service Pack 1—SP1, see the Windows IT Pro article "Exchange 2003 RPC over HTTP," September 2003, InstantDoc ID 39770. For information about troubleshooting RPC over HTTP configurations, see "Troubleshooting RPC over HTTP Connections," August 2004, InstantDoc ID 42877.) . . .
We run Exchange over RPC in our network with a single, Exchange Server Standard edition machine behind a MS ISA Server computer, which acts as our RPC Proxy. A front end server is not strictly necessary. I got the how-to details from https://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/exchange/2003/library/cliaccgde.mspx
nationalanalysts December 01, 2004 (Article Rating: )
System Attendant Caveat: I had issues getting this topology to work. I was running (exchange pre-sp1) in a front-end/back-end topology. To set this up, I followed instructions from different sources, including the CYA: Securing Exchange Server 2003 and Outlook Web Access. I couldn't figure out why rpc over http wasn't working, until I realized that the System Attendant service needs to run (MSExchangeSA) to update the ValidPorts registry key. If you hardened your Front-End server prior to SP1, you may have also done the same. Microsoft even recommended that this service be disabled, search technet for: "Services for Hardening a Front-End Server"
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nationalanalysts December 01, 2004 (Article Rating: