Web enabled exchange server standby solution using mailbox level replication

• US 20070244996A1
• Filed: 04/14/2006
• Published: 10/18/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sonasoft Corp.
• Original Assignee: Sonasoft Corp.
• Inventors: Srinivasan, Thirumalai, Khan, Adnan, Ahmed, Bilal, Mathew, Aby, Wahlin, Matthew
• Application Number:
  US11/404,410
• Publication Number:
  US 20070244996A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/220
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/23 Reliability checks, e.g. acknowledgments or fault reporting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/40 for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity, e.g. service redundancy protocols, protocol state redundancy or protocol service redirection management of faults, events, alarms or notifications in data switching networks H04L41/06

Abstract

This invention provides the capability to plan, monitor and control post-failure switching of user mail access hosted on Microsoft Exchange servers at the granularity of individual user mailboxes. It offers a convenient point-and-click mechanism for achieving a very complex task, and allows replication of e-mail data from a Primary Exchange Server to a Standby Exchange Server at a level of data granularity and flexibility not previously available. No limitations are placed on which Exchange servers belonging to the user of this solution are to be in a primary or standby role, and it is possible to have two Exchange servers, each acting as an active primary for mailboxes which it is hosting AND acting as a standby for mailboxes hosted on the other server. In addition, it also provides a uniquely powerful capability for migration of mailboxes between Exchange servers.

Claims

1. The invention described in this application (Web Enabled Exchange Server Standby Solution Using Mailbox Level Replication) implements a unique solution for providing automatic replication of data between a Primary e-mail server operating the Microsoft Exchange 2000 (or later) system, which implements the user configuration, control and automatic replication of email data at an individual mailbox level.

2. The replication of data at the level of individual mailboxes provided by the Web Enabled Exchange Server Standby Solution Using Mailbox Level Replication will provide a much higher level of reliability than with currently available Standby solutions, as it significantly decreases the likelihood of replicating corrupted data between servers.

3. The invention described in this application (Web Enabled Exchange Server Standby Solution Using Mailbox Level Replication) provides a unique, easy-to-use Graphical User Interface, allowing users to create and control Standby Plans for mailbox replication in a simple and intuitive manner;

in addition, basic actions such as initiating replication or causing a post-failure switch of mailboxes from a Primary to a Standby Exchange Server can be initiated by a single mouse-click, for anywhere from a single mailbox to potentially ALL mailboxes hosted on the Primary Exchange Server.

4. The invention described in this application (Web Enabled Exchange Server Standby Solution Using Mailbox Level Replication) allows a unique level of flexibility not afforded by any prior Exchange Standby solution, including the ability to have paired Exchange servers acting BOTH as a Primary server hosting their own user mailboxes AND as a Standby Server for mailboxes hosted on the other server.

5. The invention described in this application (Web Enabled Exchange Server Standby Solution Using Mailbox Level Replication) provides a unique level of cost-effectiveness to the solution for organizations having multiple, geographically separated servers and a need to provide a robust, quick and effective disaster recovery capability for e-mail within the organization.

6. The invention described in this application (Web Enabled Exchange Server Standby Solution Using Mailbox Level Replication) allows a unique level of flexibility not afforded by any prior Microsoft Exchange solution for the migration of user mailboxes from one Exchange Server to another with minimal interruption of normal email operations and this provides a unique level of cost-effectiveness during Exchange migration/upgrade.

7. The ability to easily switch operation of user email between servers with a single mouse click without affecting user email operations provided by the invention described in this application (Web Enabled Exchange Server Standby Solution Using Mailbox Level Replication) allows capabilities for easily performing routine maintenance or upgrade operations on Exchange servers which have not previously existed.