I want to install Exchange 2010 to host my own email. I have the install files ready to go, and all the pre-requisites installed on a bare 2008 R2 enterprise server, but it currently resides in "WORKGROUP" not a domain; I am clueless on this one main aspect. On my LAN I have a 2008 R2 domain controller that is "awesome.local" as I never intended this domain to face the internet. I have a file server and all other kinds of intranet devices connected to it. Recently, I installed a 2008 R2 server with IIS to host my website. I did not need to connect this server to any domain to do this, it just resides in "WORKGROUP". BUT NOW, I want email too, so I want to install Exchange 2010 to a bare 2008 R2 server on my LAN. Does this server HAVE to be connected to a domain to do this, unlike my webserver? Or can it also reside in "WORKGROUP" to keep it separate from my intranet domain controller?? If it HAS to be connected to a domain controller, can it be my "awesome.local" domain controller, or do I have to put an entirely new domain controller on my LAN that has the proper name of "mywebsite.com", and then disable / remove my "awesome.local" domain controller, because as far as I know, having two different domains on the same physical network can be problematic? Thanks :)

Active Directory is a mandatory requirement. It can be connected to any controller that meets the requirements. Your 2008 R2 domain is just such a domain. Don't try to rename it. "Tolem" wrote in message news:4db52535-622a-482b-8ad6-1dfc14ce447a... I want to install Exchange 2010 to host my own email. I have the install files ready to go, and all the pre-requisites installed on a bare 2008 R2 enterprise server, but it currently resides in "WORKGROUP" not a domain; I am clueless on this one main aspect. On my LAN I have a 2008 R2 domain controller that is "awesome.local" as I never intended this domain to face the internet. I have a file server and all other kinds of intranet devices connected to it. Recently, I installed a 2008 R2 server with IIS to host my website. I did not need to connect this server to any domain to do this, it just resides in "WORKGROUP". BUT NOW, I want email too, so I want to install Exchange 2010 to a bare 2008 R2 server on my LAN. Does this server HAVE to be connected to a domain to do this, unlike my webserver? Or can it also reside in "WORKGROUP" to keep it separate from my intranet domain controller?? If it HAS to be connected to a domain controller, can it be my "awesome.local" domain controller, or do I have to put an entirely new domain controller on my LAN that has the proper name of "mywebsite.com", and then disable / remove my "awesome.local" domain controller, because as far as I know, having two different domains on the same physical network can be problematic? Thanks :) Mark Arnold, Exchange MVP.

hi, you can check this out in support of the fact that the AD is a mandatory requirement! http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa996719.aspx http://searchsystemschannel.techtarget.com/generic/0,295582,sid99_gci1510403,00.html In addition to that you can maintain you .local and have an external domain with the .com which you can create your mx records on in order to receive internet mails and also add to your exchange organization as an accepted domain. With regards to your internal e-mails the .local works just fine and using an e-mail address policy, u can easily generate e-mail addresses for users with the .com account so they can send and receive internet mails using that address. Hope this helps!

Just don't forget that .local addresses can cause issues if you ever want to intergrate a Mac (Apple one that is, not a rain coat). Also, you can't DCPromo a server with Exchange installed on it (same hardware / instance), either adding it as a DC or removing it