Good afternoon! Few years ago I took MCSE 2003 course in a small training center. unfortunately all they did is pretty much reading Microsoft's books for few months. Now, I want to get better skills and understanding in Exchange server. I know it's a huge area and I probably won't be a pro at the beginning, but I do want to start with the best way I can to get good skills. There are many options like classroom courses, eCourses, Books, CBT, by Microsoft or a 3rd-party companies. From your experience, which one of them do you think gives the best knowledge for beginners that plan to get higher and deeper knowledge about Exchange server? Many thanks!

There is no single answer for this, because everyone learns in different ways. I hate formal learning and have never got on with it, whereas others need that to go in. What I will say is that unless you are going to be installing Exchange servers day in day out, forget about the installation and initial configuration skills. Get a consultant in to do that because it is a one time thing and Exchange is a complex beast to get initially setup and configured. If you learn by the break/fix method, for day to day management, the quickest way is probably to build an SBS 2011 in a VM, run all the wizards and then play around with it. If you break the SBS then simply rebuild it from an ISO, takes less than two hours and it is from scratch. Unless you are using Exchange every day though, there is so much involved with the product now that learning the skills can be difficult. It is all command line for anything other than the more basic stuff and that takes some getting used to. There is nothing to beat experience with the product hands on rather than in a course. Simon.Simon Butler, Exchange MVP Blog | Exchange Resources | In the UK? Hire Me.

As Sembee said, everybody learns in a different way. I like to get my hands dirty. I usually download a product, set up a lab environment and... 1. install it 2. break it 3. fix it repeat 1-3 as often as it's necessary to achieve the level of expertise I want. Download server 2008 and Exchange 2010 from MS Web site and you can use it for a year if you rearm it several times.Miguel Fra / Falcon IT Services Computer & Network Support, Miami, FL Visit our Knowledgebase and Support Sharepoint Site