Microsoft will release an unsupported pre-beta of it’s latest update to Exchange 2003 that will include ‘Direct Push’ technology that allows Windows Mobile 5.0 powered PDAs with wireless and wifi capabilities to get ‘always on’ server initiated email delivery similar to that found on Research in Motion’s popular BlackBerry handheld devices.
The Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 2 pre-beta, officially called a “Community Technology Preview” (CTP) will be released tomorrow, August 19th according to Harold Wong’s Blog Site.
Please be aware that CTP releases of any product will not display the stability of a shipped Microsoft product. Customers may encounter problems with Exchange Server 2003 SP2 that could possibly result in a loss or destruction of data. Some of the mobility features contained in this CTP download are not yet available for testing, pending availability of Windows Mobile 5.0 devices that have the Messaging & Security Feature Pack installed. Those devices will be available later in 2005 and 2006. Also some of the security features in SP2 are only available when used with Outlook 2003 SP2 which will not release until later in 2005. This build is available only in English.
Those interested in the checking out the CTP can download it from here. This link, however won’t work until tomorrow.