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How OWA Works
How OWA Works
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Layout of OWA
In the Internet Information Services (IIS) metabase on a front-end or back-end server, three virtual
directories are typically associated with Outlook Web Access:
Significant changes happened in 2007. Exchange 2007 provides Outlook Web Access through the Client
Access server role instead of relying on the front-end/back-end architecture like 2003 and 2000. The key
difference between the Client Access server role in Exchange 2007 and the front-end configuration used
for earlier versions of Microsoft Exchange is that the Client Access server contains the business logic and
also displays the Outlook Web Access user interface. For an Exchange 2007 server that is running the
Client Access server role to provide Outlook Web Access to Exchange 2000 and Exchange 2003
mailboxes, the Client Access server must emulate an Exchange 2000 or Exchange 2003 front-end server.
Virtual Directories
The following table shows the virtual directories that are installed by default on an Exchange 2007
computer. The virtual directories that are installed vary depending on which server roles are installed on
the computer.
Because there are multiple servers and virtual directories involved in these coexistence scenarios, it can
be difficult to understand which virtual directories users should access. Users should access virtual
directories as follows:
Users who have mailboxes on Exchange 2007 computers should access /owa or /exchange on
the Client Access server.
/owa will take the user directly to Outlook Web Access.
Users who have Exchange 2003 or Exchange 2000 mailboxes should access /exchange on the
Client Access server. This will return the Exchange 2003 Outlook Web Access experience or the
Exchange 2000 Outlook Web Access experience. Davex.dll will redirect the user to the correct
server if it is necessary.
The simplest strategy in a coexistence scenario is to have all users access the /exchange virtual directory
and let the Client Access server redirect users to the correct virtual directory if it is necessary.
To use the Exchange Management Console to view the properties on an Outlook Web Access virtual
directory
1. In the Exchange Management Console, locate the virtual directory that you want to view by using
the information in step 2 or step 3.
2. If you are running the Mailbox server role on the computer that is running the Client Access
server role, do one of the following:
To view an Exchange 2007 virtual directory, select Server Configuration, select Client
Access, and then click the Outlook Web Access tab. The default Exchange 2007 virtual
directory is /owa.
To view a legacy virtual directory, select Server Configuration, select Mailbox, and then
click the WebDAV tab. The default legacy virtual directories are as follows: /Public,
/Exchweb, /Exchange, and /Exadmin.
3. If you are not running the Mailbox server role on the computer that is running the Client Access
server role, select Server Configuration, select Client Access, and then click the Outlook Web
Access tab.
4. In the work pane, select the virtual directory that you want to view, and then click Properties.
5. In the virtual directory properties dialog box, select the tab that contains the properties that you
want to view.
6. View the properties that you want to review, and then click OK.
Some features that are included in Outlook 2007 are not provided in Outlook Web Access. For example,
the following features are not supported in Outlook Web Access:
The To Do Bar
Offline access
Custom dictionaries
Customizable views
.pst files
Import/export data
If the Pop-up Blocker is enabled in Internet Explorer, and if the filter level is set to the default setting of
Medium, and if the URL for Outlook Web Access is not in the Allowed Sites list, the functionality of Outlook
Web Access may no longer work as expected.