Applies to: Exchange Server 2007 SP3, Exchange Server 2007 SP2, Exchange Server 2007 SP1
Topic Last Modified: 2009-07-07

This section provides guidance on how to formally document your organization's Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 build process, take steps to automate the build process to improve consistency, and reduce the possibility of operator error during server build and deployment.

The following Exchange Server installation guides can be used as a starting point for formalizing your server build procedures. These guides are generic in nature and must be modified to meet the needs of your organization. Furthermore, it is recommended that every step in the guide you create be tested and validated in a lab environment before using it for production environments. When performing validation testing, it is important to have a formal test plan to make sure that all requirements are tested and so that tests can be reliably reproduced when required.

For Windows Server 2008 systems:

For Windows Server 2003 systems:

For more information about automating the server build process, see How to Create a Configuration DVD and Automation Files.

For information about preparing a formal test plan for performing validation testing, see Exchange Server 2007 Test Plan Template.