Student Project

[soccer5232]

I am a student at northeastern and like to work on side projects. My new idea is buy an old server from a company and setup a functional exchange/BES server. I wanted to know if anyone knows where i can get a license of the BES software. I would like to learn about it and manage it. I think it will be a good item to have on my resume.

Thanks in advance for the information

[phantomsax]

As an employer in the IT industry I can tell you this is a very good idea, so I am going to help you out with some links.

You can get a single BlackBerry Professional Software Express server and device CAL with SRP key for free. BPS is a watered down version of full BES that is designed for Small to Medium Businesses. BES is not supported when run on a server with Exchange, but BPS is. BPS is limited to 30 users, then you have to purchase a BES conversion CAL (none of which matters for a training box). There are some differences in functionality, but in general if you can deploy and administer a BPS, you can do it with a BES too. The install process and administration is not that different until start getting into the really crazy stuff, which you won't as a beginner anyways. We have TONS of clients running on BPS.

BlackBerry

Any computer that can support a Windows Server 2003 or 2008 x64 will work just fine. I would suggest a minimum of 4GB of RAM for Exchange 2007 and BPS on the same box. We use Dell OptiPlex GX520's in our lab all of the time. They aren't anything special but they get the job done. You should be able to obtain a Server 2008 and Exchange 2007 120-day eval copy from Microsoft.

Windows Server 2008 Trial Software

Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Try It

If you have passed at least one Microsoft certification exam and are an MCP with and MCP ID, look into the Microsoft Action Pack Subscription. It is $299/year and comes with almost every single Microsoft OS and application you could want for personal use and development.

https://partner.microsoft.com/40016455

If you have any other specific questions on the info I have sent you, PM me please. If you are in SoCal I might be able to even help you out in person.