The Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) feature in
Windows Server 2008 enables you to relay e-mail messages. The SMTP
standard provides a consistent method by which servers can send
messages. It can be used for internal e-mail traffic or for
communicating across the Internet. Individuals and applications often
use SMTP functionality to send notifications and other information. In
this lesson, you will learn how to enable and configure the SMTP Server
feature in Windows Server 2008.
After this article, you will be able to:
Enable the SMTP Server feature in Windows Server 2008. Create a new SMTP virtual server. Configure IP address and port settings for an SMTP virtual server. Secure SMTP services by configuring authentication settings for inbound and outbound connections. Test SMTP services by using an e-mail client application.
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Installing the SMTP Server Feature
The Windows Server 2008
SMTP Server feature enables you to support many applications and
network connections to send large volumes of messages. For example, a
Web application can use SMTP to send e-mail notifications to users. The
SMTP standard is designed to send e-mails that a messaging server such
as Microsoft Exchange Server can receive. Messages can also be stored in
a file system location, so they can be accessed by other applications.
Users typically receive these messages by connecting to their mailbox on
the messaging server by using a protocol such as the Post Office
Protocol (POP).
You can install the
SMTP Server feature on a computer running Windows Server 2008 by using
Server Manager. To do this, right-click the Features object and select
Add Features. The SMTP Server has several dependencies. (See Figure 1.)
You can also remove the
SMTP Server feature by using Server Manager. To do this, right-click the
Features object, and select Remove Features. When you remove the SMTP
server, you will no longer be able to use the server to transmit or
relay e-mail messages.