Use this sequence to prepare a MailSite 11 evaluation and establish the checks needed before production. Follow the installer and release notes supplied with your chosen build for its supported Windows, memory, storage and SQL requirements.
1. Choose the deployment model
- Single server: run a pilot with the complete MailSite release on one Windows server. Plan capacity for live mailbox data, indexes, queues, logs and backups, including growth.
- Multiple servers: agree a supported topology and licensing with Rockliffe. Shared storage, network paths, load balancing and backup must be designed together. Test the failure of a service node and the storage dependencies before relying on availability claims.
2. Prepare names, access and recovery
- Record the public hostname, domain DNS and mail routing, client discovery names, certificate names and required public ports. Verify the names clients will actually use.
- Choose the Windows service identity and check its access to data directories and any remote resources. Identify whether configuration will use Registry or SQL storage.
- For an existing installation, record its version and actual data locations. Back up configuration, mailbox files and databases, queues, certificates and service configuration. Test restoration in isolation before replacing the installation.
3. Install a matching release
- Download the release installer and package from Downloads. Use the supplied graphical installer or documented elevated PowerShell installation procedure.
- Install the complete release. Review prerequisite checks and the installation log; do not mix individual services from different builds.
- Open Console, then Server → Services. Verify MSDBMA and the required mail services, plus HTTPMA, EWSMA, EASMA and MAPIMA for the client protocols in use.
- Expose the public endpoints required by your deployment. Keep the private worker and storage endpoints private; clients connect through the public services.
MailSite 11 serves ExpressPro and synchronization through HTTPMA without a separate IIS installation. See Web Services for public endpoints and service responsibilities.
4. Validate with a test mailbox
- Confirm the default domain and postmaster, then create a normal test mailbox under the intended domain. Verify its permissions without using administrator credentials.
- From outside the server, check DNS, public connectivity and the TLS certificate chain and hostname.
- Send mail to a controlled external mailbox and reply. Test attachments and check SMTP receiving and delivery logs for both directions.
- In ExpressPro, read mail and create a contact and calendar event. Configure each supported client type and verify changes in both directions, folder operations and reconnection.
- Test relay restrictions, authenticated access, TLS requirements, spam and malware policies. Inspect actual message handling and logs.
5. Prepare operations and cutover
Assign responsibility for updates, certificate renewal, service and queue monitoring, capacity and backup restoration. Record the validation results and resolve failed checks before accepting production traffic. For existing users, complete the migration plan before switching routing or client profiles.