Eudora WorldMail Server 2.0
WorldMail Server is an Internet mail server that supports SMTP with extensions, POP3, and IMAP4. Similarly to the other five products I tested, the software supports multiple mail domains and incorporates a list-server function. QUALCOMM based WorldMail Server on N-PLEX server technology, which QUALCOMM purchased from ISOCOR and enhanced. WorldMail Server includes LDAP and X.500 directory support but doesn't support mail domains distributed over multiple servers.
WordMail Server includes an autoconfiguration service that lets Eudora email clients automatically retrieve configuration settings from the server. This capability eliminates the need to enter setup information during installation of the Eudora mail client. The software's distribution package includes a version of the Eudora Lite POP-IMAP client that uses WorldMail Server's autoconfiguration service.
WorldMail Server lets systems administrators define shared folders with an associated email address and allow specific users access to the shared folders. You can use this capability to let multiple users access one copy of a message in the shared folder.
The software supports only one mailbox type and can maintain two passwords for each mailbox: a clear text password and a password for use with secure connections using APOP or CRAM-MD5. WorldMail Server doesn't support NT account authentication, nor does it let you create mailboxes by importing accounts directly from an NT domain or local accounts database.
Installation. WorldMail Server's system requirements are basic. Despite the product's ISOCOR N-PLEX heritage, installing the software was easier than installing N-PLEX Global. WorldMail Server's installation program installed the WorldMail Management Center, Internet Mail Service (IMS), and Directory Service in one operation. Seven services support the product. The WorldMail and Message Store services support basic messaging capabilities. The Directory Service, Web/LDAP/x.500 Gateway, and Ph2LDAP Proxy services support Web access and directory services. The Remote Management Agent and List Management Agent services round out the services list.
The next steps in the installation process are to create one or more mail domains and users. I accomplished both operations easily by using the WorldMail Management Center.
Documentation. Rather than providing documentation for viewing with a Web browser or Adobe Acrobat, QUALCOMM uses DynaText 3.1 for online documentation. DynaText displays the table of contents for all the online manuals in the left pane, allowing easy scrolling between manuals. You can select a section from any manual, and the section will quickly display in the right pane. I found the product's documentation well organized and useful. The context-sensitive Help is informative and offers item definitions and usage examples. You can easily print large and small portions of the manuals from DynaText. Unfortunately, documentation text didn't display clearly until I adjusted the display size, and even then the display wasn't as clear as an Adobe Acrobat 4.0 presentation.
Configuration and management. WorldMail Server offers two interfaces for mail-system management. The first interface is the WorldMail Management Center, which Screen 2, page 133, shows. WorldMail Management Center is a Windows GUI program that supports full remote and local management of WorldMail Server. WorldMail Server's systems administration facilities are password-protected. After you supply a read-only or read-write password, the Management Center displays a hierarchical list of configured servers and their installed components in the left pane. Selecting an item in the left pane displays the item's objects (e.g., users) in the right pane. Right-clicking any item in either pane displays a menu of relevant actions, such as configure, add, or delete. Using the Management Center, I was able to quickly add a mail domain and users to the system.
You can create multiple accounts from text-file input with the software's bulk load utility, nibl.exe. The utility also lets you save and restore the complete WorldMail Server configuration information for backup and to use when you move or upgrade the server. In addition, the software lets you link to an NT account database to create mailboxes for existing users.
The Group Account Manager, a Web-based Java applet, is the product's second interface for mail-system management. You can use the Group Account Manager to manage users and distribution lists (DLs) and display selected domain configuration information.
WorldMail Server supports distributed management of mail domains. Within a mail domain, systems administrators can specify which mail users are authorized to administer the mail domain. The mail administrator can also restrict an individual administrator's access to eight specific domain attributes pertaining to accounts, mailing lists, and shared folders.
The software offers a good set of performance-tuning options. Administrators can specify the maximum number of SMTP send and receive threads and the maximum allowable number of concurrent client connections.
POP, IMAP, and Web access. Mail access using Outlook Express and Eudora Pro worked without a hitch in the software's POP3 and IMAP4 operation modes. I was able to send and receive mail, create new IMAP folders on the server, and move mail items between folders. WorldMail Server doesn't have a Web client for mail access. The software includes the Personal Account Manager, a Web-based Java applet that lets mailbox owners access the mail server from the Web to create automatic reply messages, configure mail-forwarding addresses, and change mailbox passwords.
List-server features. WorldMail Server includes a list-server feature that supports open, restricted, and moderated lists. The feature supports subscribe and unsubscribe commands and requests for subscribers and lists. The mail administrator controls who can join the list, who can distribute messages through the list, and who can request a list of members who subscribe to the list. The product doesn't support digested lists; the list server sends messages it receives to list subscribers upon receipt of the message.
Performance. The software performed well overall and had the fourth highest peak throughput—56.55tps. This performance is respectable.
Final valuation. For small organizations, WorldMail Server is the most value-priced product of the six I tested. Software pricing begins at $159 for 10 users. With LDAP support, a good list server, and plenty of performance, WorldMail Server gives you a lot of functionality for the money.
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