What is Softalk Share Server

Softalk Share Server is a collaborative software product, which enables an organization to share the data held in Microsoft Outlook. All versions of Outlook are supported from Outlook 2000 through Outlook 2007.

Softalk Share Server provides native support for Outlook, making it a viable alternative to Exchange Server.

Softalk Share Server may be configured in one of two ways:

1.  To share public folders in a separate store alongside the standard Personal Folders store.

2.  To replace the Personal Folders store with the Softalk Share Server default store, allowing the sharing of both public and private folders.

When you choose to replace the Personal Folders store with the Softalk Share Server store, you have the option of migrating the data from the Personal Folders store. Once the migration is complete, and you run Microsoft Outlook, you will see the same information that was in the Personal Folders store except now the administrator will be able to provide you with access to public folders and other users’ private folders.

Softalk Share Server is a MAPI store provider, and allows sharing of Outlook folders in much the same way as Microsoft Exchange Server. There is no synchronization involved. Any changes made to a folder in Outlook will be seen immediately by any other user who has been given access to that folder.

While Exchange Server shows public folders and each users’ shared folders in a separate top level store, Softalk Share Server shows the Shared Folders and Public folders within the one default folders store.

The picture shows how public folders and shared private folders are accessible from within the Softalk Share Server store folder tree.

Access to public folders and other users’ private folders are completely configurable using the Softalk Share Server Administrator program.

There are a number of different access levels that may be granted to a particular user. For example, one user may be granted read only access to a particular folder while another user may have full access to the folder, meaning that they may add, edit or delete items of data within the folder.