Does Exchange Sentry support Exchange Server 2007 or 2010?
No sorry, it only runs on Exchange 2000 and 2003.  The lack of support for Exchange 2007 is due to Microsoft dropping support for the programmatic interface we utilized.  Microsoft has a new way to do this however it will require a full rewrite of Exchange Sentry and as such there no plans for this at this time.

What is Exchange Sentry?  What security considerations are there?
Exchange Sentry is a robust and flexible Exchange spam filter to reduce the amount of spam, and enforce content policy for your email.  It runs directly on an Exchange Server 2000/2003 and integrates seamlessly with the SMTP connector.  There is no access to Active Directory or the Information Store databases. Instead it works at the SMTP transport level through the SMTP connector. This provides an extra level of safety and security in that Exchange Sentry is not capable of corrupting the information stores, nor does it need rights to open them. It only requires system level security to the server it runs on.

How effective is Exchange Sentry?
Exchange Sentry's maximum effectiveness has not been established because spam makeup continues to change and each email environment is unique. However, customers with aggressive filtering options have reported in results in the 95-98% range.  The more aggressive settings may result in increased whitelisting needed for newsletters in particular.

Version 3.0 will introduce a new setting which will block 100% of all automated spam.  This new mode called a "whitelist only" mode, will block all email from non-registered senders.  Additionally you'll have the option to allow human senders to self-register for the whitelist.

I have Exchange 2003, why should I use Exchange Sentry?
Exchange 2003 and SBS 2003 have some built-in anti-spam technology, which can be used in addition to Exchange Sentry if desired.  Exchange 2003 server options are limited to connection based blackhole query.  This means it only checks the IP address of the server that is connecting.  Exchange Sentry checks all server IP's used to transmit the email, this results in a much better success rate.  Beyond blackhole queries, Exchange 2003 requires Outlook 2003 to be used with client participation for further spam prevention. This can be used in addition, but are really two different methods. Exchange Sentry is aimed at administrators who want to control their spam and prevent it from reaching the end user at all.

Does Exchange Sentry learn what is spam by itself?
Yes and no. Blackhole queries are real time queries of third-party servers and those learn or are dynamic. In that sense, Exchange Sentry is always learning. The heuristic scoring system does not learn. It is manual. This is by design and as such is not prone to spam tricking it. Learning systems will pick up words that spammers deliberately put in their spam emails to spoil or confuse the learning process.

Can Exchange Sentry help me enforce our email content policy?
Yes, you can list any words and/or phrases that you deem inappropriate per your email policy and list them in the Denied Content section. A single match of any of these will identify that email as in violation and take the configured action.

Is a demo version available?
Yes, the download version is available on this site for demonstration. You will have 30 days to evaluate it. If you want to continue, you must purchase and enter a license key. Installation instructions are in the manual.

What are the hardware requirements for Exchange Sentry?
The minimum requirements for Exchange Sentry are the same as for the version of Exchange you are using. Exchange Sentry uses about 32-64MB of RAM above Exchange. For best performance 64MB above Exchange is suggested. Exchange Sentry is CPU intensive, so the faster the CPU the better in general. As an example of a lower end system, our production, and final test server is a single CPU PIII-600, with IDE drives, and 640MB of RAM. This system serves mailboxes for about 25 users, and process 4,000 SMTP emails per day without problem. 

Does Exchange Sentry support Small Business Server?
Yes, Exchange Sentry fully supports the versions of Exchange with Small Business Servers 2000 and 2003.

Does Exchange Sentry support Exchange 5.5?
No sorry, it only runs on Exchange 2000 and Exchange 2003 (including Small Business Server).

Can I use Exchange Sentry on my workstation?
No, Exchange Sentry is a server-side product only. It is intended for administrators to maintain to control content and spam.

What support options are there?
The first six months of maintenance is included in the purchase price. With a valid license key and maintenance, there is a full array of options:

• Updates - You are able to download and install updates from this site.
• Email support - Not only is there email support, but you can sign up for periodic email notices of new tuning techniques and updates.
• Knowledgebase - The Exchange Sentry knowledgebase deals with the latest issues in a topic format.
• Phone support - Phone support is available on a per incident basis.

Do I need to license development servers for testing?
No, you only need to license servers which will be used for production screening of user email.  Contact us if you need license keys for development or test servers.

You say Exchange Sentry is tightly integrated with Exchange 2000/2003, how so?
Exchange Sentry is an SMTP Transport Event Sink. It utilizes access to the SMTP stream with built-in access provided by Microsoft. There are no additional ports, SMTP engines, or queue's to manage. This makes Exchange Sentry more stable.

How long has Exchange Sentry been in production?
Exchange Sentry has been in production since 2001. It was originally called SpamSmiter, and changed its name along with many enhancements in 2002.

Is there any easy way to import whitelist entries?
Yes!  All configuration items controlled by the configuration GUI are stored in flat files that can be edited in notepad, or other text editor.  Care must be taken to preserve format, but other than that it's a fairly simple process. 

Does Exchange Sentry Offer Discounts for Non-Profit Organizations?
Yes, please use the contact us form to inquire for Non-profit/not for profit pricing.

Please see our Knowledgebase for a searchable reference on technical issues.