Every organization has shared directories full of files, folders and other types of data. Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services, which is a free addition to Windows Server 2003, allows users to connect people with data, information, processes, and systems inside and outside the organization.

Not to be confused with its big brother Sharepoint Portal Server 2003, Sharepoint Services is free to install on and Windows Server 2003 computer and requires no additional CALs. The hardware requirements are the same as Windows Server 2003 but there are some components that need to be installed. These components are:

• IIS 6.0 with the following features
• SMTP - W3SVC
• Common Files
• ASP.NET
• MSDE or SQL 2000

Sharepoint Services can be installed on all versions of Windows Server 2003, including SBS, however the Web Edition requires SQL 2000 and cannot use MSDE. So you are probably asking "What can Sharepoint Services do for me?" Well lets look at my top 5 reasons to deploy Sharepoint Services!

Unlike file shares, Sharepoint sites can contain all sorts of other data such as event calendars, contact lists, Web links, discussion lists, and more. By giving your users access to SharePoint sites, you can help your users share information and not just a simple place to save files. Sharepoint Site administrators can also add what are called Web Parts. Web Parts allow you to add new features to your Sharepoint sites such as weather bugs, RSS feeds and other useful tools. Because it is all based on ASP.NET you can even write your own Web Parts.

Scalability is often a concern. Small shops don't have huge resources which they can use to deploy new services and large organizations need something that can be scaled up as they grow. Sharepoint Services can be installed on a sinlge box, even a SBS server, but can also scale up over multiple servers located in server farms and clustered configurations supporting hundreds of thousands of users.

Management is always a concern with new services. Sharepoint sites can be managed by the users themselves. You can grant users the ability to create sites, control site membership, monitor usage and moderate content. At the same time, administrators can track which sites are created, site ownership, enforce quotas for sites, users, and storage. Administrators can also block file types delete sites that are no longer used. Sharepoint Services can be managed from a command line interface (CLI) or via a web based administration site. This allows you to script management, as well as, mange the Sharepoint sites remotley over a web connection.

For security, Sharepoint also supports SSL.

My last reason, and probably the best one, is that Sharepoint Services integrates with Office so well. Microsoft Office applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Infopath and OneNote all can use information in a SharePoint site natively. These Microsoft Office applications can be used to add members to sites, assign tasks, and communicate with site members via e-mail or in real time. Microsoft Office Outlook allows users to view calendars and contact lists stored on a SharePoint site. Sharepoint Services is a great addition to any Windows Server 2003 enviroment and the fact that it is free to begin should at least get you to take a look at it.

For more information see:

Windows Sharepoint Services Information Portal

Download Details: Windows SharePoint Services with Service Pack 2

Windows Sharepoint Services Applications (Themes)