Exchange Server is integrated into the Windows NT Server security mechanism for account validation, so users are not required to remember a separate password for the network and for messaging, as with the legacy system. Improved scalability is another important benefit. When performance monitors indicate that a new server is required to resolve overloads or slowdowns, the system administrator simply installs the software on the server, points it at an existing server from which it pulls its setup information and waits a short time while the server automatically synchronizes itself into that site. Intergraph also makes extensive use of public folders. The creator of a folder can set accesses and restrictions, create subfolders, decide whether they are read-only, and so on.
Distribution lists are also a useful tool.
This added functionality has allowed Intergraph to eliminate the use of UNIX alias files, which required extensive administrative overhead and were difficult to maintain. Scheduling resources and people's time used to be horrendous. As a worldwide corporation, Intergraph makes extensive use of the Internet to send and receive mail among distant branch offices and customers. The company sends and receives about 100,000 messages a day over the Internet, and maintains both internal and external Web pages. To support its goal of moving toward the paperless office, Intergraph also is beginning to work on custom messaging applications.