Exchange 2010

There are a couple quick and easy methods which can be used to return test messages to Mailive!

Either way no extra software or plug-ins are required.

Method 1.

Set up a contact with SMTP address to return messages to mailive@knowledgefront.com

Advantages:: Fast and always works whether or not the store is online. This method has proven to provide more consistent round trip times for testing pure mail receipt and delivery.
Disadvantages:: This method always returns the test message, even when the exchange store is offline. Should be used purely as a mail flow monitoring mechanism and not for testing the exchange store.

Setup a full mailbox with a server side rule to return and then delete messages

Advantages:: Tests the Exchange store and will fail if the store goes offline.
Disadvantages:: In previous versions of Exchange it has been noticed the rule may not trigger or be processed in a timely fashion causing delays with test messages that may not exist otherwise. This has been traced back to busy systems dealing with heavy loads of messages. With Exchange 2010 being relatively new in production environments it cannot be said this is still true, but something to keep in mind.