Exchange Protocols. Andrew Davidoff Senior Software Engineer, Office Interoperability

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1 Exchange Protocols Andrew Davidoff Senior Software Engineer, Office Interoperability

2 Guiding Principle for Interoperability Our goal is to ensure that third-party developers have access to the interoperability information, tools and resources that they need to successfully develop for Microsoft s services, products, and platforms. We love our developers! Events Support Tools Docs

Open Specifications - Document Structure The core of the document is Normative (typically sections 2 and 3) Normative information defines the protocol, data structure, etc.

3 Open Specifications - Document Structure The core of the document is Normative (typically sections 2 and 3) Normative information defines the protocol, data structure, etc. in technical detail Other sections are Informative Informative information is added to help the implementer with explanations, examples, and related references The Product Behavior appendix describes which Microsoft products and versions implement the protocol, and how they handle optional behavior On-prem implementations

4 Normative language MAY, SHOULD, MUST, SHOULD NOT, MUST NOT: These terms are used as defined in [RFC 2119]. All statements of optional behavior use either MAY, SHOULD, or SHOULD NOT. Normative language prescribes the technical requirements for an implementation. No APIs only Protocols (bits over the wire) SHOULD and MAY are used to document version-specific behavior SHOULD<x> means that latest version implements this behavior MAY<x> means that latest version does not implement this behavior

5 Normative vs. Informative Sections Prescriptive language is restricted to normative sections, by template type. Algorithm Block, HTTP, RPC, SOAP Standards Support Structure Section 2 Algorithm Details Sections 1.8 Vendor-Extensible Fields; 2 Messages; 3 Protocol Details Section 2.1 Normative Variation Sections 1.8 Vendor-Extensible Fields; 2 Structures

6 Preview Specifications Advanced copies of new or modified protocols Typically published with the public BETA previews a Microsoft product Documents are not complete, and the information is subject to change with the final release of the software

7 Overview Document Defines protocol families Scenario-Based How protocols work together Walkthroughs and examples Display an Send an attachment Create an appointment and others

8 Core Protocol Families Remote Operations (ROPs) Originally RPC transport HTTPS transport introduced in Exchange 2013 NSPI is used for Address Book access Exchange Web Services (EWS) ActiveSync (EAS) Other protocol groups Autodiscover Content Conversion Standards Support

9 Client communication with Exchange EAS Storage EWS M A P I ROPs NSPI MAPIHTTP POP/IMAP SMTP

10 Exchange Remote Operations (ROPs) Protocols Transport layers: RPC/TCP, RPC/HTTPS or pure HTTPS Low-level access to Exchange Storage Optimized to minimize traffic on the wire Very complex parsing Used by MAPI Workhorse for Outlook communication with Exchange Originally implemented in Exchange 4.0 Extended and re-architected several times

11 Exchange Remote Operations (ROPs) Protocols ROPs protocols define both Exchange (server) and Outlook (client) behaviors Outlook behaviors are very complex: server here is a very complex storage for items generated and maintained by the client Wrapped in MAPI implementation on the client. Client (not Server) performs all logic handling of complex items: Messages, Folders, Calendar, Contacts, Tasks, etc Document Naming: [MS-OXO*] and [MS-OXC*] Over 40 Protocols ~3000 pages

12 Exchange Remote Operations (ROPs) Protocols RPC/HTTPS: (EcDoRpcExt2) Header Binary Blob RopSize ROP1 ROP2 HSOT Table RopID ROP Data RopID ROP Data Note: No ROP Data size or end marker. Every ROP Data in the blob must be parsed. Every RopID has different ROP Data structure. Number of documented RopIDs: 151

13 Exchange Web Services (EWS) Protocols Transport Layer: SOAP over HTTPS Alternative to ROPs protocols Higher level of abstraction compared with ROPs protocols Server performs all logic handling of complex items: Messages, Folders, Calendar, Contacts, Tasks, etc. in a way that is interoperable with Outlook Supported in Exchange 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016 Strict Protocol Versioning RequestServerVersion header element allows version specific behavior Document Naming: [MS-OXW*] 40+ Protocols ~2000 pages

14 Exchange ActiveSync (EAS) Protocols Transport Layer: WBXML over HTTPS Lightweight synchronization protocol for Microsoft Exchange Optimized to work on high-latency and low-bandwidth networks Designed to minimize device power usage High level of abstraction, similar to EWS in complexity Provides access to , calendar, contacts, tasks, documents, etc... Industry standard Several non-exchange Server implementations Wide range of clients Windows, ios, Android, etc

15 Exchange ActiveSync (EAS) Protocols Supported in Exchange Server 2003, 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016 Versioning Clearly defined version negotiation Version-specific features documented in open specifications Enterprise Device management enforcement Document Naming: [MS-AS*] 15 Protocols ~900 pages Not feature parity with Exchange ROPs and Web Service (EWS) protocols Licensing requirements

16 Exchange Protocol Test Tools Message Analyzer Parsers Protocol families: EAS, EWS, and ROPs (RPC/MAPIHTTP) Protocol Test Suites Protocol families: EAS, EWS, and ROPs (RPC/MAPIHTTP) Fiddler Inspectors: Protocol families: ROPs (MAPIHTTP) Additional associated protocols

17 Exchange Protocol Resources All Exchange protocol documents Microsoft Message Analyzer Fiddler inspectors for Office and Exchange protocols Protocol Test Suites Help with Open Specifications: Office Interoperability blog:

18 Thank You! Questions?

Exchange Clients and Protocols. Andrew Davidoff Senior Software Development Engineer (Test) Microsoft Corporation

Exchange Clients and Protocols Andrew Davidoff Senior Software Development Engineer (Test) Microsoft Corporation 3 Calendars Tasks Contacts Reminders Recurring meetings, cross time zone scheduling