Microsoft announced in mid-April a free hosted trial for business customers to experience its Exchange Server 2007, one of the key components of its unified communications offerings that are due for release later this year.

Customers can sign up for the trial at https://signmeup.exchange2007demo.com/exchange2007demo. Once there, they can create a temporary account that will stay active for five days. These accounts will be prepopulated with sample messages, calendar appointments, and contacts, and can be used to send and receive mail, schedule meetings, and adjust options. Accounts can be accessed via Microsoft Outlook Web Access, Microsoft Office Outlook, or any application that is compatible with Exchange ActiveSync.

The global trial program for businesses will run through December, according to Gail Ferrari Marold, a spokesperson for Unisys, the company that will be hosting the demo version of the Exchange Server 2007 software.

“Microsoft is pleased to collaborate with Unisys to offer this free managed service for customers,” said Peter Boit, vice president for the Enterprise and Partner Group at Microsoft. “We hear from our enterprise customers they want technology solutions with built-in features to help keep their business secure, productive, and moving forward. This free trial enables customers to test-drive the capabilities included in Exchange Server that address these key areas.”