Installing Exchange Server 2007 roles, GUI vs Command Line

When installing Exchange Server 2007 roles there is different default behavior between the GUI and the command line that you should be aware of.  Take a look at this screenshot.

exchangeinstall

In GUI mode when selecting any server role the Management Tools are selected by default.  However, if I were to install the Client Access Role using the command line…

setup /m:install /r:c

…only the Client Access Role would be installed and not the Management Tools. To install the Management Tools as well I would use this command line…

setup /m:install /r:c,t

There is a benefit to this behavior in that it is not always necessary or desirable to install the Management Tools on every single Exchange server in a larger environment. However in most cases for ease of administration having the Management Tools installed everywhere can be a good thing.  As long as you are aware of this behavior when planning command line or unattended installations you won’t get caught out.

Link: How to Install Exchange 2007 in Unattended Mode