This is the first cookbook dedicated to Lync Server 2013. While there are a few books dedicated to Lync (and Packt Publishing has published a couple of them), this is the first time that someone has tried to write down more than 300 pages of practical recipes, hints, and tips dedicated to this Unified Communication software.

While writing this book, we, as authors, know that Skype for Business will be available during this year, and a part of the existing features and interfaces could change to some extent. We are confident, anyway, that Lync Server 2013 will stay relevant for a long time, and we believe that people working on solutions based on Lync around the world will value the time and effort we have put into this cookbook.

We have tried to include in this book as much useful information as possible, to help Lync administrators in their everyday tasks and in planning, deploying, and managing some of the most complex scenarios and features. The coming years will see an increase in the use of cloud computing, and Lync, right now, integrates in many ways with Azure and Office 365. We have tried to explain the cloud-related features and options, in addition to the more traditional on-premises settings. As authors, we accept the risk that the ever-changing nature of the Microsoft Cloud might require updates to the material in this book, because our commitment is to provide you with the most relevant information.

As we said, this book is something new both in terms of format and content. We hope it will be like a tool that you will keep on your "desk", and consult over and over as the need arises.