In addition, Clinton's decision to conduct government business exclusively through a private email network caught the experts at NARA by surprise. It was unprecedented. Clinton has said that other "secretaries of state" did the "same thing," but Colin Powell — who was secretary of state from 2001 to 2005 — was the only other secretary of state to use an email account outside of the government email system and he did not set up a private server. Powell used America Online, where he once served on the board of directors.