White PapersIn recent years there has been a shift to hosted environments, internet security and CRM systems are popular examples, and email is no exception.
Email is the foundation of business communication from start-ups to corporate enterprises. It is irrelevant which industry you operate within; how many sites you have; or the number of employees that work there. All organisations require email.
When choosing the right email service for your organisation there is a lot to consider: reliability, connectivity, scalability, security and access will all influence the success of the project.
Email Protection Agency LtdTamar Science Park, 1 Davy RoadPlymouth, PL6 8BX United Kingdomwww.epagency.netExchange: Hosted vs On-PremiseUntitled Document2 Exchange: Hosted vs On-Premisewww.epagency.netExperts in Hosted EmailEmail is the foundation of business communication from start-ups to corporate enterprises. It is irrelevant which industry you operate within; how many sites you have; or the number of employees that work there. All organisations require email.When choosing the right email service for your organisation there is a lot to consider: reliability, connectivity, scalability, security and access will all influence the success of the project. This whitepaper explores Hosted and On-Premise Exchange to determine which solution is right for your organisation. It presents a case for both services and investigates three contributing factors that will significantly influence the overall decision: Technical Support, Cost and Migration. Executive Summary Untitled DocumentExchange: Hosted vs On-Premise 3Experts in Hosted Emailwww.epagency.netT able of Contents 4 Introduction5 The Big Showdown6 The Case for Hosted Exchange8 The Case for On-Premise9 The Final Round 9 Technical Support 9 Cost 10 Migration11 SummaryEmail Protection Agency LtdTamar Science Park, 1 Davy RoadPlymouth, PL6 8BX United Kingdomwww.epagency.netTelephoneCall: +44 (0)845 644 9319Fax: +44 (0)870 990 9628EmailSales: sales@epagency.netUntitled Document4 Exchange: Hosted vs On-Premisewww.epagency.netExperts in Hosted Emailaking the choice between a Hosted or On-Premise Exchange solution is an important decision and unique to your organisation. The pressure to deliver a consistent email service is the same, if you are a dedicated IT Manager, or you are responsible for IT alongside your main role at a smaller organisation. Depending on that choice, your responsibility for email will, in principle, remain the same, but your personal involvement in the delivery can vary dramatically. In recent years there has been a seismic shift to hosted environments; Internet Security and CRM are popular examples. Email is no exception. Even software-giant, Microsoft, predict that 50% of current On-Premise Exchange mailboxes will be in a hosted environment by 2014. This whitepaper will help you determine which approach to Exchange, Hosted or On-Premise, is best for your organisation. Introduction MUntitled DocumentExchange: Hosted vs On-Premise 5Experts in Hosted Emailwww.epagency.netAdvantagesDisadvantagesExploring the differences between Hosted and On-Premise Exchange will uncover the right approach for your organisation.At a glance The big showdown4 Guarantee Availability (99.9%)4 Avoid Downtime4 Remove Single Point of Failure4 Improve Security4 Lower Total Cost of Ownership4 Save Time4 Fast Set-Up4 Easy Scalability 4 Eliminate Connectivity Issues4 Anytime, Anywhere Access4 Compliance Archiving4 Speed of Operation (Onsite)4 Total Control4 Customisation7 Slower Speed of Connection (server offsite)7 Lack of Complete Control7 Not Inclusive Access of Exchange Features7 Ongoing Opex Cost7 Downtime7 Single Point of Failure7 High Capex Cost (+ new server every 5yrs)7 Strain on Internal Resource 7 Slow Set-Up7 Scalability is Complicated/Expensive7 Remote User Connectivity IssuesHosted ExchangeAdvantagesDisadvantagesOn-Premise ExchangevsUntitled Document6 Exchange: Hosted vs On-Premisewww.epagency.netExperts in Hosted EmailOnly Hosted Exchange can completely remove the pressure of managing and maintaining your own email server and infrastructure. These are the top 6 reasons to move to Hosted Exchange.Avoid Downtime. Guarantee Availability. On-Premise email averages 40 hours downtime per year. Hosted services have guaranteed availability, reinforced by Service Level Agreements (SLAs). Most providers now offer 99.9% availability and this should be the minimum accepted when looking for a reliable service provider. Remove Single Point of Failure. Improve Security.There is a myth that email data is less secure offsite in a hosted environment. However, ask yourself these questions: How secure is your office environment, server or backup drives? Is your data regularly backed up? What happens in the event of downtime and who is responsible? A credible hosted exchange service provider will use highly secure, multi-redundant datacentres. The best of those will be top tier with an ISO27001 accreditation in data security. With this level of security, your data could not be more secure within Europe. A centralised email solution removes single point of failure and equates to data which is secure (even in the event of a costly mail server corruption or hardware failure). Most providers will take daily data backups for disaster recovery and are also equipped with the latest anti-spam and anti-virus solutions. Lower Total Cost of Ownership. Save Time.The high costs associated with setting up, running and maintaining your own email system are well documented. If you are a new business, building an onsite email system from the ground up equals large capital expenditure - upfront. If your business is established and using an internal server you are still responsible for ongoing maintenance costs or paying your IT staff or consultants to manage the system. With Hosted Exchange, you remove the need to invest in these costs, including: servers, racks, backups and security. Instead, you pay a predictable monthly cost for the service that you use which includes support, backup and consultation. No overspend, unexpected costs or late nights working to fix the issue.The Case for Hosted Exchange123Untitled DocumentExchange: Hosted vs On-Premise 7Experts in Hosted Emailwww.epagency.netFast Set-Up. Easy Scalability.The move to hosted services can take as little as 24hr hours. That includes the set up of new email accounts, transfer of data and creation of new email addresses (if required). This is positively different from its On-Premise competitor which can often take weeks to implement due to hardware and software configurations. Paying only for what you use and user-licensing which is managed by a hosted provider allows for easy scalability and flexibility. This is particularly beneficial for fast growing organisations or those with more than one site.Eliminate Connectivity Issues. Anywhere, Anytime AccessEmployee productivity is a hot topic and working remotely is a key issue in this debate. Hosted and On-Premise Exchange accounts are accessible from mobile devices, including: iPhone, BlackBerry and Android. Users working away from the office also have access to email via Outlook Web Access (OWA), a full-featured webmail client that allows users to open multiple mailboxes and render files for web viewing. These features facilitate working on the move but they rely on connectivity. On-Premise Exchange compromises remote user productivity levels because it requires the VPN to access email. Connection can be frustratingly slow, unreliable and available connections may be limited. With Hosted Exchange remote users can directly access email via Outlook without using a VPN, for quick and easy access.Compliance Archiving. Storage Management.The motive for implementing an Email Archiving solution has progressed over the last few years from a solely compliance standpoint. Now, organisations have tougher demands which include the need for efficient storage management that can facilitate extensive benefits to the IT department and end-users. Best-of-breed hosted suppliers will offer a service that integrates with Hosted Email Archiving for a complete messaging infrastructure. The most advanced of those solutions will offer unlimited storage and rapid search and retrieval, in seconds, not hours. Integrating archiving with Hosted Exchange is the simple, easy way to comply with industry regulations and data retention policies. 456 Hosted Exchange removes the stress of email delivery. It improves email resilience, offloads liability from the IT department and provides unrivalled reliability. Untitled Document8 Exchange: Hosted vs On-Premisewww.epagency.netExperts in Hosted EmailOrganisations that are fixated with ownership and control of their email environments mostly opt for an On-Premise solution, although this is changing. These are the top 3 reasons why organisations occasionally stay with On-Premise Exchange.Speed of Operation In-house mail servers are fast. An average minimum connection of 100Mbps to each PC in the office makes email appear to operate instantly. However, this speed of operation is not consistent when accessed remotely. These connections are restricted because they depend entirely on the available upload capacity of your internet connection. From an end-user perspective, a slow connection speed is frustrating and it leads to a lack of productivity. For some organisations, near-instant connection in the office is a top priority which is a benefit of On-Premise. However, with Hosted Exchange you get a consistent user experience irrespective of location or connection. CustomisationRunning your Exchange system in a dedicated environment gives you complete freedom to tailor the service to your specifications. A myriad of third party plugins allow further customisation of your setup but they can lead to difficulties if you try to upgrade. You might find it is no longer supported and there is no alternative. Total ControlWith On-Premise Exchange there is no restriction to email management or use; the IT department has unlimited freedom. Complete control over your entire Exchange organisations means that it is possible to segregate discrete areas of your organisation into separate, mailbox databases. This allows you to prioritise restore in a DR situation, for example, restoring management email, before sales. However, due to daily data backups and multi-redundant datacentres, the likelihood of experiencing this level of downtime in a hosted environment is almost negligible. The Case for On-Premise123 On-Premise Exchange gives your organisation control of its messaging environment. Untitled DocumentExchange: Hosted vs On-Premise 9Experts in Hosted Emailwww.epagency.netAs with any IT purchase, it is not as simple as evaluating two services. Further research needs to be undertaken into total-experience factors that will ultimately conclude your decision. It is advised that 50% of an Exchange purchasing evaluation should be based on a combination of these contributing factors: 1 Technical Support 2 Cost 3 MigrationTechnical SupportThe term support is not always accurately used in IT; usually by service providers that are the worst at delivering. When choosing between Hosted and On-Premise Exchange, it is important to look beyond the basic levels of support, such as, UK-based email and telephone technical support. You are trying to uncover how a service provider will not only meet your needs, but exceed your expectations. For example: Do they provide managed remote monitoring and administration? Is remote administrator training available? Can they offer tailored consultancy and guidance on configuration? These are signs that the service provider is committed to delivering and making email work for you in a way that is both professional and personal.CostThere is a well known, cost: outsource vs in-house, debate. For Hosted vs On-Premise Exchange, a direct cost comparison can be completed using various different components: racks, servers, backup, employees, security and maintenance as examples. However, the hardest expenditure to quantify is indirect costs. Take an internal server for example: Do you have internal resource available to support the solution? Are they experts on it? Do they have ongoing training on the system? Do you pay and external company to manage your systems? When was the backup last fully restored? Where there any errors? It is these costs which can t really be measured that are usually ignored. Then, to add to the complications, there are other high-level associated costs such as researching and evaluating the evolution of email. Is your organisation equipped to add voice, video or chat to its systems? Does it need to be? If so, when? Do you have experts on it? Cost is an important part of this debate but it boils down to what will provide the most value to your organisation. 12 Look beyond the basic levels of support. You are trying to uncover how a service provider will not only meet your needs, but exceed your expectations. The Final Round Untitled Document10 Exchange: Hosted vs On-Premisewww.epagency.netExperts in Hosted EmailMigrationThe process of organising a secure migration is a major consideration when deciding to move to Hosted Exchange. It can be a factor that prevents organisations moving from On-Premise, but this is undeserved. Migration for a reputable organisation is fast, safe and easy. When choosing the right Hosted Exchange/Migration provider, ask yourself if they are able deliver the following&4 A cloud-based migration solution that will not require local computing resources or software licenses. Administrators can schedule migrations without deploying software or hardware and there is full access to real-time statistics using a simple web browser.4 Migration of entire users mailboxes (Up to 10GB is considered the standard data transfer for one mailbox). Including legacy email.4 Migration of mailboxes between Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft Exchange Online, Novell GroupWise, Google Apps/Gmail, IMAP and POP as standard.4 A migration service that offers an unlimited number of items, creates folder hierarchy and has no time limit.4 Look for Hosted Exchange providers who can complete this service for you and that include migration support at no extra cost.3Untitled DocumentExchange: Hosted vs On-Premise 11Experts in Hosted Emailwww.epagency.netThe shift from On-Premise to Hosted Exchange is accelerating rapidly. Organisations are pressured to move email into the operational budget like any other communication service, including telephone and mobile. Email expenditure on a manageable plan, per mailbox, per month, is flexible, scalable and, most importantly, predictable. This whitepaper has concluded that there are three key areas to consider from a hosted provider when moving to Hosted Exchange: Technical Support, Cost and Migration. If you look beyond the service features and explore the added-value user experience you will be rewarded with an email service that is not only fully functional but expertly delivered and tailored to you. Summary Untitled Document12 Exchange: Hosted vs On-Premisewww.epagency.netExperts in Hosted EmailEPA Hosted Exchange is an enterprise-class communication service that provides your organisation with the tools to efficiently and securely collaborate and communicate. Based on Microsoft Exchange 2007, the service offers complete email access via Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Web Access and mobile devises.With Hosted Exchange from EPA, you can remove the pressure of managing and maintaining your own email server and infrastructure. By outsourcing your email, you can harness the full power of Exchange, without the cost of licensing or hardware and software upgrades.EPA offers two packages: Professional Hosted Exchange and Enterprise, which includes Hosted Email Archiving. For more information: www.epagency.net. Email Protection Agency Ltd (EPA)Established in 2003, EPA offer online, cloud-based protection and prevention for email, covering all management aspects, including: hosting, security and archiving. The business also has areas of expertise in Web Security, Hosted Voice and Data Backup. EPA specialises in Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) Security which is a powerful alternative to on-premise solutions. Partnered with IT industry leaders, EPA provides award-winning, comprehensive solutions that are expertly delivered and supported by a dedicated, UK-based, professional and personal team. All services include technical support to ensure clients receive optimal performance and guaranteed peace of mind. EPA delivers hosted solutions to a national client base of over 1,000 customers in the private, public andcharitable sectors. Save business time, money and resource...Get in touchContact a Hosted Exchange specialist:Call: 0845 644 9319Email: sales@epagency.netWeb: www.epagency.net/hostedexchangeFor a free trial please visit: www.epagency.netEPA Hosted Exchange
