Intermedia Resource Center
Intermedia's Resource Center provides you with the materials you need to understand how our hosted messaging and collaboration services work and how they can benefit your business.
- What is Outlook / Exchange? ›
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Microsoft Exchange email is far superior to the basic email still used by some businesses.
Outlook Exchange vs. basic email
Smaller businesses typically start with POP email - the basic, no-frills email that has been common since the 1980s.
POP email is cheap, but offers none of Outlook-Exchange's advanced functionality, like calendars, task lists, file-sharing or contacts.
POP email is stored on your local PC, instead of on a central email server, so if you use different devices - like a desktop PC and a BlackBerry® - you will not see emails which came through to a different device.
Some businesses use an older product called Lotus Notes. This works more like Microsoft Exchange, but is lacking in ease-of-use and is not compatible with Microsoft Outlook.
Features of Microsoft Exchange
Microsoft Outlook-Exchange is popular due to its user-friendliness and its advanced features, which boost productivity:
- Up-to-date: Exchange stores everything centrally, so you always see the latest version of your email, files, calendar and contacts.
- Mobile access: Exchange is the software that powers email for handhelds like the latest BlackBerry®, Treo or Windows Mobile devices. It also offers sophisticated Web mail, so you will always be synced with your team.
- Shared calendars: Lets employees see colleagues' availability to schedule or rearrange meetings, book conference rooms, and plan projects.
- Shared task lists: Allows 'to do' lists to be created and assigned, then shared with team members. Managers can check off items as they are completed.
- Shared contacts: Company or shared address books means your customers' contact details will never be lost or misplaced.
Microsoft Outlook-Exchange lets employees share information and work together productively, in a way that is otherwise impossible.
- Why "hosted" Outlook / Exchange? ›
Microsoft Outlook-Exchange is the best corporate email software, but it is expensive to buy and run. Intermedia's 'hosted Exchange' gives you all its benefits - without the high cost:
Costs of Hosted Exchange
Cost is the major reason why hosted Exchange is rapidly growing in popularity.
Upfront costs are several thousand dollars for even the most basic setup, putting in-house Exchange beyond the reach of smaller businesses.
Ongoing costs for in-house Exchange are also high. Either companies need to hire IT staff or pay consultants to fix each problem, adding thousands more dollars in annual costs.
In-house Exchange Hosted Exchange from Intermedia Servers All items
must be purchased.
Total cost
for a small installation = Thousands of dollarsAll items
included as standard.
Total cost
for a small installation = $11.95/month for each userStorage Backup Software licenses Email security (anti-virus, anti-spam) IT staff time for deployment IT staff time for maintenance Quality physical environment and cooling, uninterruptible power Reliability of Hosted Exchange
Having email and collaboration that always works is now essential to doing business - and downtime is unacceptable.
In-house Exchange servers - usually in a basement or closet not designed for sensitive IT equipment - cannot match the reliability of hosted Outlook/Exchange.
Hosted Outlook/Exchange companies like Intermedia manage servers in large purpose-built datacenters with backup power, air conditioning and Internet connections. Below are the main threats to your email system:
In-house Exchange Hosted Exchange from Intermedia Servers One server - all email depends on this. Cluster of servers - if one stops working, the others take over Data storage One or two hard disk drives - all email depends on these Large cluster of drives which automatically share workload if one fails Backup Manual - sometimes slips due to time pressures Automatic and frequent Email security (anti-virus, anti-spam) Updates not always made frequently enough Continuous 24x7 updates Data connection Single data line to the Internet Multiple connections, direct to Internet backbone Physical environment Low-quality environment, power, air conditioning systems Tier-4 datacenter (as used by Google and Yahoo!) Features of Hosted Exchange
Exchange is great because you can expand it with add-on features. However, this is difficult in practice with an in-house system, as each feature needs to be installed from scratch.
With hosted Exchange, all features are already installed and ready to 'turn on' if you wish to use them. Below are features you may wish to add:
In-house Exchange Hosted Exchange from Intermedia Wireless email
Get your email and data on devices like a BlackBerry or TreoPurchase separate (expensive) servers and software licenses, install them manually Add instantly through online control panel Archiving
Create a backup of your emails for compliance or security purposesEither a time-intensive in-house effort or another external service to manage Add instantly Extra disk space
Expand storage with your businessPurchase and install additional disk drives Add instantly Advanced anti-spam
Sophisticated blocking of spam to keep employees productiveAdditional costs for software and maintenance Add instantly Anti-virus
Reduce the risk of damage to your files and IT infrastructureAdditional costs for software and maintenance Included as standard Fax via Email
Let employees receive faxes anywhere they go, right in their email inboxSeparate service to manage or self-deploy Add instantly - Our Exchange Environment ›
Intermedia has invested millions of dollars in creating the most reliable and cutting-edge Exchange environment in the industry. With multiple world-class datacenters, an incredibly robust platform and a state-of-the-art network infrastructure you can be sure that your email will be fully accessible whenever and wherever you need it.
Datacenter
Our tier 4 datacenters guarantee an industry leading 99.999% uptime or higher.
Network
Intermedia's network is architected for automatic failover, with our three datacenters linked in a metroLAN ring.
Infrastructure
Intermedia's infrastructure is built with names you can rely on, including Cisco, EMC and Dell.
- The Case for Hosted Exchange ›
Download our white paper, The Case for Hosted Exchange, by clicking here.
- Why you should consider migrating to hosted Exchange 2010 ›
Download our white paper on why you should consider migrating to hosted Exchange 2010 by clicking here.
- An Overview of Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 ›
Download our free white paper on Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 by clicking here.
