Organizations might be tempted to migrate their mail services over to Office 365 in order to gain maximum availability for their email services. While Office 365 is being used by some of the largest organizations in the world, some industries may be unable or unwilling to make the switch.
Out of the box, Office 365 offers businesses a secured email environment that can be configured to meet the compliance standards of almost any industry. With so many organizations adopting cloud based email solutions, CIOs must weigh the pros and cons of using an on-premises Exchange Server vs SaaS email solutions.
Consider the following scenarios when making your email hosting decision.
The Costs
Does it make more financial sense to operate Exchange on-premises compared to Office 365? There is no definitive yes or no answer to this question, as each enterprise has different requirements that may tip the scales in favor of either solution.
In terms of on-premises Exchange outperforming Office 365, system administrators can configure their local mail server using the exact specifications they require when hosting an Exchange Server on-premises. With Office 365, the speed you get is typically dependent upon several factors, including your ISP and the current performance of the Office 365 system.
The Control
Seasoned Exchange Administrators are able to exert maximum control over their email services using the Exchange Management Console. This PowerShell based command line interface gives administrators the ability to script commonly executed tasks.
While Office 365 also has its own set of PowerShell cmdlets, on-premises Exchange provides businesses with the ability to control every facet of their email environment. This can prove to be advantageous when your organization needs a problem fixed ASAP. With Office 365, some issues may require you to submit a ticket or call Microsoft’s support phone number to resolve.
Even if you have a dedicated email administrator, some tasks could become bottle necked when your administrator has to reach out to Microsoft for support.
The Concerns
When Office 365 encounters some sort of outage, the incident is magnified given the amount of organizations that have migrated to the SaaS email service. While Microsoft’s SLA guarantees 99.9%+ uptime for Office 365, the service has had its fair share of high profile outages over the years.
In June of 2016, ZDNet reported on an Office 365 outage that left some users unable to send or receive emails for several hours. In this article, one administrator helplessly posted a screenshot of their message queue, which illustrated the fact that email was not leaving the Office 365 servers.
If your business requires maximum email uptime, having an on-premises Exchange Server that is managed by a team of qualified technicians is an absolute necessity.
The Comparison
For many types of businesses, Office 365 may not be an option. In this case, Exchange becomes the natural choice. When you begin making the comparisons between Office 365 and Exchange Server, you’ll notice that the biggest difference is the pricing.
With Exchange, your organization will pay for the server and the licensing fees upfront. With Office 365, the infrastructure and the licensing costs are rolled into a monthly, per user fee. With Exchange Server, you’ll be responsible for backing up your mail and performing maintenance tasks on the server.
Office 365 is gaining popularity for a reason. One solution isn’t necessarily superior to the other in terms of whats under the hood; Making the decision to deploy Exchange Server or Office 365 is typically a business decision. For many organizations, the pay as you go method is an attractive model.
The Conclusion
Regardless of the email platform that your company chooses, it is imperative to have a skilled IT staff in place to manage the day to day tasks associated with your email service. Finding a trusted partner to help your organization manage its email services is essential for unimpeded email flow.
Core responsibilities of your email engineer consists of managing Exchange databases, overseeing mail flow and customizing the server to meet your organization’s specific goals. Even if your business chooses Office 365, a qualified Office 365 engineer will be a necessary addition to your staff.
With so much on the line, it is imperative for businesses to implement reliable and secure email services. While Office 365 provides businesses with a lower upfront costs, organizations that require compliance, support and uptime will continue to weigh all factors and pick the email hosting solution that suits their enterprise the best.
If your Greenville, SC or Atlanta, GA area business is in need of a professional consultation concerning your business, contact Wolf Technology Group today at (833) 482-6435 or fill out our form in order to get a quote for your organization’s networking needs.
