Item: Microsoft Exchange
Rating: 9
Author: Zakarieya Abderoef

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We are currently using Microsoft Exchange as our primary email system and it plays a critical role in our organization. It is used as a communication and collaboration tool by all staff members. In addition it is used for scheduling meetings with its calendar function and many of our staff relies on its search capabilities to locate important information and business documents.

Pros and Cons

MS Exchange is a very flexible and versatile collaboration tool. It's very easy to deploy and maintain once you have the necessary MS Exchange knowledge. Also there are many 3rd-party add-ons available which can enhance the capability of MS Exchange such as spam filters, antivirus software, etc.
Since MS Exchange is such a vital tool in most organizations, there are many ways to make MS Exchange highly available. A number of these HA options are based on standard Microsoft methodologies and may not necessarily result in additional costs for software.
MS Exchange is used by a large number of businesses and organizations around the world which simplifies integration with business partners.

MS Exchange Server does have its pitfalls. There are many times where users complain of losing emails or they cannot locate emails using the search function. Also, MS Exchange Server does not have the best out-of-the-box troubleshooting and mail tracing tools.
The MS Exchange platform is extremely vulnerable against possible threats and hacking. It is therefore important to increase the network security around the Exchange Server to limit attacks. Also, you will need to ensure that the system stays updated with the latest security patches and service packs. The extensive maintenance required for supporting MS Exchange Server needs to be taken into account. You may need an Exchange administrator to continuously monitor and support the system which may increase operational support costs.

Return on Investment

The company saved lots of money by running MS Exchange on-premise since adding mailboxes was easy and at no additional cost.
Supporting MS Exchange is not that difficult as there are many courses available both onsite at formal training institutions and online. Also due to its popularity there are tons of forums and support sites where information can be found to assist administrators in resolving issues.
Integrating MS Exchange with 3rd-party tools was quite simple saving the company time and money to implement spam filters and antivirus software designed for MS Exchange

Alternatives Considered

There many other email platforms such as Lotus Notes and Domino. I have found MS Exchange Server to be a product that is ready to be used out of the box and includes many features thus minimizing customization requirements. Standard features includes contacts and tasks, calendaring, mobile and web/browser based support. In contrast Lotus Notes is highly customizable, but MS Exchange has a large number of these customizable features already built in to the software unlike Lotus Notes.

Finally, I would prefer MS Exchange due to its simplicity, ease of use and accessibility to the large user support groups currently available.

Support Rating

Microsoft has quite a large knowledge base around the design, installation, configuration and support of MS Exchange. However, I prefer to also use the even larger MS Exchange user support groups and forums where there are lots of information readily available with similar problems and tried and tested solutions. I think this is due to the popularity of MS Exchange in the industry. Other email software platforms might not have similar support available.

Key Insights

Do you think Microsoft Exchange delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Microsoft Exchange's feature set?

Yes

Did Microsoft Exchange live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Microsoft Exchange go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Microsoft Exchange again?

Other Software Used

Veeam Backup & Replication, Symantec Endpoint Protection

Likelihood to Recommend

Any business or organization who needs to take control over their communication and collaboration systems would be ideally suited for to leverage the capabilities of MS Exchange. Even small businesses can benefit. The advantage is that there are no additional costs for creating new mailboxes for users. Since most users are already running MS Office they would most likely have access to MS Outlook and can thus easily integrate with MS Exchange Server. Also MS Exchange supports mobile devices with an email application which makes it ideal for both onsite and offsite workers.

My Experience with MS Exchange Server

Overall Satisfaction with Microsoft Exchange