Microsoft Exchange Online is a cloud-based service that provides businesses with a solution for calendar, email and contacts. It uses the same technology as Exchange Server and provides its users with a unified experience across a range of computing devices and browsers. Exchange Online also provides businesses with the web-based tools they need to manage their online deployment.
Microsoft hosts Exchange Online directly, as do other Exchange Online providers. Exchange Online is also available as on-premises software, and customers can combine these two delivery options with a hybrid deployment. Businesses often use this approach to transition from an on-premises solution to a fully hosted solution. A hybrid Exchange deployment also allows customers to move their on-premises mailboxes to a cloud-based platform and vice versa. Additional advantages of a hybrid deployment include efficient message archival centralized mailbox management.
Exchange Online is included in many Office 365 plans that provide email service, and it’s also offered as a standalone product for customers who just need Exchange without the other components of Office 365. As such, Microsoft Exchange Online is available in three plans, including Exchange Online Plan 1, Exchange Online Plan 2 and Exchange Online Kiosk. Exchange Online Plan 2 has all the capabilities of Exchange Online Plan 1 in addition to other capabilities as outlined below in the storage and messaging sections.
Products
Exchange Online Plan 1 is available for the following Office 365 products:
- Office 365 Business Essentials
- Office 365 Business Premium
- Office 365 Enterprise E1
- Office 365 Education E1
- Office 365 Government E1
Exchange Online Plan 2 is available for the following Office 365 products:
- Office 365 Education E3
- Office 365 Education E4
- Office 365 Enterprise E3
- Office 365 Enterprise E4
- Office 365 Government E3
- Office 365 Government E4
Storage Limits
Each Microsoft Exchange Plan 1 user has 50 GB of total mailbox storage, and the storage space for the archive mailboxes are shared with the primary mailbox. Plan 2 users get 100 GB of storage for their primary mailbox, and the In-Place Archive allows unlimited storage for archived mailboxes. Plan 2 users can also save deleted and edited messages from the primary mailbox and In-Place Archives with In-Place Hold.
Message Policy
Microsoft Exchange Plan 2 provides built-in Data Loss Prevention (DLP), which helps business to control messages that contain sensitive data. Deep content analysis identifies, monitors and protects this data from unauthorized access. DLP policies are often based on existing regulatory standards such as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS) and NIST Special Publication 800-122, which addresses the protection of Personally Identifiable Information (PII).
Voice Message Services
Microsoft Exchange Plan 2 provides hosted voicemail services. These services include a dial-in user interface, call answering and automated attendants. Plan 2 also includes Unified Messaging Reports, which provides a reporting capability for voice messages.
Summary
CSCI has been providing small businesses in the San Diego area with on-site and hosted services for over 30 years. Office 365 provides cloud-based productivity solutions from simple email to complex enterprise tools. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help your small business improve your productivity.