E-mail archiving often makes tech headlines, especially as mid-sized and small-enterprises contemplate the risks surrounding legal discovery of e-mail evidence. Not surprisingly, hosted e-mail archiving is gaining popularity as an alternative to costly on-premises solutions. Start by determining the needed capabilities then calculate the costs to inform the decision.

Determining the Necessary Capabilities

Enterprises investigating e-mail archiving should first clarify what capabilities they require from such a solution. All e-mail archiving outsourcers offer basic e-mail storage in a searchable repository. However, hosted solutions often lack the sophistication available from on-premises e-mail archiving software. Depending on compliance, retention, governance, and business needs, the following functions may be desired: