What is Hosted Exchange and why do I need it for my business?

Image Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/Cabinet_Asile.jpg

When it comes to IT it is easy to be caught under a landslide of jargon and technology that you simply do not understand. Some of these things are relatively common in the industry, so it makes sense to educate yourself and gain a better understanding of how things work. This quest for knowledge has brought you here, so what is Hosted Exchange?

Hosted Exchange

Quite simply, Hosted Exchange is a service where you are provided with an email box and storage space is made available to you on a server. Generally this is done through Microsoft Exchange, as it is used by the majority of businesses in the world.

The purpose of this is so that you can access emails, documents and other data via a server rather than having it all on your computer. Another major benefit is that with Hosted Exchange you can access you emails and documents from anywhere by routing it to a mobile phone or laptop.

What does Hosted Exchange really do?

Still unsure of what this really means? Let’s put it this way: with Hosted Exchange, your business has a centralised email server, so that everyone in the company has the same @Yourbusiness.net email address. But it isn’t just the email that you gain through exchange, it’s also all your contacts, personalised email folders, calendar appointments and tasks that are synchronised across the server.

You’re also able to direct push data and set it to a wide range of mobile devices, allowing you to access everything you need for business from wherever you are. This means that you don’t have to remember to log on and refresh your emails and calendar appointments, as they will automatically pop up on your mobile phone.

Why not use a dedicated Exchange?

Unless you are a large business, having a dedicated Exchange server is unnecessary as it provides far more capacity than you require. It also comes at a larger cost, as you will have to pay for a full server licence, obtain the appropriate hardware and take care of all maintenance tasks. With Hosted Exchange you pay for the IT company to take care of this, taking on the task yourself is a job in itself.

Why use Hosted Exchange?

There are several factors that make hosting the best option, a few of these include:

• More cost effective – you don’t have to pay for the full server cost or any maintenance.
• Easier – no need to learn how to set up or operate Hosted Exchange.
• Get what you need – only pay for the amount of space you need.
• Trouble free – if anything goes wrong, the hosting company will be responsible for setting it straight.
• Mobile – direct push allows you to access everything you need for business from your phone.

All of these reasons make hosting the perfect solution for small to medium sized businesses and individuals. There are many more benefits to Hosted Exchange that help to ensure that your business runs professionally and seamlessly, but this will come down to your company and the way in which you work.