E-mail/groupware opinion

[Chong Yu Meng]

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Tim Wunder wrote:
> Any you folks using Scalix or Zimbra as an alternative to MS Exchange? We have 
> a consultant firm pushing Exchange on us and our president is looking 
> favorably at it. Zimbra and Scalix look like good alternatives. We're looking 
> for a hosted solution as I don't have the resources (or time) to manage an 
> e-mail/groupware server on site.
>   
Hope I'm not too late coming into the discussion...

I haven't tried Zimbra or Scalix, though I have been a Lotus 
Notes/Domino admin and Exchange admin before. At the risk of being 
flamed and ostracized, here are the features that appeal to business 
owners about Exchange:
1. Offers calendaring
2. Offers pushmail (very important in my part of the world. Basically 
this is having emails drop into your PDA or smartphone as soon as they 
are received by the server)
3. It's Microsoft (brand-recognition. Same reason why Citibank credit 
cards are sought after, and Louis Vuitton does so well in Asia)
4. And of course, email, contacts, etc.

If your boss is looking at a hosted solution, then Exchange may have an 
edge, because the headaches of babysitting an Exchange server are left 
to someone else. If pushmail is important, then Exchange's only 
competitor is Novell Groupwise (I think).

One thing that could possibly be in your favor is: if your company ever 
decides to take back the mail infrastructure (i.e. host it in-house 
instead of outsourced), then be advised that Exchange 2007 is VERY 
resource hungry, requiring 64-bit processors and at least 4GB RAM (for 5 
users, and without UMS). I have it installed at a business partner's 
office and it is putting our small server through hell.

Regards,
pascal chong