subject: Are Microsoft Exchange Servers Becoming a Thing of the Past [print this page] Are Microsoft Exchange Servers Becoming a Thing of the Past
Google claims that 3,000 businesses sign up with Google Apps every day. More and more business have been looking to somehow get rid of Microsoft Exchange, but the only thing holding them back is their fear of change. The old adage goes, "if it isn't broke, don't fix it." However, what if something isn't broke, but is just too expensive?
Google Apps, which is free for the standard edition and just $50/user/year for the business edition, launched just a few years ago taking the Gmail system and packaging it with some other tools designed for businesses to compete with Microsoft Exchange.
Before Google vaulted itself into the email hosting arena, if you wanted a business-class email system, you had to use Microsoft Exchange because if you setup email through your website host in order to get email at yourdomain.com, it was only a matter of days until your email address ended up in the hands of relentless spammers. With Microsoft Exchange as the only option, businesses were forced to spend thousands of dollars on expensive hardware and software just to get email with their own domain name.
When Google came onto the scene, they made it possible for small businesses to have email using their own domain without having to spend an exorbitant amount of money on an Exchange Server and the spam filtering was top notch. Google Apps quickly became popular for new businesses and small businesses, but could Google Apps infiltrate the enterprise community?
Google's answer to this dilemma was to release Microsoft Outlook sync. With Outlook Sync, businesses could abandon their Microsoft Exchange server, let Google handle the hosting of their email, and still be able to use the familiar Microsoft Outlook software. Everything is synced together automatically. With Outlook sync, Google Apps has been effective in taking market share away from Microsoft as their battle wages on.With Outlook sync, Google Apps has been effective in taking market share away from Microsoft as their battle wages on.
Zachary Zawarski is the founder of Zadling. Zadling helps businesses setup Google Apps and provides support and consulting.
