Write-up by Mimecast
New study finds the majority of organisations are planning to migrate to Microsoft Exchange 2010 but uncertainty remains more than the will need to upgrade current hardware and application
27 September 2010 – London: Mimecast®, a top supplier of cloud-based email security, continuity, policy control and archiving, these days announced the final results of The Exchange Report, an exclusive study examining the IT department’s attitude to Microsoft Exchange and plans for future e-mail strategies. The Exchange Report, sponsored by Mimecast, is based upon a survey of 250 IT selection makers at big UK organisations.
The report reveals that, even though the majority of corporations (77% of all respondents) are preparing to upgrade to Microsoft Exchange 2010, most respondents are expecting to knowledge important troubles during migration. Of main concern for IT departments are the server and operating technique upgrades that the move to Microsoft Exchange 2010 will demand. Replacing these legacy systems involves considerable capital investment, and this is causing IT departments to stall, in spite of the considerable savings that the switch to Exchange 2010 can bring. Fear more than disruption to the core company while migration requires location is yet another crucial concern.
Highlights from the investigation:
Future looks brilliant for Exchange 2010:* Exchange dominates the enterprise – More than 80 % of organisations surveyed currently use Microsoft Exchange* Majority will move to Exchange 2010 – Over 3 quarters of respondents (77 %) are organizing to move to Exchange 2010 at some time in the futureo 15 percent will make the move in the next six months, 38 percent in the subsequent year and 51 percent inside of the subsequent eighteen months. 25 % say they will upgrade but can not commit to a schedule for the migrationo Only 12 % of Exchange users were not organizing an upgrade, with just one percent preparing to move away from Exchange entirely* However, uptake has been slow so far – Only eight % have already made the jump to Exchange 2010, with the survey locating that the majority of IT departments are utilizing Exchange 2003 (55 percent) and Exchange 2007 (35 percent)o Given that Microsoft no longer delivers mainstream support for Exchange 2003, and due to the fact 2007 was not ready to run on Windows Server 2008 until the release of SP3, this signifies a large amount of businesses are operating systems which are in danger of obsolescence
Concerns more than legacy systems could slow uptake:* Investment in hardware necessary – just 41 percent of respondents are currently operating on 64-bit hardware, which is a requirement for the move to Exchange 2010* Computer software is also a difficulty – 61 % of respondents are running either Microsoft Server 2003 or Small Business Server (SBS). Given that Exchange 2010 only runs on Windows Server 2008, this implies that numerous organizations face a possible dual-upgrade scenario* Cost is a barrier – Funding this dual upgrade is likely to eat considerably into the IT budget. The survey located that expense is a substantial obstacle to adopting Exchange 2010, with 36 percent of respondents citing this as a element in their reluctance to make the move
IT fears disruption to employees:* Migration probably to disrupt the company – After the price of upgrading, the disruption that migration will lead to to services is the largest concern. Disruption to staff and migration downtime were concerns for 28 percent of respondentso With awareness about migration problems high, it was no surprise that several IT departments were thinking about safety nets. 66 % said that they would archive all of their information prior to moving* Third parties essential to assistance migration – 46 % of selection makers predicted that they will opt to operate with a continuity service or third party provider to make sure consistency and availability of service during the migration processo A further 15 percent have already decided that it will be needed to turn to third-party assistance on installation and ongoing management
Supporting quotes:
“Exchange 2010 has undoubtedly improved overall performance and enriched functionality as compared to Exchange 2003 and 2007, and this survey shows clearly that with the exception of businesses searching to move to a totally hosted email atmosphere, Exchange 2010 is on everyone’s agenda,” commented Peter Bauer, CEO and co-founder of Mimecast. “Nevertheless, it’s equally clear that there are issues about the potential cost and complexity of the upgrade scenario, and indeed the migration physical exercise itself. Corporations need to know that Exchange 2010 does not necessarily will need to be a painful upgrade, nor does it necessarily mean a substantial enhance in on-premise hardware footprint.
Peter Bauer continued, “E mail is one particular of the most crucial systems in the enterprise, and businesses have to take into account how they will backup or archive their information when moving to, and employing, Exchange 2010. As if this were not adequate, a constant e-mail service must be provided throughout the move. On paper this may well sound straightforward but in reality this is hardly ever the case. It is consequently not surprising that practically half of IT selection makers program to use some sort of third party service to ensure they can present a constant service during the migration.”
-ENDS-
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New study finds the majority of organisations are planning to migrate to Microsoft Exchange 2010 but uncertainty remains more than the need to upgrade current hardware and computer software
