I tried GFI MailArchiver in an Exchange Server 2010 environment to see how easy it would be to deploy email archiving. You can also use it for Exchange 2003 and 2007 organizations.

Installing GFI MailArchiver

I installed GFI MailArchiver on a Windows Server 2008 R2 server that also had SQL Server 2008 installed on it.

The GFI MailArchiver setup detects that the pre-requisite components are not installed and offers to install them automatically for you. Although it uses the deprecated ServerManagerCMD.exe to do this it works fine, and makes installing the server a much simpler task.

However the one component that I needed to manually install was the MAPI Client and Collaboration Data Objects, something that most Exchange-integrated applications need. The setup wizard provides a handy link to download the MAPI CDO install files from Microsoft.

Configuring GFI MailArchiver

After GFI MailArchiver has installed the web-based administration console opens and the server can be configured. A wizard appears that steps you through the process of setting up the first archive store.

I chose to use Microsoft SQL Server as the archive store, and there are also options for high-volume environments as well as a choice of SQL Express or Firebird database for smaller environments. Depending on which option you choose email data will either be stored in the database or on the file system, however headers and other email details are always stored in a database.

Between the different database options and the ability to store databases, email data, and indexes in different locations it is quite clear that GFI MailArchiver can be easily configured for high performance in very large environments.

How GFI MailArchiver Works

GFI MailArchiver works by integrating with Microsoft Exchange journaling. Whether the Exchange environment is configured for Standard Journaling or Premium Journaling it will work with GFI MailArchiver.

Though you might think this means GFI MailArchiver will grab every single email sent or received in the organization, you can actually still apply some exclusions such as only archiving emails sent internally, and by excluding certain mailboxes or groups of users.

Journaling takes care of all email sent from the time GFI MailArchiver is installed, but what about all the email already in Exchange databases? This is taken care of by GFI MailArchiver’s Import and Export tool, which can import email from existing databases as well as PST files and previous versions of GFI MailArchiver.

Using the Import and Export tool you can even choose to import email message within certain date ranges into different archive stores, for example if you are using a different archive store each calendar year.

Reducing Exchange Server Database Load

After looking at the journaling integration and the import utility you may be wondering how exactly GFI MailArchiver reduces the storage and performance load on the Exchange server.

Because GFI MailArchiver does not remove any items from mailboxes this has to be handled using other methods. An organization can either configure mailbox storage quotas, or they can configure retention policies.

This might seem like a burden compared to other archiving products that remove items from the database automatically and leave stubs behind, but GFI adheres to Microsoft’s “no stubbing” guidance instead and does not do this.

Once you have configured quotas or retention policies your Exchange databases will be able to be maintained at a smaller size and perform better.

End User Archive Access

End user access to the archives is provided in two ways; using a simple web interface, and via an Outlook add-in that also handles offline caching of the archive.

Both of these options make it easy for end users to search for archived items and perform actions such as exporting them, or restoring them to the mailbox. The offline caching is also very useful for mobile staff such as a roaming sales team.

Summary

Overall I think GFI MailArchiver is a good solution for SMBs that need email archiving, particularly when I think of businesses such as law firms that need reliable records of email communication and in some cases have strict compliance requirements. Having all email messages in a centralized, indexed, and easily searchable archive database makes any kind of discovery exercise much easier.

Considering the benefits the pricing is very reasonable and the option to use free databases if a full SQL Server instance is not available make GFI MailArchiver an accessible product for businesses on a budget.

You can download a trial of GFI MailArchiver here.

Disclosure: GFI is a paid advertiser on this website.

Screenshot Gallery:

Click to Show »

Related posts:

• Review of GFI MailEssentials
• Generate SMTP Error Statistics using Log Parser and Exchange Server 2010 Protocol Logs
• Calculate Hourly Email Traffic using Message Tracking Logs and Log Parser
• Calculate Daily Email Traffic using Message Tracking Logs and Log Parser
• Reporting Exchange Server 2010 Message Tracking Event IDs with Log Parser

This article Exchange Server Archiving: Review of GFI MailArchiver is © 2011 ExchangeServerPro.com

Get more Exchange Server tips at ExchangeServerPro.com

Installation

Installing GFI Business Edition was quite simple following an easy to understand setup wizard.  I installed it on a virtualized server running Windows Server 2008 with Service Pack 2.

There are no complex set up requirements such as SQL databases to worry about.  GFI Backup installs its own web server and listens on a custom port (you can change the port if you wish) for administration access, as well as ports for communications with remote agents.

Though I found this very easy to install I had to manually open firewall ports on the Windows Server 2008 server to allow remote administration access as they weren’t opened automatically by the installer as with some  other applications.

Backing Up Files

Remote agent deployment can be performed using Group Policy or by manually initiating it from the remote server.  There is no push option available to roll out remote agents.

The GPO deployment option would be suitable for deploying the remote agents to desktops and laptops but not as convenient for servers.  For servers the manual agent deployment is best, though the most effort.  If you want to save time you could script the server agent install but whether that saves you time will depend on the size of your environment and your scripting skills.

Backup types are file/folder, or SQL only.  There is no option to backup Exchange Server or Active Directory.  This would seem to be the greatest weakness of GFI Backup however for small businesses that run in a workgroup configuration without Active Directory, or have their email service hosted in the cloud these aren’t going to present a problem.

The default backup inclusions/exclusions that define a broad range of common productivity file types are useful especially when creating backup jobs for PCs.

The backup destination is quite flexible.  Backing up to central location (can be disk or tape) on one main server is available, but each agent can also be configured to backup to its own local drive instead.  This is again very useful for PC backups, as they can be configured to backup their most important user files to a second hard drive on the machine without consuming more expensive server disk or tape capacity.

The backup files themselves can optionally be compressed using ZIP compression.  In my test this saved about 50% space for the Windows Server 2008 server.  The ZIP files can also be password protected and AES encrypted.

Backups can be scheduled and include options for email notifications to backup administrators.

Restoring Files

There are two restore options driven by yet another simple wizard.  You can restore either an entire system or perform item-level restores.

Unfortunately there is no bare metal restore capability, but with the speed of modern OS installations (ie Windows 2008 and Windows 7) and alternatives such as Windows Deployment Services it would still be feasible to quickly reinstall an operating system or SOE onto bare metal and then use GFI Backup to recover all of the user data for that system.

Overall Impression

GFI delivers on the ease of use promise with only a few trade offs.  I found myself looking for the type of features and settings that I normally see in enterprise class backup products, but quickly realised that the ones that aren’t there are not really necessary for most small to medium businesses anyway.

The lack of support for Exchange and Active Directory backups makes GFI Backup less suited to Windows Small Business Server networks.  Theoretically you could use pre and post tasks in GFI Backup to run scripted Windows Backups first, and then backup those files using GFI Backup but that adds a little too much complexity for my liking.

You could also use Windows Backup for those components and GFI Backup for everything else but again that detracts from the ease of use benefits of GFI Backup.

My only other complaint was the lightbox effect in the web administration console, which could perform poorly when remotely supporting clients over low bandwidth connections.

Overall I would consider GFI Backup Business Edition and good backup solution for the small or medium sized business that runs email and other applications in the cloud, and needs a simple backup solution for their Windows PC’s, file servers, and database servers.

Related posts:

• How to Set Up an Automated Exchange 2010 Database Backup Alert Email
• Avoid Running Out of Transaction Log Disk Space on Exchange Servers
• PowerShell Script: Check Exchange 2010 Database Backups
• Exchange 2010: Are Passive Database Copies Included in Backups of DAG Members?
• Review: Exchange Server 2010 Backup and Recovery Training

This article Review of GFI Backup Business Edition is © 2010 ExchangeServerPro.com

Get more Exchange Server tips at ExchangeServerPro.com

• First Prize (50 licenses) – Jay (via comment)
• Runner Up (25 licenses) – Chris Muncy (via Twitter)

Congratulations to the winners, and I hope you enjoy your spam free 2010.

And thanks again to GFI Software for kindly donating the prizes for this competition.

Related posts:

• GFI MailEssentials Giveaway Contest Closes Soon
• Win GFI MailEssentials for Your Business
• Review of GFI MailEssentials
• Exchange Server Archiving: Review of GFI MailArchiver
• Review of GFI Backup Business Edition

This article GFI MailEssentials Winners is © 2010 ExchangeServerPro.com

Get more Exchange Server tips at ExchangeServerPro.com

You can enter by commenting on this post or sending out a Twitter message about the contest.  In fact if you do both you get two entries in the draw!

First prize is a 50 user license pack for GFI MailEssentials, and the runner up will receive a 25 user license pack.

Check out the contest page for full details.

The contest closes at midnight on January 31st, Australian EST.

Related posts:

• GFI MailEssentials Winners
• Win GFI MailEssentials for Your Business
• Review of GFI MailEssentials
• Exchange Server Archiving: Review of GFI MailArchiver
• Review of GFI Backup Business Edition

This article GFI MailEssentials Giveaway Contest Closes Soon is © 2010 ExchangeServerPro.com

Get more Exchange Server tips at ExchangeServerPro.com

The Solution to Your Spam Problems

GFI Software has provided two license packs for GFI MailEssentials to give away here at ExchangeServerPro.com in our Spam Free 2010 contest.

GFI MailEssentials is the #1 anti-spam solution used by over 80,000 customers worldwide.  Read the review here, or check out the GFI Software website for even more details.

The Prizes

For this contest there is a first prize and one runner up prize.

• First prize is a 50 user license pack
• Runner up is a 25 user license pack

How to Enter

You can win one of the two license packs simply by doing the following between now and January 31st.

Get one entry by leaving a comment on this blog post below saying why you’d like to win GFI MailEssentials for your business. Include your email in the comment so you can be notified if you are a winner (email addresses are not publicly displayed).

Get a second entry by following @ExchServPro on Twitter and sending a Tweet with the hashtag #spamfree2010 and a link to this blog post.  Click here to automatically send a pre-written Tweet or copy and paste the sample below (or write your own!).

Win free email spam protection from GFI Software http://bit.ly/5W6pja #spamfree2010

Make sure you keep following @ExchServPro on Twitter so that you can be notified via Direct Message if you are a winner.

The contest closes at midnight on January 31st, Australian EST. The winner will be chosen by collating all blog comment and Twitter entries into a numbered list and using Random.org to generate the winning numbers.

Image Credit: Flickr

Related posts:

• GFI MailEssentials Winners
• GFI MailEssentials Giveaway Contest Closes Soon
• Review of GFI MailEssentials
• Exchange Server Archiving: Review of GFI MailArchiver
• Review of GFI Backup Business Edition

This article Win GFI MailEssentials for Your Business is © 2010 ExchangeServerPro.com

Get more Exchange Server tips at ExchangeServerPro.com

MailEssentials boasts 99% accuracy for spam detection thanks to its two anti-spam engines, and at the same time a very low rate of false positives thanks to Bayesian filtering.  The software also includes several useful email management features such as disclaimers, auto-responders, and archiving.

Installing GFI MailEssentials

The latest version 14.1 of MailEssentials is compatible with both Exchange Server 2007 and 2010, or can be installed on a standalone SMTP server.

When installing on an Exchange server most of the pre-requisites will aready have been met, but you may find you need to install the MAPI Client and Collaboration Data Objects available from Microsoft’s download site as well.  The installer can also automatically install the MSMQ pre-requisite if you haven’t already installed it.

The installation is then a breeze with the only significant choice being whether to enable Active Directory integration or to install MailEssentials as a DMZ server with no AD access.

After the installation is finished an intial configuration wizard is launched.  Here you can specify the SMTP domains to protect with MailEssentials.

The Exchange Server roles are automatically detected and that determines which of the MailEssentials components get installed.

The initial configuration wizard only takes a moment to finish, and GFI MailEssentials is now set up and ready for use.

Key Features of GFI MailEssentials

Anti-Spam Protection

The default configuration of MailEssentials provides immediate spam detection using the SpamRazer engine, phishing protection, and prevention of directory harvest attacks.  The server is also configured with DNS RBL services and default sender and keyword filtering policies to block well known spam patterns.

Bayesian training is automatically enabled and monitors outgoing emails.  This helps the Bayesian filter learn what sort of email content is likely to be legitimate for the organization.  When this intelligence is combined with the frequent spam data updates from GFI it keeps false positives to an absolute minimum.

Administrative Features

Administrative burden is greatly reduced by offering end user self-service options via the Exchange Public Folders.  Email users can help train the Bayesian filter using drag-and-drop to move email items between different Public Folders which then tells the server whether the item is spam or not.

In addition when spam is detected it can be delivered to folders within the user mailbox or the Public Folder store, giving users access to the quarantine to review their own spam.

Reporting and Monitoring

GFI MailEssentials includes a real-time monitoring dashboard as well as an easy to use reporting interface so that you can measure the performance of its anti-spam features.

Email Management Features

One of the best features MailEssentials provides for Exchange Server 2007 environments is email disclaimers that can be configured on a per-domain or per-user basis.

Exchange Server 2007 can do disclaimers using Transport Rules but these are limited to text only, whereas GFI MailEssentials permits HTML disclaimers and a set of variables that can be used to create much richer, more dynamic disclaimers.

The MailEssentials disclaimer feature also continues to work after the product trial period has ended, so it can be used as a free disclaimer add-on for any Exchange 2007 or 2010 environment.

GFI MailEssential is available as a full featured 30 day trial for download from GFI Software. MailEssentials is also available as a free email disclaimer tool for Exchange Server 2007 and 2010.

Related posts:

• Exchange Server Archiving: Review of GFI MailArchiver
• Understanding the Exchange Server Spam Confidence Level
• Generate SMTP Error Statistics using Log Parser and Exchange Server 2010 Protocol Logs
• Calculate Hourly Email Traffic using Message Tracking Logs and Log Parser
• Calculate Daily Email Traffic using Message Tracking Logs and Log Parser

This article Review of GFI MailEssentials is © 2010 ExchangeServerPro.com

Get more Exchange Server tips at ExchangeServerPro.com

A typical business network is made up of many computers each of which represents a potential security hole for the network.  As networks grow the effort to manage these security risks grows as well.  Although different vendors provide management tools specific to their products these do little to reduce the administrative burden of managing all of the different elements of the network.

GFI LANguard offers a single, centralized solution for IT administrators to scan the computers and servers on the network to detect and resolve security threats.  GFI LANguard is available both as a licensed product for larger networks, and also as a free, full featured version for scanning up to 5 IP addresses.

Read the full tutorial here.

Related posts:

• Exchange 2010 FAQ: Are Wildcard SSL Certificates Supported?
• Email Fundamentals: What is an Open Relay?
• Exchange SSL Certificate Management Survey
• Exchange 2010: How to Grant Send on Behalf Permissions for a Distribution Group
• Exchange 2010 Shared Calendar Permissions and Nested Groups

This article GFI LANGuard Tutorial is © 2009 ExchangeServerPro.com

Get more Exchange Server tips at ExchangeServerPro.com

Despite the attention paid toward protecting computers from viruses and spam there is often little attention given to the threat presented by common, everyday web browsing.  When internet access is made available to staff with no restrictions in place it opens up the business to several risks such as:

•    Viruses and other malware downloaded from websites
•    Inappropriate content such as pornography accessed by staff
•    “Cyberslacking”, or wasting time on non-work related websites and instant messaging

GFI WebMonitor for ISA Server solves these problems for business by providing comprehensive security features that can scan file downloads for malware, limit or block access to undesirable websites, and prevent instant messaging communication.  By installing GFI WebMonitor on your Microsoft ISA Server firewall or web proxy you can prevent viruses from getting inside of your network and improve staff productivity.

Read the full tutorial here.

Related posts:

• Exchange Server Archiving: Review of GFI MailArchiver
• Exchange 2010 Edge Transport Server: Configuring EdgeSync
• How to Publish Outlook Web App with ISA Server 2006
• Publishing Exchange 2010 POP3 with ISA Server 2006
• Review of GFI Backup Business Edition

This article GFI Web Monitor Tutorial is © 2009 ExchangeServerPro.com

Get more Exchange Server tips at ExchangeServerPro.com