Email Archiving for Microsoft 365

Microsoft 365 email archiving is a specialized service designed to store, preserve, and manage emails that are no longer actively used but need to be retained for regulatory compliance, legal discovery, and operational continuity.

The primary goal of email archiving is to secure emails in a way that they are easily accessible and retrievable over time, regardless of the original status or location of the data.

In the digital age, email communication is not only prevalent but also legally binding and critically informative. Businesses and organizations frequently face legal and regulatory requirements that necessitate the retention of emails for extended periods.

These requirements can stem from various laws and regulations, including the GDPR in the EU, HIPAA in the U.S. for health care information, or industry-specific regulations like those in the finance and legal sectors. Microsoft 365 email archiving helps organizations adhere to these regulations by maintaining a secure and searchable archive of email communications.

Microsoft 365 email archiving involves the automated transfer of email data from live servers to a dedicated archive environment. This process typically includes capturing every email sent and received across an organization, indexing the content for easy search and retrieval, and applying policies that govern the retention and deletion of emails based on legal and policy requirements.

When emails are archived, they are often stored in an immutable format, meaning they cannot be altered once saved. This ensures the integrity of the data, which is crucial for legal and compliance reasons. The archive is designed to handle large volumes of data efficiently, making it easier for IT administrators to manage email storage without compromising server performance.

Choosing Acronis for your Microsoft 365 email archiving needs offers several compelling advantages, especially for managed service providers (MSPs) aiming to deliver comprehensive data protection solutions. Here's why Acronis is a standout choice:

• Comprehensive integration: Acronis integrates seamlessly with Microsoft 365, aligning perfectly with existing Microsoft infrastructure. This ease of integration is crucial for businesses already utilizing Microsoft services, ensuring a smooth adoption and operation process.
• Enhanced security features: Acronis is renowned for robust security, incorporating advanced encryption for data at rest and in transit. This is vital for protecting sensitive archived data against unauthorized access and cyber threats.
• Powerful e-discovery and compliance tools: Acronis offers sophisticated data search and retrieval capability, necessary for legal cases and audits. These capabilities are essential for compliance in regulated industries, supporting adherence to regulations like GDPR and HIPAA.
• Scalability and flexibility: The solution scales with your business needs, whether you are a small firm or a large enterprise. Acronis allows you to adjust archiving practices as your business or regulations change, providing a flexible and scalable solution.
• Unified management platform: Acronis enables management of 25+ other workloads, including infrastructure, cloud and SaaS environments like Microsoft 365, all from a single platform. This centralized approach simplifies data management across multiple environments, making it easier for IT teams to maintain oversight and control.
• User-friendly management interface: Acronis features a centralized management console that simplifies configuring policies, monitoring system status and managing data access — all from one platform.
• Reduced TCO: By consolidating backup, cybersecurity, management and archiving into one platform, Acronis significantly reduces service delivery costs for MSPs and TCO for their end users, without compromising on functionality or security.
• Reliable support: Known for excellent support, Acronis ensures smooth operation of your service delivery platform, with assistance readily available from implementation through ongoing operations.
• Complete data protection for MSPs: Acronis enables MSPs to deliver complete, natively integrated data protection for Microsoft 365. This includes not only email archiving but also backup and recovery, email security and collaboration app security. This comprehensive approach allows MSPs to unlock new revenue streams while providing clients peace of mind that their critical Microsoft 365 data is protected.

Incorporating these elements, Acronis not only meets a wide array of regulatory and legal requirements, but also enhances data management practices while ensuring data integrity and accessibility. This makes Acronis an ideal partner for organizations and MSPs looking to enhance their service offerings and ensure comprehensive protection for their clients' data.

In summary, while both email archiving and email backup are essential for comprehensive email data management, they serve distinct purposes. Email archiving is crucial for compliance and long-term data preservation, whereas email backup is vital for protecting against data loss and ensuring business continuity. Organizations often need both solutions to fully safeguard their email data and meet all operational and regulatory requirements.