No doubt, Microsoft Exchange has been the best messaging service and preferred choice all over the world. But, for the last few years, Exchange On-premises has received a lot of attention regarding how to frame, work on, and retain its environment. Still, there is a gradual progression to the cloud storage space. The organization largely depends on IT to figure out whether email services should be saved on the cloud or on-premises. Then, it becomes necessary to start transmitting the future of emails and calendaring servers. The unique features of Exchange Online vs On premise are discussed in the post. Also, the major differences are explained to make a clear choice between the two.
Before selecting any one email service provider between the two, users must find answers to some of the questions related to their email ecosystem. Some of the questions that are to be considered by any organization are:
If users can find out answers to any of the queries, then it can safely be known that the company needs Exchange On premises or Office 365 Exchange Online. If these common questions are not according to the interest of the organization, then users can consider the difference between Exchange Online and on premise. It will help users to understand the preference of the organization.
Some of the factors are discussed here to compare Exchange On Premise vs Exchange Online. Users are advised to go through them in order to figure out their requirements.
Also read: Know the Comparison of Office 365 vs Office 2016
This table summarizes the key differences between Exchange Online and On-Premise Exchange across various features. So, without any further ado, just read these points & gain the precise knowledge of both the platforms:
| Features | Exchange Online | Exchange On-Premises |
| Deployment | It is Hosted on Microsoft's global data centers & it doesn’t need any physical hardware or on-site server maintenance. Plus, this offers a quick setup and deployment. | It can only installed on organization-owned servers, with requirements of dedicated hardware, software licenses, and ongoing maintenance. However, initial setup and deployment can be time-consuming. |
| Infrastructure | It utilizes Microsoft's highly redundant and geographically distributed data centers & relies on Microsoft's extensive network infrastructure for connectivity. | This relies on organization-owned servers and infrastructure & requirements of hardware procurement, installation, and maintenance. With this one beneficial feature is available i.e. Organizations have full control over the hardware specifications and configurations. |
| Maintenance | With Exchange Online, you won’t face any maintenance issues because Microsoft manages the server maintenance, including hardware, software updates, patches & upgrades. | With Exchange On-Premise, organizations are responsible for server maintenance, including hardware maintenance, software updates, patches & upgrades. |
| Scalability | Offers scalability with subscription plans that allow organizations to add or remove users easily. | Scalability is limited by the organization's hardware capacity and infrastructure. Planning for scalability involves forecasting future needs and investing in infrastructure accordingly. |
| Accessibility | One can access their data from anywhere via an internet connection. Plus, it supports various client applications, including Outlook, web browsers, and mobile apps. | It can be accessible within the organization's network or via VPN for remote access. |
| Security | Microsoft offers robust security measures to protect data privacy and confidentiality with Exchange Online. On top of that, this provides advanced threat protection features, including anti-malware, anti-phishing & enable DLP in Office 365. | Opting for this enhances the workload because users must implement security best practices, compliance standards, firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and encryption to secure the data. |
| Cost | This gives an advantage to a subscription-based pricing model with affordable monthly charges or annual fees. | Upfront costs include hardware procurement, software licenses, and installation. Remember, its cost structure depends on hardware specifications, software licenses & IT resources. |
| Integration | It can be effortlessly integrated with other Microsoft 365 services, such as SharePoint, Teams, and OneDrive. | One can integrate it only with on-premises systems and third-party applications. Also, it can interact with directory services (e.g., Active Directory) for user authentication & access control. However, custom integration solutions can be developed using APIs & development frameworks. |
| Disaster Recovery | Microsoft ensures data redundancy & disaster recovery across multiple geographically distributed data centers. Plus, geo-redundant storage options for additional data protection are also provided by this. | If you choose this, then remember disaster recovery planning is the responsibility of you. Not only this, but IT teams need to verify data integrity and availability in the event of disasters or system failures. |
| Customization | For customization, M365 includes user settings, mailbox policies & email filtering rules. | For modification tasks, it allows customizing server settings, mailbox management policies, and security configurations. Plus, this supports third-party add-ins, extensions, and integrations for extending functionality. |
Choosing between Exchange Online and On-Premise depends on the business you have. So, if you need better management, regular updates, reduced maintenance charges & accessibility from anywhere with an internet connection then you can consider the Exchange Online platform. On the other hand, On-Premise Exchange gives you complete control over your email infrastructure. Plus, according to us, it's suitable for organizations with strict security and compliance requirements or those with limited internet connectivity.
As already discussed above, there are multiple differences between Exchange Online and On-Premise. It completely depends on the organization, whether to choose cloud storage or on-premises in the context of Exchange Online vs On Premise. Although it is difficult to exit against must-have features and services, it must be carefully decided. So, I hope with the help of this discussion you will able to choose any of these approaches according to your business needs hassle-free.