Does Microsoft SharePoint make a good email archiving solution?
I recently overheard an Exchange Server administrator mention that he was using Microsoft
SharePoint for email archiving. This struck me as odd, since SharePoint isn't designed as a message
repository. I decided to look into how SharePoint could be used as an email archiving solution and
if it's even a good idea.
To test this, I devised my own method for using SharePoint as a message repository that allows
you to email enable lists and libraries. By doing so, you can add an item to a list or library by
emailing it to a dedicated email address.
It seems that I could create a dedicated SharePoint list that could be used solely for storing
message archives. It's then possible to create an Exchange 2007 transport rule that sends a copy of
every message that flows through
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This was first published in April 2009
the transport pipeline to the email address associated with the
list. It takes some work to make this configuration work, but the concept behind it is quite
simple.
Advantages of using SharePoint for email archiving
Now that we see how you can use Microsoft SharePoint for an email archiving solution, the next
question is should you? Here are some advantages:
Disadvantages of using SharePoint for email archiving
Using Microsoft SharePoint to archive email messages in an Exchange environment seems to have
several benefits. However, you should also consider these disadvantages.
- SharePoint wasn't designed as an archiving solution, so some features that are standard in most
archiving products don't exist in SharePoint.
Most archiving products allow you to freeze archives in order to prevent messages from expiring.
You'll need this feature if your archives are subpoenaed. This capability is available in
SharePoint, but you have to build it.
-
- SharePoint email archival can affect system performance. SharePoint servers typically contain
multiple libraries, lists and sites. Message archiving tends to be a demanding function that can
negatively affect the performance of other sites, lists and libraries that are running on the
server.
If you're are seriously considering using SharePoint for message archiving and have more than a
few dozen users, you should probably use a dedicated SharePoint server and database.
-
- This technique requires the use of a dedicated email address. If a spammer or malicious user
were to discover this address, they could insert content directly into your archives -- even if
they don't have write permissions to the list. In fact, a user would not even have to be
authenticated to submit content to the archives.
About the author: Brien M. Posey, MCSE, is a five-time recipient of Microsoft's Most Valuable
Professional (MVP) award for his work with Exchange Server, Windows Server, Internet Information
Services (IIS), and File Systems and Storage. Brien has served as CIO for a nationwide chain of
hospitals and was once responsible for the Department of Information Management at Fort Knox. As a
freelance technical writer, Brien has written for Microsoft, TechTarget, CNET, ZDNet, MSD2D,
Relevant Technologies and other technology companies. You can visit Brien's personal website at www.brienposey.com.
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