SeeTech
IMail Server proves a “mainstay application” for ISP’s hosting solution
SeeTech is a UK-based company specializing in dynamic Web site creation and hosting solutions for small to medium sized businesses. As an ISP providing domain-hosting solutions, e-mail forwarding for both its clients and internal use is a mainstay of its daily activity. Since setting up its first e-mail server in November 2001, SeeTech has used IMail Server from Ipswitch Inc. to fulfill this role.
When initially looking for an e-mail server solution, SeeTech’s Director, Glenn P. Smith, decided to evaluate IMail following a recommendation by another company, which had been using the software successfully for several years. Smith was impressed by a trial of the software, finding IMail Server to be feature-packed and very flexible. “It was also at a great price” said Smith. “As we were a new company at the time, this was very important to us.”
SeeTech evaluated several similar e-mail server solutions but found none of the similarly-priced products to have as many features or the same level of flexibility as IMail Server. Smith also found that other products could not match IMail’s ease of use, which delivered significant time savings by simplifying routine tasks. These factors confirmed the decision to purchase IMail Server.
SeeTech purchased a 250-user license and a service agreement for just £900 or roughly $1500 USD, an investment that soon proved its value. “IMail immediately became one of the fundamental business applications of our hosting solution,” said Smith, “It’s ideal for letting us forward our clients’ e-mail to their dial-up ISP e-mail account for collection.”
SeeTech’s service allows clients to consolidate e-mail from multiple registered domain names. Using IMail Server’s multi-domain support, SeeTech has in excess of 150 domains running on its server. By implementing virtual hosts, IMail Server will scale up to thousands of different domains on a single server, giving SeeTech room to accommodate future growth in its client base.
In addition to e-mail forwarding, SeeTech utilizes IMail’s Web messaging function to meet the messaging requirements of staff, who use the feature to access company e-mail from any Web browser.
Working over long distances is a fact of life for SeeTech, which keeps its physical IT infrastructure 250 miles away from its head office in its Nottingham-based data centre. It therefore becomes essential that all applications residing on the remote Windows 2000 server are reliable and simple to manage remotely. IMail Server has proved well suited to this environment as its console application can be run from a remote location to implement tasks and commands, troubleshoot problems and, if necessary, restart the server.
Smith found that IMail Administrator, which uses an intuitive Explorer-style interface and a range of wizards to simplify tasks, makes routine tasks and account maintenance easy.
“Maintenance of IMail Server using the Administrator is really straightforward, requiring very little effort to conduct routine maintenance. Ease-of-use means that day-to-day tasks such as setting up new accounts can be done in just a few minutes,” said Smith.
Smith particularly values this simplicity as it delivers significant time and cost savings when training new staff. Said Smith, “compared to installing more expensive products, SeeTech saved around £2000 (approximately $3300 USD) on the initial purchase cost, but beyond this we’ve probably saved three times that by not having to train staff on complicated applications.
“IMail Server is a mainstay application of our hosting business solution, providing excellent performance and value,” concludes Mr. Smith. “By providing a quality service to our clients, SeeTech aims to continue to grow our client base. In the near future I expect that we will be upgrading our server with either a 1000- or unlimited-user license.”
