I want to thank all who attended our webinar, Microsoft Exchange: Comparing Hosted vs. In-house Deployments this past Wednesday. The questions that followed the presentation were excellent and I’d like to thank all those who contributed. Two topics really resonated in the questions that I wanted to reinforce with this blog post. One, how are mobile Blackberry devices are supported and two, what if variables in the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) example were different.

Blackberry devices are an increasingly valuable tool for connecting a mobile workforce. A few things to keep in mind if you want full push-access between Exchange and a Blackberry device. Integration needs to take place between Exchange and a Blackberry server to experience the full push. A hosted Exchange provider includes this integration, without the purchase of Blackberry or Exchange server licenses, in the monthly device fees.

A TCO model is a good baseline to understand all the elements required to purchase, implement and operate a system. It is well applied in looking at Exchange, as it is more than just buying a server license and hardware. To make the right decision for your organization, you need to understand all the costs - direct, indirect and opportunity - associated with an in-house Exchange deployment. All costs structures are different and the TCO model used in the webinar (and available in the follow up whitepaper) provides you with the framework to plug-in your costs and make the right decision for you business.

You can download the entire presentation here. Download the Total Cost of Ownership White Paper here.