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The best of both wo rlds As a Microsoft Small Business Specialist, installing and supporting Microsoft Small Business Server is a good choice for your clients with 5 or more users. It certainly makes a lot more sense than having all those pesky POP boxes on some random consumer ISP! However, what if there were a hosting service product designed from the ground up to work in co-operation with Microsoft Exchange, rather than attempting to provide a low-cost and poor alternative to it? Enter MessageFlow from Room101 Ltd. “ U n ro u teable addre s s” e rrors - how to avoid these It is best practice in the internet industry for a domain name to be setup with two MX record servers for relaying email. This is because when one is heavily conjested or down, the other will accept the mail instead. Most clients with a basic SBS setup will simply have a single MX record pointing directly at their ADSL line, on which Microsoft Exchange is listening to the whole world. With Room101’s “MessageFlow” service, email is first routed through one of our two Towers, thus providing a much more resilient network topology, and also ensuring that even hours of ADSL downtime will not result in emails to your client bouncing back to the sender. (In these times of uncertainty, receiving an “Unrouteable address” bounce back for any company can cast a shadow over the company’s reputation. Perhaps they went bust?) MessageFlow will store and forward emails until the ADSL connectivity problem is resolved. Mail cleaning with MessageFlow There are many good spam filtering solutions which work on Exchange Servers, so why did we build a spam filtering component into MessageFlow which works on hosted servers? Well, now that spam is about 99.9% of all emails, it can severely reduce ADSL speed if each of these emails has to come into your client’s office before being rejected. Having Exchange- based filtering is important, because it can keep a junk folder on your users’ systems which they can examine. But let’s save that for the emails which might be genuine, and let MessageFlow remove the stuff which is OBVIOUSLY spam, such as made up usernames (eg [email protected]) Basically, we cut down about 85% of spam; the remaining 15% is filtered locally. MessageFlow spam filtering techniques When it comes to spam, MessageFlow uses three methods of filtering. Firstly, our mail servers are linked 24 hours a day to some of the industry’s leading Realtime Blackhole Lists (RBLs). This type of filtering (by-reputation) is very effective, and currently our servers intercept about 3.5 million spams per month using this method. There is an opt-out which clients can use temporarily if a key contact of theirs is sending from the network of a currently blacklisted ISP . Secondly, we run the incoming emails against an up-to-date list of valid users. This beats all those “guessed email address” spammers (and there are a lot of them!) Finally, we have a proprietory content filtering system which updates every minute with news about the content of current spamming campaigns. A typical spam mailshot these days is a billion or more recipients - unless your client is in the first 1000 or so emails spammed to, MessageFlow will recognise the content of a spam which may have made it past the other checks. It can then either wipe it, tag it or dump it in a special SpamBox webmail system for the client’s perusal, should they wonder if a genuine email has been wrongly intercepted. (Tagging is great for testing purposes, or whilst the client is getting used to the system). Wh at are the limitations of Me s s a g e Fl ow ? We recognise that clients and resellers hate “per user” charges, therefore, we charge instead per block of 5 domain names. Additional blocks of 5 domain names can be added to the basic service for £50 +VAT. The Me s s a g e Fl ow pricing options The recommended resale price of MessageFlow is £250 +VAT per annum. There is no setup fee. However, we’ve found thusfar that most of the signups have been through IT Support Companies, who are reselling the product to their own clients. For these, we’ve introduced a generous reseller discount of 30%, making your price £175 + VAT per annum. Room 101, Erico House, 93-99 Upper Richmond Road, Putney, London SW15 2TG Tel: 0845 0036 101 Fax: 0845 0037 101 email: [email protected] www.room101.co.uk Information sheet: Using the Room101 “MessageFlow” service to clean up your email Call Richard Fincher now 0845 0036 101 Room101 internet services 08

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Page 1: Message Flow

The best of both wo rlds

As a Microsoft Small Business Specialist,installing and supporting MicrosoftSmall Business Server is a good choicefor your clients with 5 or more users. Itcertainly makes a lot more sense thanhaving all those pesky POP boxes onsome random consumer ISP! However,

what if there were a hosting service product designed from theground up to work in co-operation with Microsoft Exchange,rather than attempting to provide a low-cost and pooralternative to it? Enter MessageFlow from Room101 Ltd.

“ U n ro u teable addre s s” e rrors - how to avoid these

It is best practice in the internet industry for a domain name tobe setup with two MX record servers for relaying email. This isbecause when one is heavily conjested or down, the other willaccept the mail instead. Most clients with a basic SBS setup willsimply have a single MX record pointing directly at their ADSLline, on which Microsoft Exchange is listening to the wholeworld. With Room101’s “MessageFlow” service, email is firstrouted through one of our two Towers, thus providing a muchmore resilient network topology, and also ensuring that evenhours of ADSL downtime will not result in emails to your clientbouncing back to the sender. (In these times of uncertainty,receiving an “Unrouteable address” bounce back for anycompany can cast a shadow over the company’s reputation.Perhaps they went bust?) MessageFlow will store and forwardemails until the ADSL connectivity problem is resolved.

Mail cleaning with Me s s a g e Fl ow

There are many good spam filtering solutions which work onExchange Servers, so why did we build a spam filteringcomponent into MessageFlow which works on hosted servers?Well, now that spam is about 99.9% of all emails, it can severelyreduce ADSL speed if each of these emails has to come intoyour client’s office before being rejected. Having Exchange-based filtering is important, because it can keep a junk folder onyour users’ systems which they can examine. But let’s save thatfor the emails which might be genuine, and let MessageFlowremove the stuff which is OBVIOUSLY spam, such as made upusernames (eg [email protected]) Basically, we cutdown about 85% of spam; the remaining 15% is filtered locally.

Me s s a g e Fl ow spam filte ring te c h n i q u e s

When it comes to spam, MessageFlow uses three methods offiltering. Firstly, our mail servers are linked 24 hours a day tosome of the industry’s leading Realtime Blackhole Lists (RBLs).This type of filtering (by-reputation) is very effective, andcurrently our servers intercept about 3.5 million spams permonth using this method. There is an opt-out which clients canuse temporarily if a key contact of theirs is sending from thenetwork of a currently blacklisted ISP .

Secondly, we run the incoming emails against an up-to-date listof valid users. This beats all those “guessed email address”spammers (and there are a lot of them!)

Finally, we have a proprietory content filtering system whichupdates every minute with news about the content of currentspamming campaigns. A typical spam mailshot these days is abillion or more recipients - unless your client is in the first 1000

or so emails spammed to, MessageFlowwill recognise the content of a spamwhich may have made it past the otherchecks. It can then either wipe it, tag it ordump it in a special SpamBox webmailsystem for the client’s perusal, should theywonder if a genuine email has beenwrongly intercepted. (Tagging is great fortesting purposes, or whilst the client is

getting used to the system).

Wh at are the limitations of Me s s a g e Fl ow ?

We recognise that clients and resellers hate “per user” charges,therefore, we charge instead per block of 5 domain names.Additional blocks of 5 domain names can be added to the basicservice for £50 +VAT.

The Me s s a g e Fl ow pricing options

The recommended resale price of MessageFlow is £250 + VATper annum. There is no setup fee. However, we’ve found thusfarthat most of the signups have been through IT SupportCompanies, who are reselling the product to their own clients.For these, we’ve introduced a generous reseller discount of 30%,making your price £175 + VAT per annum.

Room 101, Erico House, 93-99 Upper Richmond Road,Putney, London SW15 2TG

Tel: 0845 0036 101 Fax: 0845 0037 101email: [email protected] www.room101.co.uk

Information sheet:

Using the Room101“MessageFlow” serviceto clean up your email

Call Richard Fincher now 0845 0036 101Room101internet services

08

Page 2: Message Flow

Room 101, Erico House, 93-99 Upper Richmond Road,Putney, London SW15 2TG

Tel: 0845 0036 101 Fax: 0845 0037 101email: [email protected] www.room101.co.uk

Information sheet:

Using the Room101“MessageFlow” serviceto clean up your email

Call Richard Fincher now 0845 0036 101Room101internet services