Evaluating Office 365

Wes Miller analyzes and writes about Microsoft’s security, identity management, and systems management technologies. Before joining Directions on Microsoft, Wes... more

The latest major version of Office 365 based on Exchange Server 2013, Lync Server 2013, and SharePoint Server 2013 became available in Feb. 2013 for new customers, while existing customers will be upgraded throughout 2013. Office 365’s Exchange Online and SharePoint Online services are remarkably close in capabilities to their on-premises counterparts, and the offline desktop Office suite can be updated automatically to the most current version and can be patched by Microsoft. With this release of Office 365, customers likely need to focus most on migration, legal compliance, and licensing, where technical limitations may have been a larger concern with earlier versions.

Office 365 Fundamentals

With the latest release, Office 365 business offerings consist of per-user monthly or annual subscriptions to Microsoft-hosted services, including the following:

Exchange Online, powered by Exchange Server 2013
Lync Online, powered by Lync Server 2013
SharePoint Online, powered by SharePoint

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