Overview:
Founded in 1997, Alentus Internet Services (Alentus) is an SQL and Website hosting service. According to their Website, they are relied on by some of the world’s largest companies.
Pros: Alentus offers three hosting plans – Windows, Exchange Hosting and SharePoint. If you are an organization of more than 20 mailboxes, you can qualify for a discount. With their Exchange Mail tiered service plans, you get free Outlook 2003, unlimited email aliases and public folders, DNS/MX record services, spam filtering and anti-virus protection, and Outlook Web Access. As well, the prices are pretty reasonable. Extra storage is $5/100 MB. There don’t seem to be any set-up fees for their Exchange Mail accounts, although there are fees for their mobile services.
Cons: You can sync your mobile device to your desktop; however, you will need a cable or cradle. This is different from any other company – most offer you a wireless sync. As well, you have to have one of the more expensive plans to support BlackBerries or GoodLink devices.
Detailed Provider Information:
Version of BES: Alentus uses Microsoft Exchange 2003.
Plans and Pricing: Alentus has three plans – Exchange Mail Pro, which costs $11.95 a month, offers you a number of options and features, like free Outlook 2003, unlimited email aliases and public folders, spam filtering and anti-virus protection, DNS/MX record services, and Outlook Web Access, for a low price. The mailbox is 250 MB. Exchange Mail Power 500, which is the next tier up, offers you 500 MB of disk space and all the features of the Pro account. It costs $14.95 a month. The Executive account offers you 1 GB of disk space and all the features of the Power 500 account. It costs $24.95 a month.
If you want mobile service, GoodLink costs $19.95 a user per month and has a set-up fee of $49.95. BlackBerry service costs $14.95 a month and has a set-up fee of $49.95. Windows Mobile ActiveSync comes free with both services.
Firewall Protection: Alentus has excellent security tools, including mail encryption, Kerberos authentication, digital signing and server- and client-side filtering.
Anti-Spam and Virus Protection: Updated anti-virus and anti-spam is included with all plans.
Set-up Fee: Alentus charges set-up fees of $49.95 for BES and GoodLink support.
Other Devices Supported: Alentus supports BlackBerry, Treo, and Pocket PC devices.
Customer Service: Alentus offers expert services, 24/7 support and a Tier-1 datacenter. They also have pricing in U.S. dollars, Canadian dollars, UK pounds, Australian dollars and Euros.
Backup History Storage: Alentus performs daily backups to make sure your data is safe.
Uptime Guarantee: Alentus offers a 100% uptime guarantee.
Additional Services: The company also offers Dedicated Server hosting, Website hosting, software and hosted applications.
Fee to Change BlackBerry for Current Customers: There is a $50 fee for this service, as required by RIM for Alentus.
