Choose a business email archive around the records you must capture and retrieve, rather than the amount of mailbox storage it replaces. MailStore Server suits teams prepared to operate their own archive. Barracuda combines cloud preservation and user access with a clear email-security bundle boundary. Mimecast extends the conversation to collaboration records. Proofpoint separates core archive functions from advanced discovery. Jatheon brings multiple communication channels into a cloud archive, but its written subscription terms deserve a separate review. No product listing alone establishes that a business has met its legal obligations.
What the buying decision includes
Specify the mail platforms, shared and departed-user mailboxes, historical imports, capture method, retention policies, preservation requirements and export format. Confirm what happens when capture is interrupted and who owns the exception queue. An archive supports finding and preserving records; a backup serves recovery needs. Neither a searchable mailbox copy nor a vendor compliance badge establishes that every required communication has been captured.
| Product | Operating fit | Boundary to resolve | Commercial comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| MailStore Server | Company-operated Windows email archive | Operate and protect the archive infrastructure | User license plus continuing support/update scope |
| Barracuda Cloud Archiving Service | Cloud email capture and discovery | Premium Plus in current Email Protection bundles | Quote archive-only versus complete security bundle |
| Mimecast Cloud Archive | Email plus collaboration preservation | Name the required Teams capture scope | Quote connectors, imports and discovery capabilities |
| Proofpoint Archive | Enterprise communications governance | Advanced discovery extends the base archive | Separate Archive, Discover and channel capture |
| Jatheon Cloud | Unified multi-channel cloud records | Translate marketing exit terms into the order | Per-user proposal with at least annual subscription terms |
MailStore Server
MailStore Server supports email archiving for smaller and medium-sized businesses, with journaling, search, Outlook access, auditing, retention policies and legal hold. It runs on supported Windows operating systems. It is worth considering when the organization wants to own the archive environment and already has an administrator responsible for storage, access, patching and continuity. MailStore Server official source.
The product page lists a starter license for up to five users at EUR295 plus VAT, including one year of Standard Update & Support Service. User licenses and subsequent support scope need to match the intended population. Compare server operation and protection costs alongside the license. A locally operated archive can be a reasonable choice for email-focused requirements, but it should not be compared with a managed, multi-channel cloud service as if the infrastructure work were identical. MailStore Server official source.
Barracuda Cloud Archiving Service
Barracuda Cloud Archiving Service keeps email outside the operational mail environment, with granular retention, case-specific legal hold, search and export. User access includes an Outlook add-in and access across devices. The service is useful when independent email preservation and straightforward retrieval are the main needs, without taking responsibility for running archive infrastructure. Barracuda Cloud Archiving Service official source.
In the current Email Protection package table, Cloud Archiving appears in Premium Plus, while Microsoft 365 backup is a different capability. Confirm whether the proposal is archive-only or a complete security package, and list the users, historical import, retention and export requirements. Buying a lower security tier does not imply that its backup features provide the archive workflow. Request a product-specific quote rather than borrowing a price from another Barracuda service. Barracuda Cloud Archiving Service official source.
Mimecast Cloud Archive
Mimecast Cloud Archive combines email preservation and discovery with collaboration-related use cases, including Archive for Microsoft Teams. It describes self-service discovery and preservation for IT and other record owners. This is a sensible shortlist when an email-only search would leave important business decisions in collaboration channels outside the archive. Mimecast Cloud Archive official source.
The page directs buyers to a quote. Name the channels, Teams content types, historic data and discovery functions in that proposal instead of assuming the whole catalog is included. Separate the business requirement to retrieve records from a need to keep the live mail service operating during an outage. Availability of archived messages is useful, but it does not by itself define a complete mailbox or application recovery service. Mimecast Cloud Archive official source.
Proofpoint Archive
Proofpoint Archive presents managed preservation, immutable retention, search, legal hold, export and auditability for enterprise communications. Its value is the combination of retention and controlled retrieval across a larger governance program. It is a suitable shortlist when several legal, investigative and compliance teams need clearly assigned access and a common record base. Proofpoint Archive official source.
Proofpoint Discover extends Archive with advanced eDiscovery, analytics, case management and investigative workflows. Scope that extension, communication capture and migration separately in the proposal. A base archive search is not the same entitlement as a full investigative workspace. For an email-focused small business, broader governance functionality may create unnecessary procurement scope; for a large organization, omitting it from the quote can understate the actual requirement. Proofpoint Archive official source.
Jatheon Cloud
Jatheon Cloud captures email and additional communication channels, with retention policies, role-based permissions, search, legal hold and audit trails. Its platform page describes a fixed per-user licensing model and no end-of-contract extraction charges. It deserves attention when email, chat and other business records must be searched together instead of treated as unrelated archives. Jatheon Cloud official source.
The general terms describe subscriptions prepaid for periods of at least one year, pricing specified by formal quote, and the possibility of price changes at renewal. Read these alongside the platform marketing rather than interpreting predictable pricing as a permanent price freeze. Put included channels, inactive users, imports, export formats, timing and exit charges into the order. A no-extraction-fee promise does not itself describe the work needed to ingest the export elsewhere. Jatheon Cloud official source.
Which purchase fits your operation?
Use deployment ownership as the first filter. MailStore Server fits a company-operated archive; the cloud products shift that operational responsibility to a service. Within the cloud shortlist, Barracuda has a visible security-bundle boundary, Mimecast makes collaboration scope important, Proofpoint separates advanced discovery, and Jatheon requires careful alignment of platform promises with the annual order. Prefer the narrowest package that captures the required records and supports the actual retrieval workflow, with expansion and exit terms made explicit.
Request one end-to-end description from capture through export, including failed capture handling, departed users, preservation permissions and the final data format. Have the responsible records owner map those capabilities to the organization’s policies. Product features support that process; they do not select retention periods or certify compliance for every jurisdiction. Pricing should cover the record lifecycle, not only the current employee count.
For related decisions, compare business email hosting and Microsoft 365 backup services.
By Toolverly Editorial, with AI-assisted research and drafting. Product information checked October 31, 2026.
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