Commtouch vs Forefront Online - which is better

talbers · 11-16-2011, 08:17 PM

I have come to the conclusion that my spam blocker isn't doing a good enough job so I need some alternatives. Up until last week I was using VIPRE for Exchange but I was having trouble with missing email so they 'upgraded' me to GFI MailEssentials. Well I so far the reporting is much better but that doesn't do much good unless the SPAM Filter is working properly. I had a couple of instances where Distribution group email was not being distributed. I finally called Microsoft today and of course they are claiming that the SPAM filter agent is causing the issues. Of course the issue is intermittent and very hard to reproduce, yeah! I am going to end up turning off GFI so I can either prove or disprove them but if indeed GFI is the culprit it is gone, it may be gone anyway as it just doesn't feel like an enterprise product to me.

I need some opinions on both Commtouch and Forefront online. If I purchase Commtouch is that enough to block all the SPAM without another product on the Exchange Server and would I need to purchase Kaparsky for the virus side of emails? How is the reporting in Commtouch? Basically the product I choose must be able to tell me what happened with each email and keep those records for at least a month.

Any and all help is appreciated.

sky-knight · 11-16-2011, 09:09 PM

Untangle's reporting isn't perfect, but it's complete enough to give you a picture of what's going on. Also, the linux under the hood grants you a pile of tools to troubleshoot anything you could possibly want to troubleshoot. If you're willing to buckle down and learn the tools.

Personally, I don't use spam filtration features on a mail server that is protected by Untangle. The only thing I do on the mail server anymore is configure domain or e-mail drops because Untangle doesn't have a manual black list feature that's easy to access.

Also, at default settings, I can count on one hand how many false positives I've seen in three years.

talbers · 11-17-2011, 04:36 AM

I have no problem leaning something new. So if I understand you correctly linux keeps a log file for the spam module that is more complete than the spam blocker module? If that is the case where is the log file and is there any trick to reading it, or is it just a text file? The next thing will be how long does the log file stick around.
So do you use Commtouch or just spam blocker?

11-16-2011, 08:17 PM	#1 (permalink)
talbers Master Untangler Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 181	Commtouch vs Forefront Online - which is better I have come to the conclusion that my spam blocker isn't doing a good enough job so I need some alternatives. Up until last week I was using VIPRE for Exchange but I was having trouble with missing email so they 'upgraded' me to GFI MailEssentials. Well I so far the reporting is much better but that doesn't do much good unless the SPAM Filter is working properly. I had a couple of instances where Distribution group email was not being distributed. I finally called Microsoft today and of course they are claiming that the SPAM filter agent is causing the issues. Of course the issue is intermittent and very hard to reproduce, yeah! I am going to end up turning off GFI so I can either prove or disprove them but if indeed GFI is the culprit it is gone, it may be gone anyway as it just doesn't feel like an enterprise product to me. I need some opinions on both Commtouch and Forefront online. If I purchase Commtouch is that enough to block all the SPAM without another product on the Exchange Server and would I need to purchase Kaparsky for the virus side of emails? How is the reporting in Commtouch? Basically the product I choose must be able to tell me what happened with each email and keep those records for at least a month. Any and all help is appreciated.

11-16-2011, 09:09 PM	#2 (permalink)
sky-knight Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Phoenix, AZ URLs submitted: 8 Posts: 15,464	Untangle's reporting isn't perfect, but it's complete enough to give you a picture of what's going on. Also, the linux under the hood grants you a pile of tools to troubleshoot anything you could possibly want to troubleshoot. If you're willing to buckle down and learn the tools. Personally, I don't use spam filtration features on a mail server that is protected by Untangle. The only thing I do on the mail server anymore is configure domain or e-mail drops because Untangle doesn't have a manual black list feature that's easy to access. Also, at default settings, I can count on one hand how many false positives I've seen in three years. __________________ Rob Sandling, BS:SWE, MCP Intouch Technology Phone: 480-272-9889 rob@intouchtechllc.com UntangleAppliances.com Phone: 866-794-8879

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11-17-2011, 04:36 AM	#3 (permalink)
talbers Master Untangler Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 181	I have no problem leaning something new. So if I understand you correctly linux keeps a log file for the spam module that is more complete than the spam blocker module? If that is the case where is the log file and is there any trick to reading it, or is it just a text file? The next thing will be how long does the log file stick around. So do you use Commtouch or just spam blocker?