Technology FAQ’s

Select your topic of interest to skip to the applicable Q&A's.

Q:  Can I incorporate my existing archive into Mimecast?

A:  Yes, you will need to export the data to a specific set of formats (usually PST or EML) and an extra charge will apply.

Q:  Can we have our data back at any time?

A:  Yes, our contract with you has a specific clause to make this possible. Data will be given to you on a media of the day, fully indexed in EML format with a useful search engine.

Q:  Are you able to export my data annually to media?

A:  Yes, as per the previous answer, but a professional service fee would apply.

Q:  How quickly will we be connected to Mimecast?

A:  Your business can be protected by Mimecast within hours. Seven days is our best practice implementation schedule.

Q:  How much configuration is necessary to deploy Mimecast?

A:  Mimecast requires very little configuration by you. We require outbound smtp to be configured on day one, inbound smtp on day seven (mx record change) and then journaling (for archiving customers) and LDAP(s) access.

Q:  Will I need training?

A:  Possibly not, our service is intuitive.  But Mimecast’s Connect Team ensure you are given an ‘account tour’ towards the end of your implementation, so you understand how you can control your Mimecast account.

Q:  Can I migrate policies from other solutions?

A:  Yes, Mimecast’s Connect Team will help you move policies from other services and applications during your implementation.

Q:  Why and how does Mimecast integrate with Active Directory?

A:  Mimecast uses a standard LDAP (TCP/389) or LDAP(s) (TCP/636) connection to sync data from your AD. We do this, primarily to validate recipient addresses and OU structures, but also (if required) to extract other information such as attributes for disclaimers. Mimecast typically syncs data every 12 hours.

Q:  Does Mimecast have a journaling function?

A:  Yes, Mimecast uses standard Microsoft Exchange envelope journaling to ‘pull’ messages from Exchange into our archive.

Q:  Are there any bandwidth implications?

A:  Not usually, in fact most customers find their email delivery performance is improved. Remember that with our security and attachment controls we can in fact give you back more bandwidth. (eg we can strip and link large files to lighten the load on your email server).

Q:  Will you tell us your data-centre ranges so we can reconfigure our firewall?

A:  Yes, this information is made available as part of the implementation process.

Q:  Are we able to encrypt email?

A:  Yes, Mimecast provides you with a complete set of encryption tools – we use TLS (SSL for SMTP) so you can set up gateway to gateway policies.

Q:  Can I see the contents of spam Mimecast blocks?

A:  No, Mimecast's security SLA (100% Anti-Virus, 99.5% Anti-Spam, Zero content-based false positives) works in protocol, therefore it will drop the connection if detecting malicious activity and will leaving spam/viruses/phishing at source.

Q:  What if the sender tries to send me an email and it gets blocked because of the content?

A:  Mimecast will only scan for content when information policies are applied. We do not scan the content of a message to determine whether or not it is spam or viral.

Q:  What if the sender is on an RBL, can they still email me?

A:  Yes, if you have already emailed them. Mimecast’s auto whitelist technology means your regular contacts are whitelisted from all the anti-spam checks (except for viruses of course) to ensure legitimate mail is delivered.

Q:  You say you reject in protocol, what if this is a genuine contact?

A:  Mimecast’s auto whitelist makes sure all your regular contacts are excluded from certain checks. In the instance a contact is trying to email you and there might be a problem, we will always make their mail server reject the mail back to the user with an NDR.

Q:  How secure is Mimecast?

A:  Very, our defense-in-depth security means we provide more security and resilience that would be possible or affordable onsite. Our systems reside in high security data centres with several levels of resilience and physical and virtual security measures built in.

Q:  What sort of anti-virus technology do you use?

A:  We try to remain very discreet about our services and are not in the game of marketing the technology. Needless to say Mimecast offers a 100% anti-virus SLA that is achievable by using a mix of several different types of scanning engines.

Q:  Is my email encrypted when it’s stored with you?

A:  Yes, Mimecast runs in a 256bit encrypted bubble and your email is encrypted with a key specific to your account.

Q:  Am I able to apply my own content and attachment controls?

A:  Yes, Mimecast provides and extensive set of tools, that allow your organization to control both content and attachments in and outbound on a group or per user setting.

Q:  You said you had an auto white list – well, what if someone's Out of Office replies to a spam or virus?

A:  Well, firstly the spam or virus would have to get through Mimecast, which is highly unlikely, then secondly the spammer would have to be checking for replies to his/her emails. These days spam is sent from spoofed addresses as the spammers don’t want a few million replies or bounces.

Q:  What if one of my “regular contacts” send me a virus?

A:  We’ll still catch it, Mimecast is 100% anti-virus.

Q:  What sort of outages is Mimecast used for?

A:  Any. Whether it be planned or unplanned outage of your primary mail server or infrastructure. 

Q:  Do we have to manually switch on Mimecast if there is an outage?

A:  No.  Mimecast automatically queues your email if your primary server is unavailable. 

Q:  What happens when the outage has been fixed? How will queued email be delivered?

A:  Mimecast will automatically trickle the queued email to your email server.

Q:  Will Mimecast help me remain compliant?

A:  Yes, Mimecast provides a set of compliance driven tools that will help you comply with all existing requirements regardless of the organization.

Q:  Do you give me the tools for compliance based activities?

A:  Yes, Mimecast gives you a complete set tools for auditing, reporting, discovery, and compliance.

Q:  Is my data secure with Mimecast?

A:  Yes, your data remains under your ownership and control. Access is controlled and all administrator activities are logged in Mimecast.

Q:  How will my end users see Mimecast?

A:  In two ways, firstly through the web GUI where continuity tools are provided, and secondly through the outlook connector which integrates with Microsoft Outlook within the desktop.

Q:  What do you mean by 'email continuity'? What do users do in an outage?

A:  Your users can log on to Mimecast from any browser and access queued new email, reply, read archived email, and send new responses.  They can continue on working despite your own infrastructure being unavailable.

Q:  Will my end users need training in the event they have to use the continuity feature?

A:  Probably not as the interface is very intuitive as its like any webmail facility. Mimecast are able to provide documentation if required.  

Q:  Is it easy for me to allow access to end users?

A:  Yes, Mimecast provide simple continuity services for email, zero downtime for email is now possible.

Q:  How do our users access their email archive?

A:  Users can log on to the Mimecast console from any browser with their Exchange credentials or DR ID to perform searches on their own archive.  They will not be able to delete from the archive, tamper with the contents of the email, or search colleagues emails.

Q:  We have years of email data, how fast is the search facility?

A:  Searches take sub-seconds.  Thanks to some clever technology called 'Stor4', Mimecast's storage grid advancements.

Q:  Do you provide documentation?

A:  Yes, online help is available through the GUI and Mimecast support team provide documents for end user deployments and usage.

Q:  Can I give my HR/Marketing/Audit team access to individual parts of Mimecast?

A:  Yes, Mimecast allows you to allocate specific access rights to administrators on a function basis.

Q:  Is that access logged?

A:  Yes, Mimecast provides fully forensic and tamper proof logging for all administrative functions and searches.

Q:  What about content viewing rights?

A:  Mimecast doesn’t assign content view by default, we leave that for you to decide and only your ‘content administrator’ can perform this escalation task.

Q:  Am I able to apply different footers or disclaimers for different groups of users?

A:  Yes, all policies within Mimecast offer granular control. You can establish different disclaimers or stationery for OU groups or even individuals.

Q:  Can you let me add my logo to emails?

A:  Yes, and we embed them rather than link them, so the reader will always see the logo.

Q:  Can I use my own templates for emails and alerts?

A:  Yes, all Mimecast’s stationary is HTML driven and entirely up to you.

Q:  Is Mimecast able to let me see who gets the most mail from Facebook, GMail and Hotmail?

A:  Yes, in fact mail from any user or domain. Mimecast provides you with a rich set of reporting tools that when combined with Message Warehouse allow you to have complete visibility over your Facebook and Freemail users.

Q:  Can I export the graphs you produce?

A:  Yes, just copy them straight from your browser.

Q:  Am I able to apply policies to OU’s and/or individuals?

A:  Yes, Mimecast allow you to apply policies to a wide variety of email variables.

Q:  Do you provide support?

A:  Yes, Mimecast provide 24x7x52 support for customers. Support SLA’s are       available for an annual fee.

Q:  Where is your support team based?

A:  Mimecast’s support team is based at our London HQ and staffed by full time employees of Mimecast both day and night. On call cover is provided by Mimecast staff also.

Q:  How do I contact support?

A:  Our support team is available by email and telephone, details of which are published on our website and the Mimecast console.

Q:  Will you help me create policies if I get stuck?

A:  Yes, Mimecast support will help you with any problems you may encounter.

Q:  Is administrator training available?

A:  Yes, Mimecast run a regular Email Administrator course, and Marketing Advantage course from our London HQ Offices.