Dell, Symantec Go on Offense Against Out-of-Control Email; Companies Deliver First Validated Blueprint for Simplified Email Security, Management

As businesses grapple with securing and managing their ITinfrastructures, the companies today announced Secure Exchange, anend-to-end offering that takes time and complexity out of deploying asecure, reliable Microsoft Exchange environment with extensivearchiving capabilities.

Secure Exchange, an industry-first validated offering, is based onthe Microsoft Exchange expertise Dell has gained from migrating morethan four million Exchange and Active Directory mailboxes. Theoffering includes a jointly engineered reference architecture withhardware and software, expanded services and sizing tools that providea step-by-step blueprint to simplify data security, backup, recoveryand archiving.

Secure Exchange is made up of Dell PowerEdge(TM) servers,PowerVault(TM) storage, Dell/EMC storage and Symantec products,including Symantec Mail Security 8200 Series, Symantec Mail Securityfor Microsoft Exchange, Symantec Enterprise Vault, and Backup Exec.Dell services are tailored for each offering.

"Dell and Symantec are bringing together deeply integratedhardware, software and services solutions to help customers regaincontrol of rapidly growing email environments," said Brad Anderson,senior vice president, Dell Enterprise Product Group. "Secure Exchangebuilds on our ability to help customers take the complexity out ofdeploying mission-critical enterprise applications with the expertiseto tailor solutions that meet specific customer needs."

The need for effective email management is evident with the nearly84 billion emails being sent daily worldwide in 2006, according toIDC(1). Today, occurrences of viruses are commonplace and spamaccounts for 75-90 percent of an organization's email(2).Additionally, looming regulatory compliance deadlines require emailarchiving. According to Gartner, Inc., a leading industry analystfirm, 50 percent of medium-sized companies are not putting enoughfunding behind compliance activities(3).

"As email continues to be a critical business application,technology leaders must provide the tools customers need to managetheir environment more effectively so that they can concentrate onbusiness growth and customer service," said Jeremy Burton, grouppresident, Security and Data Management Group, Symantec. "The newoffering represents a compelling combination of hardware, software andservices that will help customers take control of their email."

The Secure Exchange reference architecture is a guide formid-sized customers with 500 to 2,000 users or more who want to deploysecure and available email infrastructures without the work ofcreating their own. Engineers combined hardware and software to testthe interoperability of all components and performance so customerscan predictably deploy modular or complete solutions. The knowledgeand empirical data from those efforts were applied to the ExchangeAdvisor, a Dell-designed sizing tool that enables customers to scopeconfiguration and implementation needs for performance oravailability.

Dell also expanded assessment, design, implementation and trainingservices to help customers easily deploy Microsoft Exchange andSymantec solutions. Additionally, Dell's most advanced enterprisesupport offering, Platinum Plus, as well as Gold Enterprise Support,is available to customers deploying Secure Exchange.

Availability and Pricing

Available today in the United States and Europe, the starting listprice for a 500-seat modular backup and recovery solution, includinghardware, software licenses and services, is approximately $54,678. Itincludes Dell PowerEdge 1950s, PowerVault 110T and M1000, Microsoft(R)Windows Server(TM) 2003, Microsoft(R) Exchange 2003 and SymantecBackup Exec.

Secure Exchange will be sold by Dell and will be supported andsustained by Dell and Symantec. For more information, visitwww.dell.com/secure_exchange. Extensive engineering work performed byDell and Symantec forms the basis of the Symantec Enterprise MessagingManagement for Microsoft Exchange Yellow Book, which can be found atwww.symantec.com/yellowbooks.

Today's announcement adds to Dell's existing Exchange solutionsbased on industry-leading messaging and archiving products from EMC.EMC's Centera content-addressed storage system is a highly valuedcomponent of Dell's exchange solutions that handles long-term, onlinearchiving of fixed content or unalterable data such as email. For moreinformation, visit www.dell.com/emc.

About Dell

Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL) listens to customers and deliversinnovative technology and services they trust and value. Uniquelyenabled by its direct business model, Dell sells more systems globallythan any computer company, placing it No. 25 on the Fortune 500.Company revenue for the past four quarters was $57.4 billion. For moreinformation, visit www.dell.com/RSS.

About Symantec

Symantec (NASDAQ:SYMC) is the world leader in providing solutionsto help individuals and enterprises assure the security, availability,and integrity of their information. Headquartered in Cupertino,Calif., Symantec has operations in more than 40 countries. Moreinformation is available at www.symantec.com.

Pricing, specifications, availability, and terms of offers maychange without notice. Taxes, fees, and shipping and handling chargesare extra, and vary.

Dell is a trademark of Dell Inc. Dell disclaims any proprietaryinterest in the marks and names of others. Symantec and the SymantecLogo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Symantec Corporationor its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. Other names may betrademarks of their respective owners.

1. IDC, Worldwide Email Usage 2005-2009 Forecast: Email's FutureDepends on Keeping Its Value High and Its Cost Low, Doc #34504, Dec2005.

2. Gartner Inc., April 2006, Benchmarking Anti-Spam Effectiveness,Peter Firstbrook

3. Gartner Inc., March 2006, Adapting Large-Enterprise Approachesto the Midsize, John Bace and Chuck Tucker