Gmail 25 GB limit and Kludge-like workaround bespeak a need for an Archive of existing email
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DerekShaw
Oct 16, 2012, 7:47:32 PM10/16/12
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One of my clients, a lawyer, recently ran into the 25 GB limit on Gmail. To say we were gobsmacked to find out that google doesn't want to keep his business is to understate the case dramatically.
He needs his email archive searchable and in one place. He's quite happy to pay for the storage. What's not acceptable is the cartoonish "workaround" of turning his existing account into an archive account and carrying on with a new account. Especially when he has unused space in google drive.
He is not interested in the (apparently) current options of "archiving" incoming and outgoing messages. He wants to put is older message into a (searchable, this is google) archive. He'd be happy to move 98% of his mail to google drive and live with a smaller gmail account.
this is, sadly, not available to him.
And please don't suggest stripping the attachments from the emails and putting them in the gdrive. We went through that with Eudora, and the most loyal of my clients gave up on that 18 years ago.
Local storage/archiving is not an option. This is truly a cloud user, and we can't make it work.
If there is a way available, or there is going to be a way available, please let us know.
The alternative is what drove us to google in the first place -- managing his own collaboration server.
He needs his email archive searchable and in one place. He's quite happy to pay for the storage. What's not acceptable is the cartoonish "workaround" of turning his existing account into an archive account and carrying on with a new account. Especially when he has unused space in google drive.
He is not interested in the (apparently) current options of "archiving" incoming and outgoing messages. He wants to put is older message into a (searchable, this is google) archive. He'd be happy to move 98% of his mail to google drive and live with a smaller gmail account.
this is, sadly, not available to him.
And please don't suggest stripping the attachments from the emails and putting them in the gdrive. We went through that with Eudora, and the most loyal of my clients gave up on that 18 years ago.
Local storage/archiving is not an option. This is truly a cloud user, and we can't make it work.
If there is a way available, or there is going to be a way available, please let us know.
The alternative is what drove us to google in the first place -- managing his own collaboration server.
Mally Mclane
Oct 17, 2012, 3:30:17 AM10/17/12
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Derek
I sympathise with you, we are moving to Google as a University (some 10,000 users) and we will hit this limit at some point. We can't even, as an EDU, buy extra storage and manage it centrally for apps like drive.
Unfortunately though, this forum is for help on Google APIs, it is unlikely you will get help here for your problem.
I believe there are 3rd party apps in the Apps Marketplace that can help someway to what you want, you may find mileage looking there.
Mally
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Alexandre Jacquet
Oct 20, 2012, 10:03:45 AM10/20/12
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The solution recommended in this case is to rename the account to _back or _old create a new, and delegate to the user, if you want you could also migrate a small percentage, it is not the best solution however it is the workaround offered.
Other solution it is, like Mally said, a 3rd party tool.
Alexandre Jacquet
System Administrator
Oct 20, 2012, 12:22:46 PM10/20/12
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Thanks Alexandre and Mally.
At the start let me acknowledge that you are not part of Google, so this is not addressed to you, but to someone, anyone in Google who might be paying attention. I also realize "this is not the place", but there does not seem to be any place for such an issue. So "Hail Mary":
The delegated account is is the "recommended solution" that left us gobsmacked.
The lawyer in question is understandably very nervous about leaving a chain of delegated accounts as he reaches the 25GB limit in each one. As one simple example -- what happens to conversations (negotiations) if he starts a new account? Some of these negotiations extend over a decade.
The "Google Apps Management" team need to beef up Google's mail archiving functions.
This is a real-world need that Google already has the resources in place to meet (and has clients who are willing to pay), but hasn't connected the dots. I refer, of course, to Google Drive, with 16TB of storage on offer, side-by-side with Google Apps mail limited to 25GB. Someone needs to do some design and coding!
I have lots of lawyers using solutions like zimbra (and exchange) for whom I can't, in good conscience, recommend google apps because of this particular (and particularly myopic) oversight (leaving aside the confidentiality concerns).
This particular lawyer, being a specialist and not part of a big firm, stopped maintaining his own imap server a couple of years ago for the benefits of greater accessibility (and google's search function). Google has him hooked with the search function for a while longer, but as we get to the next 25 GB limit, you can bet he'll be seriously considering a move back to his own server, probably a co-lo zimbra solution. Especially if the "delegate account" solution proves at all awkward.
I estimate Google have about 18-20 months to get a decent email archiving function working (or increase the 25GB limit), or lose this particular client. And lose any chance of recruiting other large-scale email users from my base of clients.
d.
At the start let me acknowledge that you are not part of Google, so this is not addressed to you, but to someone, anyone in Google who might be paying attention. I also realize "this is not the place", but there does not seem to be any place for such an issue. So "Hail Mary":
The delegated account is is the "recommended solution" that left us gobsmacked.
The lawyer in question is understandably very nervous about leaving a chain of delegated accounts as he reaches the 25GB limit in each one. As one simple example -- what happens to conversations (negotiations) if he starts a new account? Some of these negotiations extend over a decade.
The "Google Apps Management" team need to beef up Google's mail archiving functions.
This is a real-world need that Google already has the resources in place to meet (and has clients who are willing to pay), but hasn't connected the dots. I refer, of course, to Google Drive, with 16TB of storage on offer, side-by-side with Google Apps mail limited to 25GB. Someone needs to do some design and coding!
I have lots of lawyers using solutions like zimbra (and exchange) for whom I can't, in good conscience, recommend google apps because of this particular (and particularly myopic) oversight (leaving aside the confidentiality concerns).
This particular lawyer, being a specialist and not part of a big firm, stopped maintaining his own imap server a couple of years ago for the benefits of greater accessibility (and google's search function). Google has him hooked with the search function for a while longer, but as we get to the next 25 GB limit, you can bet he'll be seriously considering a move back to his own server, probably a co-lo zimbra solution. Especially if the "delegate account" solution proves at all awkward.
I estimate Google have about 18-20 months to get a decent email archiving function working (or increase the 25GB limit), or lose this particular client. And lose any chance of recruiting other large-scale email users from my base of clients.
d.
Mally Mclane
Oct 20, 2012, 12:25:08 PM10/20/12
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Derek
Not sure if he'd be anymore happy with it, but take a look at the Google / Postini archiving functions.
Mally
System Administrator
Oct 20, 2012, 12:44:48 PM10/20/12
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Thanks, Mally.
We did. The cumbersome nature of working with it, and its "soon to be replaced by a native google offering" status made it less interesting than it should be. Especially since the new service is not particularly available to him.
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2012/082212-postini-google-apps-261858.html
d.
We did. The cumbersome nature of working with it, and its "soon to be replaced by a native google offering" status made it less interesting than it should be. Especially since the new service is not particularly available to him.
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2012/082212-postini-google-apps-261858.html
d.
Alexandre Jacquet
Oct 20, 2012, 5:06:24 PM10/20/12
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Well, actually I had a similar scenario, with a lawyer firm, so I know exactly the issue, hehe
But the solution proposed, was to create the delegated account and even with that migrate a small amount of information to one account to the other, with that the customer would be able to keep all the business running smoothly, if he needs to access the legacy just inform how, in my humble opinion it is more a Change Management requirement than a technology, considering how much the user actually uses all that data.
Postini's GMD archive feature would be the perfect match to solve that case, however it will be discontinued and replaced by Google Vault. BUT Google Vault should not be considered as a Email Archiver solution, but a E-Discovery and Auditing solution.
I strongly agree with you that Google should start looking in a way to allow users purchase extra storage or even increasing the 25GB for Gmail, however, since theres less than 1% that requires that feature it is not as urgent as many others, but it is something to look forward in a near future.
Unfortunately, since we are only a Google Apps Management API group members, we can't predict anything, however if you have any further questions, you could address them directly to Google Support Team.
Best regards,
Alexandre Jacquet
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