How to choose an AI email archive
A business email archive collects messages and attachments and makes them searchable over time. CercaPosta combines connected mailboxes and imported archives with text search and AI answers with citations. Start your evaluation with the sources you need, the documents you want to find and where you want your data stored.
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Which mailboxes and archives can I collect?
CercaPosta connects Microsoft 365, on-premises Exchange Server, Gmail and IMAP or POP3 mailboxes. It imports PST, EML, mbox and ZIP files. Incremental synchronisation captures new messages; deduplication avoids unnecessary copies. Before a migration, check archive volume, mailbox count and file formats.
Can I find text inside PDFs and scans?
CercaPosta indexes email bodies and text extracted from attachments, including PDFs and Office documents. OCR recognises text in scans and images. Results also depend on document readability: a blurred image, an encrypted file or an unreadable format may need review.
For example, you can search for a clause inside an attached contract even when it does not appear in the email subject.
How do AI answers with sources work?
CercaPosta first finds relevant passages in the archive and uses them to build an answer. This is called RAG: retrieval-augmented generation. Citations link answers to accessible emails and attachments so you can check the context, dates and original wording.
A possible question is: “Which renewal terms did we agree with this supplier?”. Answers depend on available documents and the user’s permissions; check the sources before making decisions.
Cloud or on-premises: what changes?
| Aspect | Managed cloud | On-premises |
|---|---|---|
| Infrastructure | Provider-managed environment | Environment chosen by the organisation |
| Operations | Services defined in the plan and agreement | Responsibilities and support defined per project |
| AI | Services available in the configuration | Configurable endpoints, including local or private models |
| Initial assessment | Users, storage and features | Also servers, backups and maintenance |
The right choice depends on your organisation. Explore private deployment with CercaPosta and agree on requirements and responsibilities before deployment.
How are archives protected?
CercaPosta separates data by user and supports encryption, two-factor authentication, revocable sessions and audit logs. Folders can be shared read-only with explicit permissions. Archiving keeps a copy of messages; with POP3, keep “Leave on server” enabled to preserve the source mailbox. Follow-up reminders use a separate flow under human control.
A searchable archive does not replace a backup strategy. Define retention, access and recovery requirements for your organisation. Read CercaPosta’s privacy policy.
What should I check in an evaluation?
- Choose a representative sample of emails, PDFs and scans.
- Check imports, duplicates and unprocessed messages.
- Search for information whose location you already know.
- Ask the AI questions and open its cited sources.
- Check access, sharing and use across web, mobile and desktop.
- Compare storage, users, AI allowances and included services.
Current prices are in the CercaPosta plans. To assess alternatives, see the comparison with MailStore, Purview and Google Vault, including sources and review date.
Essential glossary
- OCR
- Recognition of text inside an image or scanned document.
- Full-text search
- Search across indexed email and attachment text, beyond the subject and sender.
- RAG
- Using documents retrieved by search to build an AI answer linked to its sources.
- Deduplication
- Recognising messages already acquired to avoid unnecessary copies.
- On-premises
- Deployment on infrastructure chosen and controlled by the organisation.