Symantec Enterprise Vault is the vendor's E-mail, IM, and content archiving platform, with multiple features and options for the automatic and policy-based migration, storage, and retention of corporate data. Various extension agents listed on the vendor's site provide separate archival management features as follows:

- The Automated Classification Engine provides content-based categorization and tagging of E-mail messages.

- The Compliance Accelerator provides supervisory review capabilities for stored messages, with sampling and auditing features.

- The Content Management Connecter for EMC Documentum Retention Policy Services, the Content Management Connector for IBM Records Manager for DB2, and the Content Management Connector for Open Text LiveLink each enable users of those respective platforms to perform direct retention management of Exchange Server messages.

- The Discovery Accelerator extends the product's basic search facilities and includes export features.

- The File System Archiving agent provides support for any application that stores information in files. Archived files can be replaced with shortcuts for transparent retrieval as necessary.

- The Instant Messenger Archiving agent integrates with an embedded version of Symantec IM Manager to facilitate the capture/storage of IM, including support for Microsoft Live Communications Server (LCS), IBM/Lotus Sametime, AOL, MSN, Yahoo!, Bloomberg, Reuters and Google.

- The Microsoft Exchange PST Migrator enables the automated migration and storage of PST files.

- Microsoft Exchange Public Folder Archiving allows the archiving of public folders.

- Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Domino Mailbox Archiving provides the ability to archive individual mailboxes, with the optional replacement of the messages with shortcut links enabling transparent retrieval.

- Microsoft Exchange or Lotus Domino Journaling provide message retention capabilities.

- The User Classification Engine moves the E-mail capture and classification process directly to the user's desktop; capturing messages as they are read/created by the end user.

Features in the upcoming new release of Enterprise Vault include Single Instance Storage; de-duplication technology that combines both backup and archived data; archive access via Blackberry and Windows Mobile devices (a feature that's currently in Beta with general availability expected in the first half of 2009); support for the "re-filing" of messages for new retention requirements; and the new "Discovery Accelerator with Guided Review," which provides prioritized/clustered search results and provides multiple views for individual searches.

Enterprise Vault is available now; the new release is expected in early 2009. A 76 page document detailing system requirements, and further information can be found on the vendor's Web site.