Summary

The Edge Server is a big part of why Lync Server is such a compelling product. The fact that users can be inside or outside the office with complete access to the same features drives productivity and collaboration. With the way the Edge services work regardless of location, users have no need to change their workflows whether they are in the office, at home, or traveling halfway around the world.

On the less glamorous side, the Edge Server is a safe and stable role designed to be a secure gateway to the Lync Server infrastructure. The granular external access and conferencing policies give administrators complete control over what features are deployed and who is allowed to use them.

The federation and public IM features enable an organization to extend the reach of their unified communications platform to partners or customers without additional products. Organizations considering Lync Server should include Edge services within the deployment to take full advantage of the features it offers.