The Ximian Connector for Microsoft ExchangeThe Ximian Connector for Microsoft Exchange allows Ximian
Evolution clients to access accounts on Microsoft Exchange 2000
servers. It is available through Ximian Red Carpet in its own
channel. Like Ximian Evolution, it is free software and licensed under the
GPL.
Requirements
Ximian Connector works only with Exchange 2000 and later, and requires
that Outlook Web Access be enabled. Each user will need a
valid Microsoft Exchange server account, including license.
What's New in Connector &appversion;
Ximian Connector &appversion; has added the Out of
Office feature and an automatic configuration tool for
large Exchange deployments.
Previous versions of Ximian Connector for Microsoft Exchange added
support for the Flag for Followup feature,
public folders, delegation, direct booking, and more. For
information on setting up delegation, see .
Connector Features
In addition to the features listed above, Ximian
Connector supports the following basic
Microsoft Exchange features:
General
Remote Exchange Information Store
Allows you to access mail, address book (including
Global Address List folder), and calendars, and task
folders on an Exchange 2000 server from Evolution.
Palm synchronization
Supported for Contacts and Calendars on Exchange.
Mail
Viewing Mail in Exchange FolderSending Email via Exchange Protocols
You may use the Microsoft Exchange mail transport
protocol to send email. Make sure that the address
you have entered as your email address is exactly
the one that the Exchange server has on file. This
may be "yourname@exchange-server.ximian.com" rather
than "yourname@ximian.com."
Calendar
Meeting Request/Proposal
Allows Evolution users to
schedule meetings and view attendee availability for
other users (Evolution or
Outlook users) on
Exchange.
Adding iCalendar Meeting Requests to Calendar
If you receive an iCalendar meeting request and add it
to your calendar, it will be saved to your
Exchange calendar.
Contacts
Address Completion
Supported for your Exchange
Contacts folder. Not yet supported for the Global
Address List.
Adding VCards to Address Book
If you receive a VCard attachment and click
Save in Address Book, it will
be saved to your Exchange address book.
New Address Book entries can be created on
Exchange from received email
messages with a single click
There are, however, some features which are not available:
Work Offline (disconnected mode).
"Recall Message" function.
Installing the Connector
To install the Ximian Connector, run Ximian Red Carpet by
selecting SystemGet
Software. Subscribe to the Ximian
Connector for Microsoft Exchange channel, select the Ximian
Connector for Microsoft
Exchange2000, and click the
Install button. You can also install
the Connector by downloading the individual packages from
ftp.ximian.com if you wish.
Adding your Exchange Account in Ximian Evolution
Once you have installed the Connector, you need to set up access
for your Exchange account on both the
Exchange server and within Evolution.
Exchange Server Settings
Check with your system administrator to ensure that:
You have a valid account on the Exchange server.
You are permitted to access the account with
WebDAV. This is the default setting for the
Exchange server, so unless
your system administrator has specifically turned it
off, no changes should be necessary.
The Ximian website knowledge base, at support.ximian.com,
has additional information about checking to make sure that
your Exchange server will accept
connections from Ximian Evolution.
Standard Configuration Tool for Ximian Connector
Once you know that your server is ready for you to connect,
you are ready to add your Exchange account to Ximian Connector.
Simple Configuration Tool for Ximian Connector
Ximian Connector 1.4 comes with a simple account creation tool
for some installations. Other installations will require
the standard account tool described in below.
If you have no accounts configured,
the simple assistant will start when you start Ximian
Evolution. It asks only for the name of your Outlook
Web Access server, and your username and password. Ximian
Connector will determine the remaining information on its own.
If the simple account tool does not run automatically, create
an account as described below.
Creating a New Exchange Account
If you would like to create a new account for your Exchange
server, select ToolsMail Settings
from any mail view. Then click the Add
button in the accounts list. The account creation assistant
will guide you through the process, which is also described in
. If you're not
sure about any of the information you need, just ask your
system administrator.
IdentityEnter your name and email address. If you wish,
you may add your organization and the location of your
signature file. Only your name and email address are
required.
Receiving Mail
In this step, you'll enter information about the way
you check mail:
First, select Microsoft
Exchange as your server type.
Enter the name of your Exchange email server, and
the user name you would use to log in to a
Windows workstation in your organization.
If you wish, select the box labeled
Use secure connection
(SSL), to take advantage of a more
secure connection method. This may allow you to
connect to the server from outside your
firewall.
Select the kind of authentication your network
uses. You can click the Check for Supported
Types button to see which kinds will work.
If you would like Evolution to
remember your password, check the box labeled
Remember this password.
Receiving Mail, Step TwoThere are a few additional options in this step:
Checking for New Mail: If you would like to
check for new mail automatically, click the
checkbox and enter an interval in minutes.
Global Address List/Active Directory: Enter the
name of your global catalog server (directory
server). This will allow you to use the Global
Address List (GAL). Normally,
Evolution will fetch
a maximum of 500 responses to any query, but you
may increase or decrease this number if you
wish. A lower number decreases load on the
server, and many servers will refuse to return
more than 1000 results, no matter how many you
ask for.
The Global Catalog Server
The Global Catalog server provides you with
access to the Global Address List,
free/busy information, and folder delegation
features. These may not work properly if you do
not have a Global Catalog server.
Exchange Server: There are two options here:
Exchange mailbox name: Enter your exchange
mailbox name. The suggested value is
probably correct.
Outlook Web Access (OWA) Path: In most cases,
the URL for Outlook Web Access is
"http://server.company.com/exchange." If your
system has a URL that does not end in
"/exchange," enter the custom path here.
Public Folder Server: Enter the name of
your public folder server here.
Apply filters to new messages in Inbox on this
server: Check this box to filter messages in
this account.
Sending MailSelect Microsoft Exchange as
your email sending method. There is nothing else to do
in this step.Account ManagementEnter a name that you will use to remember this
account. "Exchange Account" is a good suggestion. Note
that you cannot have two accounts with the same name.
If you'd like to make this your default account for
sending email, check the Make this my default
account box.
You're done. Click Finish and
OK, then quit
Evolution and start it again. Now
you're ready to get to work on the Exchange server.
Changing an Existing Account to Work with Exchange
If you have an existing email account, and want to convert it
to use for Exchange, select the account you want to convert
and click the Edit button. You'll want
to change settings in the following tabs of the account
dialog:
Identity
If your email address will change because you are moving
to a new server, then change it in this tab. Otherwise,
move to the next tab.
Receiving Mail
Select Microsoft Exchange as your
server type. Enter your name of your server next to
Host, and the user name for your
account next to Username. If your
server supports SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption, it
you can check the Use SSL box to
take advantage of more secure data transfers.
Receiving Options
Here, you'll find some additional settings:
Checking for New Mail
Select whether you would like to check for
mail automatically, and if so, how often.
Global Address List/Active Directory
The Global Address List (GAL) is an
address book for everyone represented in
your organization's Exchange deployment. To
use the GAL, click the tab labeled
Receiving Options and
enter the name of your Global Catalog
Server. The GAL is maintained by your
system administrator and you cannot add,
change, or remove items from it using
Ximian Evolution. However, you can use it
to invite people to meetings and to look up
addresses and other information.
Exchange Server
If your Exchange server requires you to use a
different mailbox name from the name you use to
log in, select the second check-box and enter
the mailbox name. Check with your system
administrator to be sure.
In most cases, the URL for web access is
"http://server.company.com/exchange." If your
system has a path that is not "exchange," check
the box and enter the custom path here.
If your network uses a different server
for Public Folders than for personal
folders, enter its name here.
Sending Mail
If you will use your Exchange server to send as well as
receive mail, select Microsoft
Exchange as your server type, and enter the
server name as the Host.
Once you have made those changes, click the
OK button.
Then, quit Evolution and start it
up again. Changes to the Ximian Connector accounts
configuration are not active until you have restarted the
application.
Accessing the Exchange Server
Like IMAP and LDAP data, information for
Exchange accounts is stored on the
server, not on your desktop computer. This means that you can
access it from multiple locations. It also means that your
Microsoft Exchange account information
is in a separate folder tree from the Local
tree in your folder bar. You'll see it below the local tree,
with the name you gave the account. If you have multiple
accounts, you will have multiple folder trees.
Click on any of the folder tree items to visit them; you may
have to enter your server password. You can now create contact
cards, send and receive email as you would normally. If there
are items in your local calendar or address book that you'd like
to add to your Exchange stores, you
can copy and paste them over, or just drag items from one folder
to another as you would with two local stores.
Saving Attached Addresses and Appointments
If you are using both an Exchange account and a local mail
account, you should be aware that whenever you save an email
address or appointment from an email message, it will be
saved in your Exchange contacts list or calendar, rather
than in your local account. The same is true of
synchronization with Palm-OS devices: tasks, appointments,
and addresses from your Palm-OS device will be synchronized
with those in the Exchange folders rather than local
folders.
The Global Address List Appears Empty At First
To avoid unnecessary strain on the server, the GAL will
appear empty until you have searched for something in it.
If you want to display all the cards in the list, click in
the search box and press Enter. This
enters a blank search: since every card contains a blank in
it, every card will appear.
Special Connector Only Settings
There are two items in the Evolution preferences window that
are available only with Ximian Connector. The first is
delegation and permissions handling, and the second is the
creation of "Out of Office" messages.
Access Delegation
You can allow other people in your organization's Global
Address List to access your calendar, address
book, and messages, and they can let you manage theirs.
Delegation allows people to do anything from check on each
other's schedules to completely manage their personal
information.
Delegating Access to Others
To add someone to your list of delegates, click the
Add button and select them from the
Global Address List. When delegating you can grant different
levels of access to different types of data. You may also
decide whether the access you grant applies to items marked
Private, or only to public items.
For each of the four types of folder, you may select one of
the following levels of access:
None
Do not allow this person to access any folders of
this type.
Reviewer (read-only)
Allow the person to see items in this type of
folder, but not create new items or edit existing
items.
Author (read, create)
The delegate may view items in your folders, and may
create new items, but may not change any existing items.
Editor (read, create, edit)
The delegate may view, create, and change items in
your folders.
Acting as a Delegate for Others
To see the list of people who have granted you access to
their folders, click the Acting as a
Delegate tab in the Exchange Delegation settings
window. If you plan to send email on behalf of someone,
click the checkbox next to their name, and an email identity
will be created. You can then select that identity in the
From list in your message composer.
To access the folders delegated to you, do the following:
Select
FileOpen Other User's Folder
Enter the email address of the user who
has delegated to you or click the
User button to select them from your
address book.
Select the folder you wish to open.
Click OK.
Folders delegated to you appear in your folder list inside a
folder labeled with the name of their owner. For example, if
Martha Thompson delegates folders to you, you will see a
folder called Martha Thompson's Folders
in the folder tree at the same level as your Personal
Folders and Public
Folders.
Error Messages
If the folder fails to open properly, check with the
folder owner that you have been granted the correct access
permissions.
Setting an Out of Office Message
An Out of Office message is
an automatic reply that you can send to emails, explaining why
you aren't going to respond to their message. For example, if
you go on vacation for a week and will be away from email, you
can set an automatic reply so that people who write to you know
that you aren't ignoring them.
To create an Out of Office message,
select ToolsSettings and then click the Out of
Office button.
Then, click I am currently
out of the office.. Then, enter a short message in
the text entry box. Click OK.
Your message will be sent automatically to
anyone who sends you mail until you return and click
I am currently in the office.
Scheduling Appointments with Free/Busy
When you schedule a meeting with your calendar on the
Exchange server, you can check when
other local Exchange users are busy according to their
Exchange calendars. To do so:
Reminders In Exchange
Reminders for appointments in your Exchange calendar will
not work until you have run Evolution at least once after
logging in. This is different from locally stored reminders,
which will work from the moment you log in, regardless of
whether you have run Evolution in the session.
Open a new appointment in the calendar.
Choose ActionsSchedule Meeting in the meeting editor window.
Add attendees, either by entering their email
addresses into the list, or by clicking the
Invite Others button. If you choose
to so, it's best to use the Global Address List (GAL).
Choose the GAL from the drop-down list of address sources
at the top of the dialog box.
Choose Options and then
Update Free/Busy to check participant
schedules and, if possible, update the meeting in all
participants' calendars.
Using Autopick to Adjust Meeting Times
If meeting attendees are not available during the times you
have scheduled a meeting, you can "nudge" the meeting forward
or backward to the nearest available time. To do so, just
click the arrows to the left or right of the
Autopick button. The Autopick tool will
move the meeting to the nearest time during which all
attendees are available. If you aren't satisfied with those
results, you can drag the edges of the meeting time to the
hours that you want to select.