Customizing OWA Options

OWA enables you to customize and configure certain features universally for your OWA inbox. When the options are saved, they apply until they are changed, whether you are in OWA or in Outlook 2003. To access the options area, click the Options button in the shortcut bar. A list of options becomes available for customization and configuration. To save the configuration changes, click Save and Close in the toolbar on the top of the Options page; otherwise , the options are discarded when the options page is exited.

Configuring the Out of Office Assistant

The Out of Office Assistant, shown in Figure 26.16, enables you to create a message that will be automatically and instantly sent to any message senders who have configured the Assistant for their mailbox. The Out of Office assistant remains on until you turn it off. If the feature is turned on in Outlook 2003, it can be turned off in OWA, and vice versa:

• To enable the Out of Office assistant, click I am currently out of the office. Then enter the text that will form the reply email back to the sendersfor example, Jane Doe will be out of the office until Jan 2, 2005.

• To disable the Out of Office assistant, click I am currently in the office. OWA maintains the text from previous emails in the I am currently out of the office box until it is deleted manually or new text is entered.

• When completed, click Save and Close.

Figure 26.16. Out of Office Options page.

If a sender sends an email to a recipient with Out of Office Assistant configured, the sender receives the Out of Office notification only once, even if he sends repeated messages or sends to a distribution list of which the out-of-office recipient is a member.

Configuring Items per Page

You can control how many items per page are shown. By default, you are shown 25 items, but this can be changed to show up to 100 objects per page, making visual searching for messages much easier. You must click the drop-down menu to the right of Number of items to display per page and choose one of the provided numbers .

Setting Default Signatures

Another option in the Messaging Options is the creation of an Automatic Signature. The signature is text that you compose that will appear at the bottom of new email messages. Signatures usually provide personal information about the sendersuch as name , company, title, and phone numberenabling you to preconfigure the information so it doesn't have to be typed every time. You can configure the signature to be automatically included in every message you send or to be added on a message-by-message basis:

• To configure the signature, click the Edit Signature button under Messaging Options.

• Enter the text that composes the signature.

• After entering the text, choose to configure the font, font size , and color ; to use bullets; or to use styles. There are many other configuration choices available.

• When completed, click Save and Close.

When an initial signature is saved, its font size, choice of font, color, and choices such as bold, italic, and underline can be changed without opening the signature. Click the Choose Font button under Messaging Options. Choose the options desired and click OK when completed.

If the Automatically include my signature on outgoing messages, is checked, the signature will appear on any messages you create from scratch, forward, or reply to. If that option is not checked, you can add the signature on a message-by-message basis from within an open message you compose. To add the signature manually, click the icon in the New Message toolbar with the paper and hand with a pen. It automatically inserts the signature after the button is clicked.

Reading Pane Options

The Reading Pane options, shown in Figure 26.17, deal with the message list when Auto Preview is enabled. You must determine how long to wait with a message being previewed before it is marked as read. Choose from among the following options:

• Mark item displayed in reading pane as read After a specified amount of time that the message is viewed in the reading pane, the message becomes marked as read.

• Mark item as read when the selection changes This option marks the message as read when the user clicks on a new message, no matter how long it was in the reading pane.

• Do not automatically mark items as read If configured, the messages are marked as read only when they are physically clicked on and opened.

Figure 26.17. Reading pane Options page.

Spelling Options

The Spelling Options section provides configuration options for the Spell Check feature. If you check the Always check spelling before sending choice, the spell checker automatically launches after Sent is clicked on a message and before it is sent.

A default language can also be configured in this location. OWA supports the following 10 language groups: English (Aus, UK, US, Canada), French, German (pre- and post-reform), Italian, Korean, and Spanish.

Email Security

If S/MIME capabilities/compatibility is required, you must click the Download button to download and install the latest S/MIME version before OWA will be compatible with S/MIME functionality. See the section "Understanding OWA Security," later in this chapter for more detailed information about S/MIME support. To download S/MIME support

1. Click the Download button.

2. When presented with a security warning, click Yes to Trust content from Microsoft. It will download some data and then present the security warning again. The download box disappears when the process has completed.

3. After the S/MIME capability is downloaded, several options appear. Choose which encryption options you want, or click the Re-Install button to reinstall the S/MIME support.

Privacy and Junk Email Prevention

OWA gives you many choices as to what to do with junk email, as shown in Figure 26.18, and provides default options, which are the minimum configuration suggested by Microsoft for spam control.

Figure 26.18. Privacy and junk email Options page.

To filter junk email, click the check box next to Filter Junk Email. When configured, Exchange moves any mail it considers junk to your Junk Email Folder in the folder list. When checked, you also must specify what is considered junk email by filling out the Manage Junk Email Lists dialog box. Specify Safe Senders, Safe Recipients, or Blocked Senders by adding their names or email addresses in the proper list.

The option to always trust email from contacts from your personal contact list is checked by default.

NOTE

Users in the GAL will not be considered as coming from junk email addresses; therefore, there is no reason to manage addresses from the Global Address List unless you specifically want to flag messages from an individual or individuals.

The final option in the junk email area is whether to block external content, the implications of which are discussed in the section "Spam Beacon Blocking," later in this chapter.

Appearance

The color scheme of OWA is configurable as well. The default is blue, but numerous choices are available. To choose a scheme, click the drop-down menu to the right of the 8-ball icon and choose the color scheme desired. Note that the color won't change until Save and Close is clicked.

Configuring Date & Time Formats

The Date & Time Formats options enable you to configure the time zone, time style, long date style, and short date style:

• The short date style appears in areas such as the right side of the Inbox pane where it lists the time messages were received, in the appointment start/end times, or in the due date on a task.

• The long date style appears in areas such as in the calendar at the top of a single day view.

Changing the time zone can be useful if you move to a different time zone and want OWA to reflect the new zone. To configure the time zone, click the drop-down and choose the proper time zone.

Configuring Calendar Options

The calendar options enable you to choose the day and times that describe a week in the Calendar. By default, the weeks begin on Sunday, the day start time is 8:00 a.m., and the end time is 5:00 p.m. This can be changed by clicking the drop-down menus to the right of the titles in the Calendar Options area in the Options menu.

The First Week of the Year choice specifies when the calendar should consider the first week of the year.

Configuring Reminder Options

Reminder options specify the default time of how soon before meetings, appointments, and task dates you are reminded. By default, all the configuration boxes are checked, and the default reminder time, which appears when you create a calendar or task item with a reminder, is 15 minutes. Configure any changes to reminders in this area by un-checking or checking the boxes or changing the reminder time by clicking the drop-down box.

Configuring Contact Options

Configuring Contact Options enables you to determine where OWA checks first for resolution of addresses in the address boxes in emails. By default, OWA checks the GAL first. To configure OWA to check your contacts first before the GAL, click the Contacts radio button.

Recovering Deleted Items

OWA also enables you to recover deleted Outlook items that have been purged from the Deleted Items folder. However, if the purge date configured on the Exchange server has passed, you cannot recover the expired deleted item. You have to contact your administrator to retrieve the item or have the item restored from tape. To recover a deleted item:

1. Access the Outlook Options area and go to the Recover Deleted Items area.

2. Click View Items. The Recover Deleted Items dialog box appears, as shown in Figure 26.19, presenting a list of available files to be recovered.

   Figure 26.19. Recover Deleted Items dialog.

   

3. Click the item(s) to recover.

4. Click Recover.

5. Click Close. After they're recovered, the item(s) will reappear in the location from which they were deleted.

6. Click Permanently Delete to purge the items completely. This makes them unavailable to be recovered through the Recover deleted items dialog box.

7. Click OK at the confirmation box.

8. Click Close to clear the dialog box from the screen.

Changing the Active Directory Password

You can change your Active Directory password via OWA. This is extremely useful for mobile users who rarely come into the office. If you are on the road and your password expires , OWA enables you to access OWA and then forces you to change your password immediately. To change the password before prompted

1. Access the Outlook options area and then click the Change Password button.

2. Enter the old password.

3. Enter the new password.

4. Confirm the new password.

5. Click OK when completed.