SERVER MAILBOX VS. PERSONAL FOLDER
If your mail appears different for each computer you log in to, this is probably because you are utilizing a personal folder for mail storage instead of the mail server. When your mail is stored in a personal folder, it is stored on the local hard drive of whatever computer you are logged on to at the time you send, receive or delete it. When your mail is stored on the server, each time you open your mailbox, your mail is downloaded from the server for you to view. When you read, send or delete this mail, these changes occur at the server level. As such, the next time you access your mailbox, any previous changes are recognized and your email reflects this.
If you find that you do have items stored in a personal folder, you are able to copy it to your mailbox on the server. In addition, you can modify the location that future mail will be saved to prevent a reoccurrence.
If your mailbox is setup incorrectly, here are the steps you need to take to correct it.
First, from the toolbar, select tools. Then select E-mail Accounts.
Next, choose View or change existing e-mail account.
Here at the bottom, in the “Deliver new e-mail to the following location” box, it is set to personal folder.
From the drop down box, change this to the option that lists your name and click finish.
Next, you will be advised that in order to view these changes, you must completely close out of Outlook and reopen.
After reopening, your mailbox should appear at the top. Select Send/Receive from the toolbar if your mailbox does not update on its own, which it should.
To copy from your personal folder to your mailbox, go to the inbox of your personal folder. Hit Cntrl+A. This will highlight all the messages. Then hit Cntrl+C. This will copy all the messages. Next go to the inbox of your mailbox and hit Cntrl+V, this will paste these messages to your mailbox. Complete these steps for all folders you wish to copy, such as inbox, deleted items, sent items and drafts.
The next step is to delete the Personal Folders. From the toolbar, select File and then Data File Management.
This will bring up a list of current folders. Select Personal Folders and click Remove. Now all your mail will be stored on the server and you can access it from any computer on the network and through Outlook web access.
Each user is allotted a specific amount of space on the mail server. If a user is approaching this limit, the server will send automated messages advising of the space limitation. These messages appear when a user is within 5000KB of his/her available mail space. When a user reaches a level within 2000KB of available space, that user is prohibited from sending email until the mailbox size is reduced. When a user reaches the maximum allowed space, he/she is prohibited from sending or receiving email. Many users are confused by the fact that their inbox does not contain any messages, yet they are receiving messages that their mailbox is full. All Outlook folders contribute to a user’s usage space. This includes, sent mail, deleted mail that has not been emptied, drafts, calendars and contacts.
To determine where your space is being used, simply right click on your mailbox, select properties.
Select folder size.
You will be provided with a breakdown of folder size to determine where you can delete old or unused mail.
In addition, deleting mail from folders does not completely remove it. Once deleted, right click on your deleted items folder and select “empty deleted items folder.” If you find that you have more email than you do have space on the server, there are other ways of saving email you may need later. You may either save it to your “My documents” folder, however, there is also a limited space, or you can save it to some sort of removable medium, such as a cd, floppy or flash drive.
The easiest way to access your email is to click the Microsoft Outlook icon located on your desktop.
However, you may access it through Outlook Web Access. This option should be utilized when you are away from the network, i.e., at home. This is the only time a password is necessary. If you use the icon, then you will not be required to input any more information for authentication. However, if you choose to use OWA, you must input your entire email address, tisknight@spsk12.net and your password to access your mail. Not all options are available when accessing your email with this method.