Configure Outlook 2007
This handout is designed to assist you with the setup of Outlook 2007 using the IMAP mail protocol. For detailed information on IMAP, please see our handout at www.bu.edu/pcsc/email/help/whatisimap.html.
Please also note that this handout focuses on Outlook for use with e-mail accounts on ACS. It does not provide information on use with Exchange Server.
All other important information on the use of e-mail at BU is available at www.bu.edu/pcsc/email.
Configuring your Outlook 2007 Settings
Use the Start button or double-click on the Outlook icon and wait for it to open.
- The first time you launch Outlook 2007 on a computer with which you have used prior versions of Outlook, it will automatically import existing accounts and settings. If one of those is your BU account, you should then be all set with configuration and could be ready to move on to other topics. If you do still need to set up your ACS account, or opt to set it up again so that folders will be searchable, please read on...
- If this is the first time you have configured Outlook at all, it will launch a Wizard to walk you through the process. If you want to, you can follow the Wizard through, but our instructions will assume that you click on Cancel, allowing us to help you configure the mail program using the menus.
- Once Outlook is open and the Wizard is closed, choose Tools->Account Settings and click on the E-mail tab.
- Next, click on the New button.
- You are setting up an IMAP account so the default is correct. Click Next.
- If you wish to, you can go ahead and enter your
name and e-mail address settings and then select the option next to "Manually configure server settings or additional server types." (It's okay that some fields then become unavailable.) Then click Next.
- Make sure that "Internet E-mail" is selected and then click Next.
- Complete your settings information, as shown below using the Joe Schmoe example.
Once you have finished the settings, DO NOT CLICK NEXT YET. Instead, click on the More Settings button.
- Within More Settings, on the General tab, you may want to add Boston University as your Organization.
- Also, on the Advanced tab, indicate that you want to use SSL (port 993) with IMAP by selecting SSL after "Use the following type of encrypted connection."
- Below it , indicate that you want to use SSL (port 465) with SMTP by selecting SSL after "Use the following type of encrypted connection."
- Then click Next, Finish and Close.
You are now all set with the standard setup instructions but may want to read on...
If you discover later that you need to change any settings, such as those of your SMTP server setting, or your Root folder path...
- Choose Tools->Account Settings from the menu.
- On the E-mail tab, select the account you want to modify and double-click on it.
Working with Folders
When you are working with Outlook, you should be able to see the list of your folders in a window to the left. If you are using IMAP, you will see both local folders (those that reside on your computer) and your remote folders (those that reside on ACS). (In fact you will have at least two Inboxes; one will be the local Inbox and one will be your ACS Inbox.)
You can create new folders by doing a right click on the name of the server and using the New Folder option, or using the File-New Folder menu command. Move messages between folders by dragging them.
About the Mail directory
If, after configuring your mail program and connecting to the server, you do not see any of your known/existing mail folders, or you see a lot of extra files that you didn't expect to see, set the Root folder path (a.k.a. the IMAP server directory) as Mail. This requirement is rare, but could be an issue for some ACS accounts created prior to February 19, 2008. To make that change, go back to the More Settings button within Tools-Account Settings and click on the Advanced tab. Set your Root folder path as Mail.