Office 365 Shared Mailbox

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Open and use a shared mailbox in Outlook for desktop

A shared mailbox makes it easy for a group of people to monitor and send email from a public email alias like info@contoso.com. When a person in the group replies to a message sent to the shared mailbox, the email appears to be from the shared address, not from the individual user. You can also use the shared mailbox as a shared team calendar.

A shared mailbox is not designed for direct log on.

Tip: Before you can use a shared mailbox, the Microsoft 365 admin for your organization has to create it and add you as a member.

Add a shared mailbox to Outlook

After your admin has added you as a member of a shared mailbox, close and then restart Outlook. The shared mailbox should automatically display in your Folder pane in Outlook.

Shared mailbox displays in Folder List in Outlook

What if it didn't work?

  • If your admin only recently added you to a shared mailbox, it may take up to an hour before the shared mailbox appears. Wait a bit and then close and restart Outlook again.
  • If that didn't work, then manually add the shared mailbox to Outlook:
    1. Open Outlook.
    2. Choose the File tab in the ribbon.
    3. Choose Account Settings, then select Account Settings from the menu.
    4. Select the Email tab.
    5. Make sure the correct account is highlighted, then choose Change.
    6. Choose More Settings > Advanced > Add.
    7. Type the shared email address, such as info@contoso.com.
    8. Choose OK > OK.
    9. Choose Next > Finish > Close.

Send mail from the shared mailbox

  1. Open Outlook.
  2. Choose New Email.
  3. If you don't see the From field at the top of your message, choose Options > From.
  4. Click From in the message, and change to the shared email address. If you don't see your shared email address, choose Other email address and then type in the shared email address.
  5. Choose OK.
  6. Finish typing your message and then choose Send.

From now on when you want to send a message from your shared mailbox, the address will be available in your From drop down list.

Whenever you send a message from your shared mailbox, your recipients will only see the shared email address in the message.

Reply to mail sent to the shared mailbox

  1. Open Outlook.
  2. Open the email message you want to reply to.
  3. From field at the top of your message, you should see the name of your shared mailbox. If you don't, choose the From dropdown box and choose your shared mailbox.
  4. Finish typing your message and then choose Send.

When you want to send a message from your shared mailbox, the address will be available in your From drop down list.

Whenever you send a message from your shared mailbox, your recipients will only see the shared email address in the message.

Use the shared calendar in Outlook for desktop

After your admin has added you as a member of shared mailbox, close and then restart Outlook. The shared calendar associated with the shared mailbox is automatically added to your Calendars list.

  1. In Outlook go to calendar view, and choose the shared mailbox.

Choose the calendar view

  1. When you enter appointments, everyone who is a member of the shared mailbox will be able to see them.
  2. Any member of the shared mailbox can create, view, and manage appointments on the calendar, just like they would their personal appointments. Everyone who is a member of shared mailbox can see their changes to the shared calendar.

Use the shared calendar in Outlook for desktop for Mac

  1. Open Outlook for Mac.
  2. Select File.
  3. Select Open.
  4. Select Other User's Folder.

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 5. Select Inbox from the folder type drop-down menu.

 6. Enter the Title of your shared folder in the search box.

 7. Select your Shared Mailbox from the list.

 8. Select Open.

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To access a shared mailbox on a mobile device

  1. Sign in to your primary account in Outlook for iOS or Android.
  2. Tap the Add Account button in the left navigation pane, then tap Add a Shared Mailbox. 
    Add a shared mailbox to Outlook Mobile.
  3. If you have multiple accounts in Outlook Mobile, select the account that has permissions to access the shared mailbox. 
    Select the account that has permissions to your shared mailbox.

 

  1. After the account setup process completes, the shared mailbox will display in your account list in Outlook for iOS or Outlook for Android. 
  2. To remove a shared mailbox, go to Settings > Accounts. Then tap on the shared mailbox and select Delete Account. 

Open and use a shared mailbox in Outlook on the web

Add the shared mailbox so it displays under your primary mailbox

If you want to monitor the email from your primary mailbox and the shared mailbox at the same time, use this method. After you complete this task, the shared mailbox and its folders are displayed in the left navigation pane each time you open Outlook on the web.

  1. Sign in to your account in Outlook on the web.
  2. For Exchange Online mailboxes, right-click Folders in the left navigation pane, and then choose Add shared folder. 
  3. In the Add shared folder dialog box, type the name or email address of someone who has shared a mailbox with you, and then click Add. Or, type the name of the shared mailbox you are a member of, such as info@contoso.com.

The shared mailbox displays in your Folder list in Outlook on the web. You can expand or collapse the shared mailbox folders as you can with your primary mailbox. You also can remove the shared mailbox from your Folder list. To remove it, right-click the shared mailbox, and then click Remove shared folder.

Reply to mail sent to the shared mailbox

The first time you reply to a message sent to the shared mailbox, you need to add the shared address to the From drop-down box. Here's how to do that:

  1. Open Outlook on the web and go to your shared mailbox.
  2. Open a message that was sent to the shared address.
  3. Click Reply.
  4. At the top of the message, choose ... > Show From.

A screenshot of the Show From option

  1. Right-click the From address and choose Remove.

A screenshot of the Remove option

  1. Type the shared address and send the message. The next time you reply from the shared mailbox, its address will appear as an option in the From drop-down list.

Use the shared calendar in Outlook on the web

One of the great things about using a shared mailbox is that anyone who has access to the shared mailbox also has full access to the calendar. You can create, edit, and delete events in the calendar. Use the shared calendar just as you would use your own calendar. Here's a short list of things you can do with the shared mailbox calendar:

  • Let your team know when you're going on vacation or when you’ll be out of the office.

  • Create a team meeting.

  • Edit a calendar event that someone else created.

  • Cancel a meeting that someone else created.

To access the shared calendar, do the following:

  1. Sign in to your mailbox using Outlook on the web, and then select Calendar.
  2. Right-click Other Calendars, and then click Open calendar.

A screenshot of the Open calendar option

  1. In From directory, search for the shared calendar you want to open. Select the shared mailbox you want to open, and then click Open.
  2. The shared calendar displays in your Calendar folder list.

Open a shared folder or mailbox in Outlook for Mac

Please review the following link for assistance with Outlook for Mac - Outlook for Mac

 

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