FAQ

Resources

Forms

Reference

Remote Access

Guidelines & Policies

Staff & Jobs

Internet Basics Email / Spam / Viruses Instant Messaging Laptop Setup Student Disk Quota Creating Web Pages Passwords User Profiles After Graduation

Outlook Web Access 2003 (OWA)

Your personal mailbox	https://mail.olin.wustl.edu/
A specific mailbox.	https://mail.olin.wustl.edu/exchange/username/ Replace username with the alias for the mailbox.
Public Folders	https://mail.olin.wustl.edu/public/

The introduction of Exchange 2003 provides Olin users with two versions of Microsoft Outlook Web Access - the "premium" version and the "basic" version. Previous users of OWA will see that the user interface has been completely redesigned for easier mail reading and message management and should also be aware that there are several new features available.

1. Premium Outlook Web Access: This requires Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01 or later. Premium Outlook Web Access includes all the features of Outlook Web Access, including the new enhanced features for Exchange Server 2003. Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 is required for some features. We are exploring with Microsoft whether other web browsing software is likely to be able to use this interface.
   
   
2. Basic Outlook Web Access: Other browsers and earlier versions of Internet Explorer may only use the basic version of Outlook Web Access. This provides a subset of the features that are available in the premium version of Outlook Web Access.

Note: You will be given the option to choose between the Premium and the Basic version, whether or not the Premium interface works will be dependent upon your local browser.

Outlook Web Access Documentation

Microsoft has provided a detailed documentation on OWA. There are two versions available, one for the Premium Client with IE 5 or higher and one for the Basic Client using other browsers. These links will open in a new window. The OWA FAQ page has some common questions about Outlook Web Access.

Improved Security

OWA now uses uses a logon page for better seucity. Logon credentials are now stored in a cookie rather in the browser session. When you click the logoff button in OWA, the cookie is deleted, preventing any access without a new logon. In the old version, you had to close all browser windows before you were really logged out.

Your OWA session will automatically log you off after a certain amount of time. When you logon, you specify what kind of computer you are using. If you select Private Computer, your session will timeout after 24 hours. If you select "Public or shared computer" your session will be closed after 15 minutes. Even if you leave your browser open and someone tries to use it, they won't be able to do anything.

New Features in OWA 2003

The new features available in the Outlook Web Access service using Exchange 2003 are outlined below together with the Web browser versions that support the features. You are encouraged to use the on-line help to obtain more information about these new features.

FEATURE	FEATURE DESCRIPTION	PREMIUM VERSION (for IE v5.01 or later)	BASIC VERSION (for all browsers)
General User Interface Improvements
User interface updates	New color scheme, reorganized toolbars.	Yes	Yes
Item window sizing	During an Outlook Web Access session, item windows open at the last window size that was set by the user instead of always opening to a window size of 500 by 700 pixels.	Yes	No
View Improvements
Two-line mail view	New view orients the message list vertically instead of horizontally; it works well with the Preview Pane.	Yes	No
Preview pane	The Preview pane appears to the right of the message; attachments can be opened directly in the pane.	Yes	No
Mark as read or unread	Command permits users to mark unread messages as read, or to mark read messages as unread.	Yes	No
Quick flagging	Command permits users to assign a follow-up flag to messages.	Yes	No
Shortcut menu	A shortcut menu available in mail view; special shortcut menu also is available when you right-click the quick flag icon.	Yes	No
Keyboard shortcuts	When the message list is active, users can use keyboard shortcuts to perform common actions like creating a new message, marking messages as read or unread, or replying and forwarding messages list.	Yes	No
Items per page	Users can determine how many items appear per page in the Email, Contacts, and Tasks views.	Yes	Yes
Mail icons	Icons display the stage a message is at and the type of message.	Yes	Yes
Deferred view update	The view is refreshed automatically only after 20 percent of the messages are moved or deleted from a page, not after each deletion. This improves performance.	Yes	No
Navigation Improvements
New Navigation Pane	The unified user interface contains module shortcuts, a full folder tree, and the user can customize the width of the pane.	Yes	No
Search folders	Folders that a user creates by using Microsoft Outlook are shown in the folder tree.	Yes	No
Notifications	New email and reminder notifications are shown in the Navigation pane.	Yes	No
Public folders	Public folders are shown in new window	Yes	No
Logoff in toolbar	Logoff is moved out of the Navigation Pane to the toolbar.	Yes	No
Logoff in toolbar	Logoff is moved out of the Navigation Pane to the toolbar.	Yes	No
Workflow Improvements
Spelling checker	Spelling checker is provided for email messages.	Yes	No
New addressing wells	New integrated look and easier deletion of recipients.	Yes	No
Global Address List properties sheets	Properties sheets display the name, the address, and the phone information for resolved Global Address List users.	Yes: Available in received items, draft items, Check Names dialog box, Find Names dialog box	Yes: Only available in received items and draft items
Add to Contacts	Users can add resolved recipients in received mail or in drafts to main Contacts folder.	Yes: Feature in Properties sheets	No
Send mail from the Find Names dialog box	Users can send new messages to addresses that are found in the Find Names dialog box when the dialog box is invoked from View.	Yes	No
Open the Find Names dialog box from a message	Users can open the Find Names dialog box from a message and use it to add new recipients to a draft message. Users can also use the Find Names dialog box to add recipients to a contact distribution list.	Already available in past versions	Yes
Contacts in the Find Names dialog box	Users can search the main Contacts folder in the Find Names dialog box.	Yes	No
Automatic signature	Users can create a signature that is automatically included in the email messages that they create.	Yes: HTML-based formatting; also on-demand insertion	Yes: Plain-text formatting; No: On-demand insertion
Default mail editor font	Users can customize a default font for the email editor.	Yes	No
Block external content in HTML email messages	Users can control options to block external content in email.	Yes	Yes
Attachment blocking	Administrator options restrict access to some or all attachments that are in messages.	Yes	Yes
Sensitivity information bar	Sensitivity information appears in the information bar in the message header.	Yes	Yes
Reply and Forward information bar	Reply and Forward information appears in the infobar in the message header.	Yes<	Yes
No indent in replies	The reply header and the reply body are no longer indented.	Yes	Yes: Basic Outlook Web Access never indented
Encrypted and signed mail	Sending and receiving encrypted and signed email is supported.	Yes: Internet Explorer 6 on Window 2000 or Window XP only	No
Rules Improvements
Rules	Users can create and manage server-based email handling rules	Yes	No
Task Improvements
Personal tasks	Users can create and manage personal tasks, and receive reminders for these tasks.	Yes	Yes: But no reminder
Calendar Improvements
Reply and Forward for Meeting Requests	Users can now reply to senders of meeting requests and forward meeting request to other users.	Yes	Yes
Attendee reminder	Attendees can set their own reminder times for meeting requests that they receive.	Yes	No
View Calendar from a meeting request	Attendees can open Calendar from a meeting request	Yes	No

Note: There are also improved keyboard shortcuts and the toolbars have been reorganized.

Outlook Web Access Plus Pack

Many of the features of the Plus Pack are now incorporated into OWA 2003, such as spell checking. We are still evaluating whether to implement the new version of Plus Pack for OWA 2003.