Frequently Asked Questions

email and calendaring project

About the Project

 

Why is email and calendaring moving to a new system?

Due to recent email server stability problems and lack of vendor support, ITS feels that it would not be in the University's best interest to continue with our current email system. Additionally, faculty and staff have expressed a desire for integrated email and calendaring with improved support for mobile devices.

What will the change mean for me?
Changes will be depend on which email program you use as well as how, or if, you currently use CampusTime for calendaring. Learn what's different in Exchange.

Do I need to switch to a new email program?
No. In fact, we don’t recommend that you switch email programs as part of this move. Email clients, such as Mac OS X Apple Mail and Thunderbird will work in the same manner as you are accustomed. There are a few email clients that are no longer supported. Users of these clients should upgrade or switch prior to moving to Exchange.

  • When switching email programs, email messages that are stored locally (on your computer) must first be moved to the email server or they will not be accessible in the new program. ITS asks that people wait to move local mail until after their account has been moved to Exchange.

Why was Microsoft Exchange selected?

After extensive investigation and consultation, ITS made the decision, as have many other Universities, to move the current email and calendaring systems to Microsoft Exchange 2007. Since it is an industry-leading Microsoft product, we are confident that the required level of support will be there now and in the future.

When will the move to Exchange occur?

The ITS Pilot program, designed to test all processes occured in July. A second administrative departed Pilot will occur on October 20th. View the current schedule.

What should I do to prepare?

You can help ITS by deleting unwanted email from your Inbox, Sent folder, and from any personal folders you may have created. Please pay special attention to messages with attachments. Learn tips for mailbox cleanup.

I am thinking about buying a new mobile device/smartphone. What do you recommend I purchase?

Blackberry's, Windows Mobile Devices, and iPhones will all be able to sync via cable to a local computer (desktop synchronization).

The ability for users of iPhone and Windows Mobile devices to do full wireless synchronization of email, calendar, and contacts will be implemented with the move to Exchange. Your mobile services provider may charge you for this service so the decision to take advantage of this functionality will be at individual discretion.

Third party device and server-based solutions are available for Blackberry users to sync email, calendar, and contacts. Read more about Mobile Devices in the Exchange environment

Isn't Outlook 2007 for Windows the best email program to use with Exchange? What if I want to upgrade to Outlook 2007 on my own?

Yes, Outlook 2007 offers the optimal experience with Exchange 2007 and the majority of students on campus are currently using Office 2007. Windows users will be encouraged to upgrade from Office 2003 to Office 2007 (if they have not already been upgraded through BCCR deployment).  Learn about upgrading to Office 2007.

What are the options for Macintosh users?

Project teams investigated and tested several options for Mac users.

  • Snow Leopard
    Mac OS X (Apple) Mail and iCal running on Mac OS X Snow Leopard will offer integrated email and calendaring. This combination is being tested against the BC Exchange environment. However, Iron Mountain backup for Snow Leopard is not yet available.  ITS is not recommending that faculty and staff upgrade to Snow Leopard at this time.  The Email and Calendaring Project will begin in     Administrative Departments where there are fewer Macs.  We hope that by the time we are ready to move academic areas that Snow Leopard will have been fully tested and a backup solution from Iron Mountain will be available.
  • Entourage Web Services
    A recently released version of Entourage (Entourage Web Services) has also been tested and is another viable option for Mac users on campus. Entourage Web Services does not require Snow Leopard but does require Office 2008 with Office update 12.2.1.

Other options for Mac users were tested and ruled out as not adequate. These options included: Mozilla Thunderbird with Lightning for calendaring, running Outlook on Mac OS X using CrossOver, use of Sync'Em to integrate Apple Mail and iCal.