Description of the remote features of Outlook 2000: remote mail, offline folders, and working offline

This article compares the remote features: working offline, Remote Mail, and offline folders. To identify which feature best suits your needs, it is important to understand the differences between these features.

NOTE: In Outlook 2000, the Remote Mail option and the toolbar that is associated with this feature are available only with the Corporate or Workgroup installation option.

Mobile computing is becoming increasingly more important. There are many common situations where you may want to use Outlook when you do not have access to a network; for example, when traveling with a laptop, working at home, or working at a remote site.

Many users combine working offline and Remote Mail to reduce network use or Internet provider time limits. By connecting offline to Outlook, you can compose new mail messages, and read and respond to mail. When you are finished making changes, you can use the Remote Mail feature to connect to your mail service, send the mail you wrote while offline.

Working offline and Remote Mail are available in most situations. Offline folders are available only when you are using Microsoft Exchange Server. When you use offline folders, you can perform updates to items such as Contacts and Calendar, as well as Mail, and synchronize these items with the Exchange Server computer after you are connected to the network.

For additional information about offline folder access to an ExchangeServer computer, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Remote Mail Basics

To properly understand offline folders and Remote Mail, you must first understand working offline. When you configure most services, Outlook gives you the option to work offline; when you work offline, you cannot send or receive information. Working offline does not require a network connection or modem.

If you choose to work offline and do not use Remote Mail, changes are maintained on your hard drive in your personal folder (.pst) file, or in your offline store (.ost) file if you are an Exchange Server user. This means that you do not send or receive information from another location or computer.

The Remote Mail feature is one of the properties for your service. In most cases, you work offline and use Remote Mail with a modem. Remote Mail enables you to connect remotely to your mail service. You can use it with Internet Mail, Microsoft Mail, Microsoft Exchange Server, and some online services.

NOTE: Remote Mail is not supported with Lotus cc:Mail.

Configuring the Microsoft Exchange Service to Work Offline

1. Start Outlook if it is not currently running.
2. On the Tools menu, click Services. Click Microsoft Exchange Server, and then click Properties.
3. On the General tab, click to select the Manually Control Connection State check box, and under When Starting, click to select the Work Offline and use dial-up Networking check box. You can also click to select the Choose connection type when starting check box so that you work either offline or online.
4. Click the Remote Mail tab, and then set the options that you want for connection management and remote transfer.

Configuring the Microsoft Mail Service to Work Offline

1. Start Outlook if it is not currently running.
2. On the Tools menu, click Services. Click Microsoft Mail, and then click Properties.
3. Click the Dial-up Networking tab. Click to select an existing dial-up connection or click Add Entry to define a new connection. You can select other options to manage your remote connection.
4. Click the Connection tab. Under Select how this service should connect at startup, click to select the Automatically sense LAN or Remote check box. This setting is appropriate if you alternate between a connection to the local area network and a dial-up connection. Otherwise, if you work remotely most of the time, click to select the Remote using a modem and Dial-up Networking check box.
5. Click the Remote Configuration tab, and then click Remote Mail.
   
   NOTE: Other choices on this tab are specific to your post office configuration. Check with your mail administrator for configuration details.
6. Click the Remote Session tab. This page offers choices for how Remote Mail handles delivery. Set these choices to suit the way you intend to work.

Using the Internet E-mail Service to Work Offline

The Internet E-mail service does not have a choice for Remote Mail use within its properties. To use Remote Mail with Internet E-mail, follow these steps:

1. Start Outlook if it is not currently running.
2. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Internet E-mail tab.
3. Click to clear the Automatically dial when checking for new messages check box. You can set other options to suit the way you work.

General Remote Mail Usage Procedures

The purpose for Remote Mail is to transfer mail only. It does not transfer calendar appointments, contacts, or any other Outlook information. If you want to transfer this type of information, you must use offline folders and the Microsoft Exchange Server information service, or use net folders.

To use Remote Mail, follow these steps:

1. Start Outlook using an offline option for the service that you are using as configured in the preceding procedures.
2. Compose and send a mail message. This puts the message in your Outbox, where it remains until you make a remote connection.
3. On the Tools menu, point to Remote Mail, and then click Connect to open the Remote Connection Wizard.
4. Under Connect to which information service(s), click to select the services you want, and then click Next. The information services in your profile determine what is available in this list.
5. Under While Connected, click to select either the Retrieve and send all new mail check box, or the Retrieve new message headers only check box. If you choose Retrieve and send all new mail, you are finished. If you choose Retrieve new message headers only, continue to the next step.
6. If you chose to retrieve only headers, on the Tools menu, point to Remote Mail, and then click Mark to Retrieve, or Mark to Retrieve a Copy to mark the messages you want to retrieve.
7. On the Tools menu, point to Remote Mail, and then click Connect.
8. Run the Remote Connection Wizard again to retrieve the marked messages.

Remote Mail is a great solution for people who use mobile computing to maintain their e-mail and to communicate with other people.

For additional information about Remote Mail, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: