OL2000: (CW) User Profiles and Information Services

ID: Q195478

The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Outlook 2000


NOTE: These procedures only apply if you have installed Outlook with the Corporate or Workgroup(CW) option. This option allows you to use Messaging Application Programming Interface (MAPI) services. To determine your installation type, on the Help Menu click About Microsoft Outlook. In About Microsoft Outlook you should see "Corporate or Workgroup" if you have the Corporate or Workgroup installation.

SUMMARY

In Microsoft Outlook 2000, Information Services enable you to control how e-mail systems address and deliver your mail, as well as how your mail and folders are stored. This article discusses Information Services that are available with Outlook and how to add them to your user profile


MORE INFORMATION

User Profiles

A user profile is a group of settings that define how Outlook is set up for a particular user. For example, a profile may include access to a mailbox on Microsoft Exchange Server and specify that the Outlook Address Book appear in the Address Book dialog box. A profile can contain any number of information services.

Generally, you only need one user profile. If you sometimes need to work with a different set of information services, it may be helpful to create an additional profile to use those services. If more than one person uses the same computer, each person should have a separate profile to keep personal items secure.

You can copy an existing user profile, rename it, and then modify it as needed to create your profile. You can have Outlook start with the same profile every time, or you can select a profile to use each time you start.

To Add a User Profile

To add a User Profile to your computer, follow these steps:
  1. Click Start, point to Settings, and click Control Panel.


  2. Double-click the Mail (or Mail and Fax) icon.


  3. Click Show Profiles.


  4. In the Mail and Fax dialog box, click Add.


  5. Follow the prompts of the Inbox Setup Wizard.


To Receive a Prompt for a User Profile

If you have set up more than one profile on your computer, you can have Outlook prompt you for which profile you want to use when starting. To have Outlook prompt for a user profile, follow these steps:
  1. Start Outlook.


  2. On the Tools menu, click Options.


  3. On the Mail Services tab, click "Prompt for a profile to be used" and click OK.


  4. On the File menu, click "Exit and Log Off."


This will take effect the next time you start Outlook.

Information Services

Information services are settings that make it possible to send, store, and receive messages and specify where to store addresses. Before you can use an information service, you must add it to your user profile.

You can have multiple information services in a user profile. For example, you can have multiple sets of Personal Folders in a single profile and you can have Internet E-mail, and Microsoft Exchange Server in the same profile. However, you can not always have two of the same mail services in a profile, for example, two Microsoft Exchange Server services. Personal Folders and Internet E-mail are the exception. If the service does not allow a duplicate in your profile, when you try to add the second copy of the service you will receive the following message:
The action could not be completed. This information service has already been added to your profile and cannot be specified twice.
With information services, you can specify the delivery location for incoming mail, the location of your Personal Address Book, and the use of any Personal Folders file you create. You can also set up information services to send faxes or connect to other e-mail systems. For example, you might have two information services in your user profile, Microsoft Exchange Server for sending and receiving messages and a Personal Address Book for storing personal distribution lists.

Microsoft Exchange Server

The complete Outlook feature set is available with Microsoft Exchange Server, which supports a server-based message store, message transport, and global address book. In the Corporate Workgroup configuration, Outlook offers advanced e-mail features, group scheduling, personal information management, document explorer, and custom groupware applications.

NOTE: The Microsoft Exchange Server service is included with Microsoft Outlook, but users must acquire a Microsoft Exchange Server client access license separately.

Internet E-mail

With the Internet E-mail service, Outlook functions as a full- featured e-mail client integrated with desktop information management and the Outlook document explorer. You store messages locally in a .pst file, and remotely connect to and download messages from an Internet e-mail service provider (ISP). You can store e-mail addresses in the Outlook Contacts folder or a Personal Address Book.

Microsoft Mail

Using the Microsoft Mail service, you store messages locally in a .pst file, but work connected primarily through the Local Area Network (LAN) to a postoffice. The postoffice provides the messaging transport and central address book or e-mail directory. In this configuration, Outlook functions as a full-featured e-mail client integrated with basic group scheduling, for example, sending and receiving meeting requests, personal information management, and the Outlook document explorer.

Adding an Information Service

To add an Information Service to a user profile, follow these steps in Outlook:
  1. On the Tools menu, click Services, and click Add.


  2. In Available Information Services, click to select the information service you want to add, and click OK.


  3. Follow the prompts for adding specific information for the Information Service that you just selected.


If the information service you need is not in the list, you may need to install it separately.

Additional Services

Outlook Address Book:

The Outlook Address Book is created from contacts in your Contacts folder and includes an entry in the E-mail field or a Fax telephone number field, and you can have multiple e-mail addresses for each contact. When you update your contacts in the Contacts folder, the Outlook Address Book is updated as well. The Contacts folder appears as a separate entry under Outlook Address Book. A new feature in Outlook 2000 allows you to create distribution lists from your Contacts. To do this, open your Contacts folder and on the Actions menu, click new Distribution List.

Personal Address Book:

A Personal Address Book is best used to store personal distribution lists you frequently address messages to, such as a list of everyone on the racquetball team. If you use Microsoft Exchange Server, you can also add an address for a public folder to the Personal Address Book. Personal Address Book files have a .pab extension and can be stored on a disk.

NOTE: The ability to create a Distribution List in your Contacts may eliminate the need for a Personal Address Book.

Personal Folders:

Personal folders are folders that you create to store mail messages on your hard disk or on another server. You add a main personal folder as a service to the User Profile and give it a file name. Personal folders have a .pst extension. For Microsoft Mail postoffices, a personal folder is set up automatically because the Inbox and Outlook folders reside there.

Additional query words:

Keywords : kbdta
Version : WINDOWS:2000
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbhowto


Last Reviewed: November 19, 1999
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