Understanding options for connecting to Exchange on Mac OS X
If you use Mac OS X, you have several options for accessing your Exchange email, calendar, and contacts.
Before You Begin
You can access Exchange on Mac OS X in the following ways:
- Outlook Web App (OWA)
- Outlook 2011
- Mail, iCal, Address Book
- Mobile Devices
Most people choose to use either OWA or a dedicated Exchange client as their primary way of connecting to Exchange. If you have a mobile device, like an iPhone, you can also connect to Exchange that way.
This article discusses the three primary ways of accessing Exchange on Mac OS X. The information presented in this article is meant to help you decide which option is right for you. Mobile devices are not discussed in detail here.
Outlook Web App (OWA)
OWA is available online at https://owa.illinoisstate.edu and works in all modern browsers, including Safari. OWA offers the same, rich experience on Mac OS X as is on Windows and offers the same core features as are available in Outlook. You should consider using OWA as your primary way of accessing Exchange, rather than using a dedicated Exchange client.
- No Exchange setup needed
- Junk mail filters
- Calendar sharing allows you to share your calendar with others
- No support for giving others delegate access to your calendar
- Calendar reminders appear only if you are logged in to OWA
- Calendar categories (colors and names) can be applied to events
- Server-side rules
- Out-of-office notifications
Outlook 2011
Outlook 2011 is a dedicated Exchange client and allows you to access your Exchange email, calendar, and contacts in a single application. The following list highlights how Outlook 2011 works with Exchange. This is not an exhaustive list of features, but is meant to help you better decide if Outlook 2011 is the right for you.
- Automatic Exchange setup
- Junk mail filters and the ability to block or allow senders permanently
- Calendar sharing allows you to share your calendar with others
- Calendar delegation allows you to grant permission to others so they can create and accept meetings on your behalf
- Calendar reminders appear even if Outlook is closed
- Calendar categories* (colors and names) can be applied to events
- Server-side rules
- Out-of-office notifications
*Calendar categories in Outlook 2011 take their names from the Exchange server, but not their colors. In other words, the category colors you see in OWA (or Outlook 2010) may not be the same in Outlook 2011 unless you manually correct them. Also, any new categories you create in Outlook 2011 are not added to the Master Category List, which means they will not be available in OWA unless you manually create them there as well.
Mail, iCal, Address Book
Mail, iCal, and Address Book work together in Mac OS X to provide access to your Exchange email, calendar, and contacts, respectively. The following list highlights how Mail, iCal, and Address Book work with Exchange. This is not an exhaustive list of features, but is meant to help you better decide if this trio of applications is right for you.
- Automatic Exchange setup
- Junk mail filters, but no ability to block or allow senders permanently
- Allows context-sensitive event creation on Exchange calendar based on content of emails in Mail
- Calendar sharing allows you to share your calendar with others
- No support for giving others delegate access to your calendar
- Calendar reminders appear even if Mail, iCal, and Address Book are closed
- No support for calendar categories
- No support for server-side rules
- Out-of-office notifications
Which is better? Which should I choose?
As you consider these options for accessing Exchange on Mac OS X, review the information above and consult with your department's technical support staff.
OWA is available on the Web and requires no setup of any kind. This is a clear advantage to anyone who seeks a simple, easy way of accessing Exchange. However, because OWA is accessed through a web browser, you must be online to see your calendar, email, and contacts.
Outlook 2011 offers a stronger feature set than Mail, iCal, and Address Book. It supports server-side rules, which are useful in filtering email and performing other automation at the server level. Plus, it offers the ability to permanently allow or block senders, add calendar categories to events, and give others delegate access to your calendar so they can create and accept meetings on your behalf. Outlook 2011 provides a unified way of accessing email, calendar, and contacts in a single application, which might be more appealing to some people.
Mail, iCal, and Address Book are native Mac OS X applications, which is attractive to some people. If you are someone who is already invested in these applications (for example, if you use iCal as a personal calendar), you might want to continue using them for your Exchange email, calendar, and contacts too.
Ultimately the choice is yours. You should choose an Exchange option that works best for you. Your department may have already made this determination or might have additional information for you to consider.