Managing Exchange Resources - Initial resource setup for resource owners
Updated: February 9, 2009
Resource setup is a two-step process on the part of the resource owner.
First, the resource owner sets up the general settings on the resource (not allow conflicts, who can schedule/not schedule the resource, etc). This setup is done in OWA Premium on Internet Explorer (the setup cannot be done in OWA light using Firefox, Safari or any other browser).
Secondly, the resource owner sets up the delegate and viewing access for the resource within Outlook or Entourage.
First Step: Initial Resource Setup using OWA (For all owners)
Second Step:
Initial Resource Setup using Outlook
Second Step:
Initial Resource Setup using Entourage
First Step: Initial Resource Setup using OWA (For All Owners)
These steps can only be done by an owner of a resource. OIT must setup the owner(s).
- Login to OWA Premium using Internet Explorer (this will not work on OWA Light using Firefox, Safari or any other browser).
- In the upper right part of the screen, next to Options you will see your name with a down arrow next to it. Click the down arrow next to it to open the Select Mailbox dialog box.
- In the Select Mailbox dialog box, enter the name of your resource and click Open. (Or, enter a partial name and click Open and pick from the list of resources and click Open again.)
- Another OWA window will open.
If this is the first time you have opened this resource, you will need to verify the language and timezone, and then click OK.
The account for the resource will open in a new window. Click Options and choose Resource Settings from the menu on the left.
- In the Resource Settings section, there are four sub-sections in which changes can be made to the settings for the resource. Below is a table for each section with details on what default is and what options lead to what results.
Resource Scheduling Options |
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Automatically process meeting requests and cancellations |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving this default allows all meeting requests and cancellations to be processed automatically, with no manual intervention required. |
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Disable reminders |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving this default leaves reminders for the resource turned off. You may change this default if you wish to receive reminders about the meetings that are scheduled in the resource. |
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Maximum number of days |
720 (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving the default days allows the resource to be scheduled for up to two years in advance. If you wish for it to be shorter or longer for a specific resource, you would change the number of days in this field. |
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Always decline if end date is beyond this limit |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving the default setting means the resource will decline any meeting that is beyond the maximum number of days. |
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Limit meeting duration |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving the default setting means that meetings are limited to the duration (in minutes) identified in the “Maximum Allowed Minutes” field, which is set at 1440 (24 hours) by default. If you do not want there to be a limit on how long a meeting can last, uncheck this box. |
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Maximum allowed minutes |
1440 (Default) Recommend: |
Leaving the default setting means that a meeting cannot be more than 1440 consecutive minutes in length. If you want to make the maximum number of minutes allowed then modify the number of minutes listed here. |
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Allow scheduling only during working hours |
Unchecked (Default) Recommend: UNCHECKED |
Leaving the default setting means that the resource can be scheduled at anytime. If you want the resource to only be scheduled during work hours, then this box should be checked. |
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Allow conflicts |
Unchecked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving this default setting means that the resource will not allow meetings to be added to the calendar if a conflict exists. If you allow conflicts for your resource, make sure this box is checked. (This would not be a recommended setting) |
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Allow recurring meetings |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving this default setting allows recurring meetings to be scheduled in the resource. If you do not want to allow recurring meetings in the resource, then uncheck the box. |
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Allow up to this number of individual conflicts |
Zero (Default) Recommend: |
Changing the default to "5" is the number of instances for a recurring meeting that are in conflict exceeds this number, the recurring meeting request will be declined. |
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Allow up to this percentage of individual conflicts |
Zero (Default) Recommend: 90 (percent) |
Changing the default to 90 (percent) is the percentage of instances of a recurring meeting that conflict with other meetings exceeds this number, the recurring meeting request will be declined. |
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| Resource Scheduling Permissions | ||||
These users can schedule automatically if the resource is available |
Everyone (Default) |
Leaving this default setting allows anyone on Notre Dame’s Exchange server to automatically schedule this resource if it’s available. |
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Select Users and Groups Recommend: Select Users and Groups if limiting scheduling to specific individuals |
If you want to define exactly who can schedule this resource beyond those already identified as delegates for the resource, select this radio button and enter the names of each person who can invite the resource separated by semicolons. (You can also do a partial name search by entering part of the person’s name and tabbing to receive a list of search results.) Note: Delegates created by the OIT for your resource do not need to be added here. If delegates are the only ones who can schedule the resource, choose the Select Users and Groups radio button, but enter nothing in the field (as they are already set up in the system based on information you provided to OIT). Note: Groups (e.g., all of any department, etc.) are not available at this time. If you choose to limit scheduling, you will need to list each person individually. |
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These users can submit a request for manual approval if the resource is available |
Everyone Recommend: |
At this time, manual approval for a resource does not work as expected. We are working with Microsoft to resolve this issue. Therefore, it is recommended that you do not use this setting until we resolve this issue. |
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Select Users and Groups (no names entered) (Default) Recommend: |
At this time, manual approval for a resource does not work as expected. We are working with Microsoft to resolve this issue. Therefore, it is recommended that you do not use this setting until we resolve this issue. |
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These users can schedule automatically if the resource is available and can submit a request for manual approval if the resource is unavailable |
Everyone Recommend: |
At this time, manual approval for a resource does not work as expected. We are working with Microsoft to resolve this issue. Therefore, it is recommended that you do not use this setting until we resolve this issue. |
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Select Users and Groups (no names entered) (Default) Recommend: |
At this time, manual approval for a resource does not work as expected. We are working with Microsoft to resolve this issue. Therefore, it is recommended that you do not use this setting until we resolve this issue. |
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For requests requiring approval – Always forward to delegates |
Checked (Default) Recommend: UNCHECKED |
Leaving this default setting will send any meeting requests requiring approval to the resource’s delegates – based on the choices you made in the Resource Scheduling Permissions. If you change the default and you require meeting request approvals, then those approvals will go to the owner of the resource. |
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For requests requiring approval – Always tentatively accept these requests |
Checked (Default) Recommend: UNCHECKED |
Leaving this default setting will tentatively accept any meeting requests that require approval. If you do not want to tentatively accept these requests, then deselect this option. |
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Resource Privacy Options |
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Always add the organizer name to the meeting subject |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving this default setting will always add the meeting organizer to the name in the meeting subject. Deselect this if you do not want the meeting organizer’s name in the meeting subject. |
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Always remove the private flag on an accepted meeting |
Checked (Default) Recommend: UNCHECKED |
Leaving this default setting will always remove the private flag on an accepted meeting in the resource. Note: this does not allow the subject of the meeting to be visible to those who can view the resource’s schedule. Instead, the resource will show the name of the person who scheduled the meeting as the title of the meeting in the resource. |
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When declining meeting requests due to a conflicting meeting - Include detailed information about conflicting meetings in response |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving this default will include detailed information in the email message to the meeting organizer when he/she schedules a resource that has a conflicting meeting. Removing this default setting is not recommended. |
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When declining meeting requests due to a conflicting meeting - Include organizer's name in conflict information |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving this default setting will include the name of the meeting organizer (who has the conflicting meeting in the resource) in the email message. Removing this default setting is not recommended. |
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Always delete the following when sent to this resource – email messages |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving this default setting will automatically delete any email messages sent to the resource. Changing this default setting will allow email messages to be sent to the resource. |
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Always delete the following when sent to this resource – Attachments from meeting requests |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving this default setting will automatically delete any attachments from meeting requests. Changing this default setting will allow meeting request attachments to be sent to the resource. |
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Always delete the following when sent to this resource – Comments from meeting requests |
Checked (Default) Recommend: CHECKED |
Leaving this default setting will automatically delete any comments from meeting requests (e.g. a meeting invitee responds to the meeting invitation and includes additional text in the response) Changing this default setting will allow comments from meeting requests to be received by the resource. |
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Always delete the following when sent to this resource – Subject of meeting requests |
Checked (Default) Recommend: UNCHECKED |
Leaving this default setting will automatically delete any subject of a meeting request. We recommend UNCHECKING this option so that others can see what meeting is scheduled in that room, not just who has scheduled it. |
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Response message |
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Add additional text that will be included in responses to meeting requests |
Unchecked (Default) |
Leaving this default will not include any additional text in the responses that the meeting organizer receives from the resource. If you would like to include additional text, such as the name of the resource owner/delegate/contact information, you may want to check this box. |
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Message text |
Blank (Default) |
If you choose to send additional text, you would add the body of the text here. |
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> Go to Second Step:
Initial Resource Setup using Outlook
> Go to Second Step:
Initial Resource Setup using Entourage
Second Step: Initial Resource Setup using Outlook
The next part of setting up a resource is open the resource within your personal Outlook setup, and if necessary, configure additional permissions such as who can view the resource’s calendar.
- Login to Outlook using your Notre Dame email address and password.
- Go to the Calendar module of Outlook.
- From the left side, click Open a Shared Calendar...
- From the Open a Shared Calendar dialog, click the Name... button.
- Search either the Global Address List or the All Users list to find the resource calendar you own. Select that resource, and then click OK.
- The name of the resource you selected will be filed into the Name... field. Click the OK button.
- The calendar for that resource will open in Outlook and will also be added to the list of calendar in the left Outlook calendar pane.
- If you want to give others (except those you have had OIT set up as delegates to the resource) the ability to view that calendar, you will need to grant them those rights specifically. To so so - with the calendar selected, right click on it and choose Properties.
- Choose the Permissions tab of the Calendar Properties dialog box. The permissions are set for the default user to “None”, which allows everyone on Exchange to see only the free/busy time in the resource via the Scheduling Assistant, but no details about the meeting.
- To give specific access permissions to individuals, click the Add button to search for and add a person to the Permissions list. With the user’s name selected, you can then choose the permission level you wish to grant to the user from the Permissions Level pull-down menu.
Permission levels would be selected as follows:
Permission |
Description |
Who |
Reviewer |
User can read items in calendar but can’t make changes |
Anyone who should to have access to view more information about meetings in the resource (rather than just free/busy time) |
Editor (a.k.a. Designate) Note: At this time, you cannot make someone a delegate to a resource - OIT MUST setup delegate rights on the server. Contact the OIT Help Desk to setup delegate rights for your resource. |
User has full access to read, create, and modify calendar items |
Anyone who should have ability to accept, decline or modify calendar entries on behalf of the resource |
If you want to allow Notre Dame Exchange user to view the calendar and details, highlight the Default identity, and give it Reviwer rights.
- When finished editing permissions, click OK to close the calendar properties dialog box.
After you have set permissions, you will need to inform those people that they can now open the resource's shared calendar by following steps 1 - 7 above.
Some additional things to note:
- Do not move meetings around in the resource as delegate if the meeting was not created as the resource delegate. Doing so breaks the connection to the meeting.
Second Step: Initial Resource Setup using Entourage
The next part of setting up a resource is open the resource within your personal Entourage setup. Note: If you need to grant other people viewing rights to this resource, you MUST do this via Outlook or by submitting a request to the OIT Help Desk with the resource name, the NetIDs, and what rights each of them needs.
- Open Entourage and login with your Notre Dame NetID and password.
- Go to the Calendar module of Entourage.
- Go to the File menu, and select Open Other User’s Folder…
- Click the Addressbook button to search for the individual whose calendar you want to view.
- Search for the name of the resource calendar you want to view.
- Highlight the resource in the search window, and then click Advanced...
- In the Advanced Settings dialog, the name of the resource and its email address will be filled in correctly. You will need to adjust the Server address field to read:
https://owa.nd.edu/exchange/resourceemailaddress@nd.edu
(At the end of the URL, fill in the the resource's email address - e.g., https://owa.nd.edu/exchange/r_comp_328@nd.edu)
- Click OK.
- You will return to the Open Other User’s Folder dialog with the User field filled in. Click OK.
- You will return to the main calendar view. On the left, you will now see an entry for that resource. Click the arrow next to the resource name to show the calendar. Then highlight that entry to view the calendar.
Please note: The first time you view a resource’s calendar, it may take several minutes to load the amount of calendar information.
Note: If you need to grant other people viewing rights to this resource, you MUST do this via Outlook or by submitting a request to the OIT Help Desk with the resource name, the NetIDs, and what rights each of them needs.
Note: Do not move meetings around in the resource as delegate – it breaks the connection to the meeting.