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SFU Mail

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Known Issues

This page contains a list of potential issues and inquires regarding SFU Mail.  

Mail

Issue Possible Solution
Outlook desktop application search returns no results, only results up
 to a certain date, or “items waiting to be index”
  • Ensure mailbox is marked for indexing
  • Try disabling and re-enabling indexing
  • Rebuild the index
Shared folders will still be copied over from SFU Connect, but will be empty and will not have associated shares
  • Delete the folder and ask the folder owner to re-establish the share
No colour coding for folders
  • No workaround available
Cannot open shared mail folders
  • Open/access share in Outlook Web App (OWA)
User needs emails restored
  • Check Deleted Items
  • Check Recoverable Items
Changes to granting and mounting shared mail folders
Opening an email in SFU Mail will result in a window asking for credentials to log into SFU Connect
Redirecting emails to an external email (e.g., Gmail) may cause emails to bounce back or be marked as Spam.
  • No workaround available

Calendar

Issue Possible Solution
OWA only allows viewing of 10 calendars at once
  • Use Outlook desktop application for Mac/PC
Cannot open shared calendars in Outlook 2016 for Mac
  • Open/access share in Outlook Web App (OWA)
Changes to granting and mounting shared calendars
  • Check SFU Mail documentation for instructions on how to grant and mount:
Unable to add meetings directly to a resource account in calendar view
  • Must manually select and create an event and type in location
Only default calendar in SFU Mail is reporting free/busy information
  • May require workflow changes; project team is working on documenting reccomendatinons
Locations for room bookings do not auto generate when typing into the location field 
  • You must select 'Add room' and select a location from the drop-down menu
Unable to book resources for more than 1 year in advance 
  • No workaround
No available feature to block email invites 
  • May require workflow changes; project team working on documenting recommendations
Free/Busy information does not display when booking a meeting in Outlook for Mac
  • SFU Mail account may need to be removed and re-added to the application
Using the Suggested Meetings feature in OWA to turn a link in an email into a calendar event also sends invitation to an entire maillist or other email recipients
  • Remove maillist or other email recipients from the invitation by clikcing 'Edit details' in the Suggested Meetings window. More information here.

Resource Accounts

Issue Possible Solution
When a delegate of a resource is in their own account, this user cannot create a new meeting directly in the resource's calendar. 
  • Manually create an event and select resouce's calendar from drop down menu
When an owner of a resource is trying to open the resource account using the 'Open another mailbox...' feature in OWA, the resource does not appear in the search results.
  • Type that resource into the People field of a new meeting using the resource's email address (e.g., loc-sh1007@sfu.ca). OWA will then remember this address, and it should then appear in the search results of the 'Open another mailbox...' window.

Set Up/General

Issue Possible Solution
Rule (filter) conditions do not map exactly between SFU Connect and SFU Mail
  • Check rules (filters) in your old SFU Connect account
  • Re-create rules using available rules conditions in Outlook Web App (OWA)
Syncing issues on mobile devices
  • Ensure mail, calendar, and contacts are selected for sync during setup
  • Re-add email account to phone
  • Check push notification settings are enabled
  • Remove and re-add the application
Data is not consistent with what’s in SFU Connect
Official Outlook mobile app not working
  • This app is disabled for privacy concerns
Exchange is asking for permission to erase data, set passwords, etc., on Android mobile devices
  • No workaround available. This is expected behaviour.
Outlook desktop application does not startup 
  • Re-create Outlook profile
  • Start Outlook in Safe Mode
Outlook desktop application was configured before the cut-over process, received error message
  • Remove profile and re-add to desktop application
Error message of "stale request" when trying to sign back into OWA after several hours of inactivity
  • Type 'mail.sfu.ca' into URL bar to reload fresh authentication page
Login session times out, resulting in error message
  • Refresh the page to sign in again
The Zimbra Connector for Outlook (ZCO) will cause issues when an SFU Mail account is added
  • Remove ZCO before adding a new SFU Mail account
When you have more than one tab open for OWA, you will receive notifications in each tab
  • No workaround available
For some Firefox users, browser shows a blank page when trying to open OWA. This issue persists regardless of OS, browser version, or private browsing mode.
  • Clearing browsing data may resolves this
  • Alternately, use a different browser
For some Mac users, the Outlook 2016 for Mac app may appear to have connectivity issues. A feature of the Mac operating system called App Nap suspends apps that are not performing any "useful tasks". For the Outlook application, it can cause issues such as repeatedly asking for user authentication.
  • Disabling this feature for this app may alleviate connectivity issues.
  • You can contact your department's technical support staff to disable this feature.
For some PC users, the Outlook 2016 for PC app may repeadedly prompt for authentication through a popup window. 
  • No workaround available; issue currently under investigation

Mobile

Issue Possible Solution
Android devices that connect to SFU Mail via
ActiveSync will not display shared calendars
  • No workaround available. This is expected behaviour
When trying to add an SFU Mail account to an iOS device that still has an old SFU Connect account, the device may display the error that an Exchange account already exists.
  • Change the SFU Connect email account to an alias
  • Alternately, you can delete the old SFU Connect account