MORE INFORMATION
Q: Are Inbox rules related to the profile that was used to create them?
A:
There are two types of Inbox rules:
profile-dependent and
profile-independent:
Profile-dependent: Otherwise known as profile-specific rules. These
rules will be executed only when logged onto
Exchange Server with the profile that created the
rule. Any one of the following actions in a rule make
that rule profile-dependent:
- Alert With (New Items of Interest dialog box)
- Move/Copy To a folder in a Personal Store (.pst)
- Move/Copy To a public folder
- Custom Action
NOTE: Each Exchange Server profile that is created, no matter what the
name, has a unique ID number assigned to it. If two profiles have the
same name, they are still unique profiles.
Profile-independent: Otherwise known as server-specific rules. These
rules are available for editing, appear black, and
their actions take place regardless of the profile.
Any one of the following actions in a rule make
that rule profile-independent:
- Forward To
- Reply With Template
- Delete
- Move/Copy To an Exchange Server Private Store folder.
Q: What determines whether a particular rule will be profile-dependent or
profile-independent?
A: It only takes one profile-dependent action in a rule to make the whole
rule profile-dependent.
Q: Why are some Inbox rules grayed out or unavailable?
A: Each profile-dependent rule is stamped with the unique ID of the profile
that created the rule. Profile-dependent rules can only be edited when
logged on with the same profile that was used to create the rule. Again,
this is determined by the unique ID. These rules become inactive and
uneditable when you log on with a different profile or from another
computer. They are the rules that appear gray in the Inbox Assistant
window.
Q: How do you edit rules that are grayed out or unavailable?
A: To edit profile-dependent rules, you must be logged onto
Exchange Server with the profile that was used to create the rule.
Q: What if a profile gets deleted that has profile-dependent rules created
against it?
A: If you create a profile-dependent rule and then delete that profile, the
rule becomes deadwood; it can't be activated or edited, just deleted by
selecting the
Show Rules for all Profiles option. Because of this,
profile-dependent rules should be deleted if the originating profile is
deleted or no longer used.
Q: Can rules be copied from one profile to another?
A: You can back up profile rules to a separate .pst file, send that .pst file to
another user, and have them extract the rules in that .pst file. For
additional information, please see the following article in the
Microsoft Knowledge Base:
150303 XCLN: How to Backup Profile Rules to a Different .PST
: How many rules can exist in a single profile?
A: There is a 32-KB memory limit for creation of rules, not a defined limit
for the maximum number of rules that can be assigned to a folder. On the
average, it is between 40 and 50 rules for each folder. For additional
information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge
Base:
147298 XCLN: Maximum Number of Rules Per Folder
: What happens to profile-dependent rules when logging on with a different
profile?
A: All rules are stored on the Exchange Server computer and are evaluated
on the Exchange Server computer for each message sent to a user. If a
profile-dependent rule cannot be performed by the Exchange
Server computer, it creates a Deferred Action Message (DAM) to be processed by
the client. The DAMs are marked with the ID of the profile that was used
to create them, and are only processed when that profile is used. When
you log on, all the DAMs are analyzed to see if they have the correct ID
for the current profile, and, if they do, the DAMs are processed. If
not, they are left in the folder that stores them, a hidden folder
called the Deferred Actions Folder (DAF), and are analyzed each time you
log on until you log on to the profile that created them, and they can be
processed.
Q: How long will DAMs remain in the Deferred Action Folder due to an unused
or deleted profile?
A: Even though they are gray and inaccessible, the rules are still being
analyzed by Exchange Server and are still creating DAMs
for use when the correct (or matching) profile is used (where they will
not be gray and will be editable). And they'll keep being triggered even
if the profile is destroyed because there is no way for
Exchange Server to tell if the profile still exists. This can cause a
large backlog of DAMs that eventually will be removed by the
Exchange Server computer (after 60 days, when the Exchange Server computer will
disable the rules and start deleting old DAMs) and, if the backlog is
large enough, it can affect performance while logging on. So, if you end
up deleting/recreating one of your profiles, or never using it again,
delete the gray rules associated with it.
Q: Where are Exchange profiles stored for each of the
Exchange Clients?
A: Exchange profiles are stored in your computer's registry, not
on the Exchange Server computer. The Exchange Client for
Windows 3.
x stores them in a special file in the Windows directory.
Q: Is a rule configured to move a message to a public folder considered
profile-dependent or profile-independent?
A: Profile-dependent, meaning that messages that will be moved to a
public folder require that a user to be logged on to complete the
action. Otherwise, a DAM will be created for these actions.
Q: If my computer is configured with both Windows 95 and Windows NT, can I
use the same profile for both operating systems?
A: No. If you dual-boot two different operating systems, you're using two
different registries and hence, two different profiles. The profile-dependent rules you create on one side of the dual-boot won't work on
the other side.
Q: What happens if a single message meets the conditions of two or more
rules?
A: Multiple rules can act on a single message, resulting in copies of a
message being moved to different folders for example.
NOTE: Within the Microsoft Exchange Client 5.0 Inbox Assistant, the
Do not
Process Subsequent Rules option has been added to specifically stop rule
processing after a particular rule has fired.
Q: Does the order in which the rules are listed have any effect on the
actions of the qualifying rules?
A: Order of the rules doesn't matter except for a delete action. After the
message is deleted with a delete action, all subsequent rule processing
on that message stops. So when in doubt, put delete rules at the bottom
of the rule list.
NOTE: Within the Exchange Client 5.0 Inbox Assistant, the
Do not
Process Subsequent Rules option has been added to specifically stop rule
processing after a particular rule has fired.
Q: Can I use the Inbox Assistant with the MS Mail service installed on my
client?
A: No, because rules are Exchange Server-based, the Inbox
Assistant will not be available without an Exchange Server
service properly installed. If the MS Mail messages are routed through
an MS Mail Connector to an Exchange Server user, the Inbox Assistant
will function against those messages.
Q: Are there any Boolean logic functions available for rules?
A: Semicolons (;) can be used as an OR condition in all fields. Put quotes ("")
around each word unless you really mean "use this root against all words."
For example, Subject: cat; tail -- this will affect all messages with
those roots in the subject line such as "locate," "retail," and so forth. To
limit this to whole words of "cat" or "tail," place the words in quotes, in
other words, Subject: "cat"; "tail".
Examples of Rules Processing
Q: If a message matches a rule in the Out of Office Assistant (OOF), but
the same messages also matches a delete rule in the Inbox Assistant,
will the OOF Assistant rule get processed?
A: The Inbox Assistant rules will be processed first. A delete rule in the
Inbox Assistant will delete the message, and the OOF Assistant rule will
not be processed.
For example, user Bill has a local .pst file which is configured as the default delivery
point. Bill has rules defined as follows:
- If mail is received from JohnDoe, delete it.
- If mail is received addressed to "Junk Alias," move it to the Later folder in the local .pst file.
- If mail is received with "Bill" in the message body, move it to the BackItUp folder on the Exchange Server computer.
- If mail is received from Joyce addressed directly to Bill, reply with
"I'm working on it."
Q: What happens if JohnDoe sends a message to the Junk Alias (assuming that
I am on the Junk Alias)?
A: The message will be deleted (rule #1), and no further rules will be
processed.
Q: What happens if Joyce sends mail to the Junk Alias (assuming that I am
on the Junk Alias)?
A: The message will be moved to the Later folder (rule #2) in the local .pst file.
Q: What happens if Joyce sends mail to the Junk Alias (assuming that I am
on the Junk Alias) with "Bill" in the message body?
A: The message will be moved to the BackItUp folder on the Exchange Server computer (rule #3), and a reply will be sent with "I'm working on
it" as the message body (rule #4).
Q: What happens if I receive 20 messages addressed to "Junk Alias" while my
computer is online?
A: Each message will be processed through the list of rules, and all actions
will be taken. None of the messages will remain in the Inbox because the
action (rule #2) is a MOVE action not COPY.
Q: What happens if I receive 20 messages addressed to "Junk Alias" while my
computer is offline?
A: Each message will be processed through the list of rules and DAMs will
be created for each action in the profile-dependent rules. Any profile-independent rules will complete their actions.
Q: What happens if Joyce sends something directly to Bill and it has "Bill"
in the message body?
A: The message will move it to the BackItUp folder (rule #3) on the Exchange Server computer (no copy will be left in the Inbox), and rule #4 will
reply with "I'm working on it" as the message body.
Q: What happens if the "Junk Alias" friendly name changes to "Junk Yard
Alias"?
A: The rules are processed on both resolved names (distinguished names have
underline) and text strings in the To field. You can solve all the rule
processing scenarios by indicating a distinguished name, a text version
of the distinguished name, and a text version of the short alias name separated by
semicolons (;) in the rule's To field.