DH said:
When I log in at home it says: Microsoft outlook Web Access, Microsoft
Exchange Server 2003.
That is a web server running at your company that has an interface to their
Exchange mail server. You use your web browser to connect to their web
server which then interfaces with your Exchange account. That doesn't
involve Outlook at all.
The emal accounts I check at home using Outlook 2007 are hotmail, g-mail,
and roadrunner.
Those would be POP/IMAP accounts (possible HTTP/Deltasync with Hotmail if
using the Outlook Connector add-on to Outlook 2003, and up, although Hotmail
can also be accessed via POP) for inbound e-mails and using SMTP for
outbound e-mails. Exchange is not involved here.
I used to check a hotmail address at work through Outlook 2007 (just like I
do at home) but since I got set up to use Outlook exchnage server at work,
they showed me how to log into that site from home.
Before you mentioned using OWA to access your work account. Now you are
asking how to use a local e-mail client (Outlook) to access your work
account. OWA is your web browser connecting to their web server to get at
Exchange. They have permitted outside access to their Exchange server
through their web server. However, it is highly unlikely they permit direct
access to their Exchange server from the outside. You get direct access
when you are on the corporate network but not when outside because they
don't know who you are. They don't want public access to their Exchange
server by outsiders.
You don't mention what is the "set up" to use Outlook from home to connect
to their Exchange server. Unless they make their Exchange server publicly
accessible (not likely), they probably have you startup a VPN connection.
That gives a secure channel across the Internet from your host to their
server. It makes you look like you are on their network although you are
coming from the Internet. Of course, I'm just guessing since nothing of
what is this "setup" has been defined and presumably isn't you again talking
about using OWA to connect to their web server (that then interfaces with
their Exchange server).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vpn
When using a VPN to your company to connect to their network, it is likely
that they restrict to where you can connect when using that VPN connection.
That means you can use the VPN connection to their network but nowhere else.
While inside the VPN connection, you are NOT connected to the Internet per
se. You are inside a secured channel that goes only one place: to your
company's network. So while using the VPN connection, Outlook may only be
able to connect to the company's mail server. When not using the VPN
connection (and connected out to the Internet in general), you can connect
to your ISP's, Hotmail's, and Gmail's mail servers but not to your company's
mail server. You're walking down hallway A or B but not both at the same
time, and what you can access in each hallway are a different set of doors.
I don't know if you are using a VPN to connect to your company's network to
get at their mail server. I'm just guessing. Only you know how your laptop
was setup. Of course, the IT folks at your company also know how it was
setup and you should be asking them how to access your Exchange account from
home or when travelling. They may not allow an e-mail client to connect to
their mail server (either directly from outside or through a VPN). They may
only permit the OWA client access to their web server. So ask them how they
permit outside access to Exchange accounts. Just because you want it to
work some way doesn't mean they gave you that way.
When at home or away from
the office, I'd much rather be able to look at everything through my Outlook
2007, if possible.
If they permit public accessibility to their Exchange server (i.e., VPN is
not used), you should be able to define your Exchange, Hotmail, and Gmail
accounts and have them all collected by Outlook.
If they use a VPN, you will need to use it (switch it on and use that
connection) to get at their Exchange server. To get at other mail servers
(not on the corporate domain), you will need to *not* use the VPN connection
to get at those public e-mail services. In this case, where you have to
switch between a VPN for corporate e-mail and non-VPN for Hotmail & Gmail,
you will probably get errors when Outlook tries to connect to mail servers
that it cannot reach. To eliminate those errors, you can define multiple
mail profiles (use the Mail applet in Control Panel). One profile would
have just your Exchange account. The other profile would have your
non-corporate accounts (Hotmail, Gmail). Do NOT define a default mail
profile. That way, you will get prompted when you load Outlook as to which
profile you want to use. When using the VPN connection to work, select the
work mail profile that defines your Exchange account at work. When not
using the VPN connection, select the personal mail profile under which your
Hotmail and Gmail accounts are defined. You basically define mail profiles
for what accounts they can use and then match up switching between mail
profiles depending on whether you are using the VPN connection or not.
I don't tote around a laptop unless out of town for several days. The laptop
is also set up like my home PC. So yes, I'd like to be able to set it up
(again Outlook 2007) to check all of my e-mail accounts from one screen.
Best place to start is with the IT or Exchange folks at work to find out
just how they permit outside access to their Exchange server. OWA may be
all they give you; otherwise, they'll probably require a VPN setup to make
you look like you are on their network (so you access their Exchange server
just like you would at work). They'll know.
