This guide explains how to open shared Outlook folders with other users inside your organization. Here you can find instructions for:

• Outlook for Windows
• Outlook for Mac
• OWA

If the guide is not working for you, you may review the full text of the articles:

• Outlook for Windows:
• How Do I Open Shared Folders In Outlook?
• Outlook for Mac:
• How To Open Shared Folders In Outlook 2011/2016 For Mac
• OWA
• How Do I Open A Shared Folder In Outlook Web Access?
• How Do I Open Another User's Mailbox In OWA 2013?
• How Do I Open Another User's Mailbox In OWA 2016/2019?

Outlook for Windows:

Partial/selective access with Sharing invitation

If you received a Sharing invitation, open this email and click Open this Calendar/Contacts/Journal/Notes/Tasks folder button.

Note: do not delete Sharing invitation if you want to close and re-open folder later.

Partial/selective access without Sharing invitation

To open a folder that was shared without Sharing invitation in Outlook 2007 and Outlook 2010/2013/2016/2019 follow these steps:

Outlook 2010/2013/2016/2019

To open shared Calendar/Contacts/Journal/Notes/Tasks folder switch to the appropriate section > click Folder on the top ribbon > click Open Shared Calendar/Contacts/Journal/Notes/Tasks.

To open other folders follow these steps:

1. Go to File > Info > Account Settings > Account Settings
   

   

2. Double-click your email address > More Settings > Advanced > Add
   

   

   
   Note: It is strongly recommended to uncheck Download shared folders box if you have multiple shared mailboxes opened.
3. Enter user's name > click OK > select user if several are found > OK > Next > Finish

   

Outlook 2007

To open shared Calendar/Contacts/Journal/Notes/Tasks folder switch to the appropriate section > click Open Shared Calendar/Contacts/Journal/Notes/Tasks.

To open other folders follow these steps:

1. Go to Tools > Account Settings.
2. Double-click your email address > More Settings > Advanced > Add.
3. Enter user's name > click OK > select user if several are found > OK > Next > Finish.

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Typical Errors

If you click on an arrow next to the mailbox name or on the mailbox name, you might receive the following two errors as shown in the screenshot below.

Resolution: a user who shared this folder needs to grant you Folder Visible permission on all parent folders. Refer to this article for step by step instructions.

Complete/full access

To open folder in Outlook 2007 and Outlook 2010/2013/2016/2019 (if there is no Autodiscover):

Outlook 2010/2013/2016/2019

1. Go to File > Info > Account Settings > Account Settings.
2. Double-click your email address > More Settings > Advanced > Add.
3. Enter user's name > click OK > select user if several are found > OK > Next > Finish.

If you have an Exchange 2010/2013/2016 account and there is an Autodiscover record configured for your domain, then folder shared using this method will be automatically mapped to your Outlook 2010/2013/2016/2019.

Outlook 2007

1. Go to Tools > Account Settings.
2. Double-click your email address > More Settings > Advanced > Add.
3. Enter user's name > click OK > select user if several are found > OK > Next > Finish.

Outlook for Mac:

Before you can open a shared folder, you need to know who granted you access and what type of folder it is. Read the Knowledge Base article on How To Share Folders In Outlook 2011/2016 For Mac for information on how to share a folder.

Choose Open Other User's Folder if you would like to open shared Inbox, Contacts or Calendar folders.

Choose Delegate Access if you need to open Tasks, Notes or Full access mailbox. This option is also applicable for opening shared Inbox, Calendar and Contacts.

Choose Shared Calendar if you need to only open shared calendar.

Important: the folder must be shared with the Reviewer permissions at least.

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Using the Open Other User's Folder feature

To open a shared Inbox, Contacts or Calendar folder:

1. In Outlook go to File > Open > Other User's Folder.
   

   

   
   
2. In the Open Other User's Folder window, in the User box, type the email address of the folder's owner, or select the user from the address book. In the Type box, select which folder you need to open (Inbox, Calendar or Contacts). Click OK.
   Note: Open Other User's Folder is the best option to display a shared subfolder. For example, if you have a shared subfolder located in Inbox, you need to choose the corresponding type of top-level folder (Inbox) and click OK.
   

   

3. The folder will appear in your folder list on the left side of the Outlook window.

How to Remove Other User's Folder:

1. Open your Outlook account and navigate to the shared account.
2. Right-click on the shared account name and select Remove Shared Account:
   

   

3. The shared folder will no longer be showing in your account.

Using the Delegates settings

To open a shared Inbox, Calendar, Contacts, Tasks or Notes folder:

1. In Outlook, go to Tools > Accounts. Select your account in the list in the left pane, click on Advanced, and switch to the Delegates tab.
   Under Open these additional mailboxes, click on + to add a person.
   

   

2. Type the name or email address of the user who shared the folder with you. Select the user on the list and click Add.
   

   

   
   Click on OK and close the Accounts window. All the folders shared with you by this user will appear in your folder list on the left side of the Outlook window.

How to Remove Other User's Folder:

1. Open your Outlook account and navigate to the shared account.
2. Right-click on the shared account name and select Remove Shared Account:
   

   

3. The shared folder will no longer be showing in your account.

To open shared calendar:

1. Switch to Calendar view and click Open Shared Calendar
2. Type the name or email address of the user who shared the calendar with you. Select the user from the list and click Open.
   

   

3. Shared calendar will appear in your calendar list on the left side of the Outlook.

How to Remove Shared Calendar from view:

1. Open your Outlook account and navigate to the shared account.
2. Right-click on the shared account name and select Remove Shared Account:
   

   

3. The shared calendar will no longer be showing in your account.

Open shared folder in OWA:

Important: Microsoft has disabled opportunity to view shared Contacts via OWA. In order to view shared Contacts you need to use Outlook mail client.

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To open a Shared Calendar:

1. Switch to the Calendar.
2. In the left pane, right-click My Calendars (Your Calendars) and click on Open calendar.
   

   

   
   
3. Enter Email address or Display Name > click on Open.
   

   

   
   

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To open the mail folder in OWA:

1. Right-click your mailbox name in the left pane and click on Add shared folder.

   

   
   
2. Enter Email address or Display Name of the user that shared folders with you and click on Add.

   

3. The mailbox will appear in the left pane under the folder list.

   

   In case specific folders were shared with you by another user, you will be able to see only the folders for which you have been granted access.

The shared mailbox will appear every time you log in to Outlook Web Access.

In case you want to remove it from the list of folders, right-click the mailbox name in the left pane and click on Remove shared folder.

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Open Full Access mailbox in OWA:

OWA version depends on which Exchange server you are on.

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Note: To use this feature, you must be granted Full Access to the mailbox that you wish to open.
Read the following Knowledge Base articles for more information:
How Do I Enable Send As Or Full Access Permissions On An Exchange Account?
How Do I Share (Let Others See) My Outlook Folders?

To open another user’s mailbox in Outlook Web Access:

1. Log in to OWA using your own mailbox email address and password.
2. Click on your name in the upper right corner of the window and click Open another mailbox.
   

   

3. In the Open another mailbox box, enter the email address of the mailbox that you want to open and click Open. The mailbox will open in a new window.
   

   

Troubleshooting:

If the mailbox doesn’t open and you get the following error message instead:
"Something went wrong. You don't have permission to open this mailbox."
then you need to make sure that you were granted full access to that mailbox.

Double-check the permissions granted by going to HostPilot > Services > Exchange Mailboxes. Click the display name of the shared mailbox to open settings. On the Exchange Server tab, click Full access & Send As to view the list of permissions.

In case you need to open mailbox in Outlook client after full access is given read the Knowledge Base article on How Do I Add Someone Else's Mailbox To My Exchange Outlook Profile? for more information.

Knows issues

It is not possible to open Full Access mailbox with + sign in its email address using the steps above. In order to open a mailbox, you need to compile a weblink as in example below:

Important: to protect your account information we cannot publish your Server names in public Knowledge Base.
Your Exchange Proxy Server information can be found under Home > Exchange servers and settings > Exchange proxy setting.

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Note: To use this feature, you must be granted Full Access to the mailbox that you wish to open. Full access can be granted only on Enterprise accounts. 

Read the following Knowledge Base articles for more information:
How Do I Enable Send As Or Full Access Permissions On An Exchange Account?
How Do I Share (Let Others See) My Outlook Folders?

This article covers the following:

• To open another user's mailbox in Outlook Web Access
• To add a shared mailbox to the left navigation pane
• Troubleshooting

To open another user's mailbox in Outlook Web Access

1. Log in to OWA using your own mailbox email address and password.
2. Click on your name in the upper-right corner of the window and click Open another mailbox.
   

   

3. In the Open another mailbox box, enter the email address of the mailbox that you want to open and click Open. The mailbox will open in a new window.
   

   

To add a shared mailbox to the left navigation pane:

1. Sign in to your account in OWA.
2. Right-click your primary mailbox in the left navigation pane, and then choose Add shared folder.
   

   

3. In the Add shared folder dialog box, type the name or email address of the mailbox you have full access to, and select Add.
   

   

The shared mailbox and its folders will be displayed in the left navigation pane each time you open OWA.

Troubleshooting:

If the mailbox doesn’t open and you get the following error message instead:
"Something went wrong. You don't have permission to open this mailbox."
then you need to make sure that you were granted full access to that mailbox.

Double-check the permissions granted by going to HostPilot > Services > Exchange Mailboxes. Click the display name of the shared mailbox to open settings. On the Exchange Server tab, click Full access & Send As to view the list of permissions.

In case you need to open the mailbox in Outlook client after full access is given read the Knowledge Base article on How Do I Add Someone Else's Mailbox To My Exchange Outlook Profile? for more information.

Knows issues

It is not possible to open Full Access mailbox with + sign in its email address using the steps above. In order to open a mailbox, you need to search for ExampleMailbox%252B@domain.com instead of ExampleMailbox+@domain.com when opening another mailbox in OWA. Alternatively, you may compile a weblink to access another mailbox as in example below:

Your Exchange Proxy Server information can be found under Home > Exchange servers and settings > Exchange proxy setting.
Important: to protect your account information we cannot publish your Server names in public Knowledge Base.

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