What is a Shared Mailbox?

A shared mailbox is a Drexel Office 365 email address used by multiple people. Individuals with permission to access the mailbox can send and receive emails from this mailbox just like their primary Drexel Email Account. A shared mailbox is thus a useful tool for sending emails from a central location, such as a department or team, instead of an individual.

Shared mailboxes are requested through Drexel IT (see below).

Once created, shared mailboxes can be accessed through Microsoft Outlook or through the Web Interface (see below).

How to Request a Shared Mailbox

Follow the directions below to request an Office 365 shared mailbox:

1. Go to http://drexel.edu/servicedesk.
2. Sign in using your Drexel credentials.
3. From the menu on the left, select Request a Service > Email & Collaboration > New Shared eMailbox.
4. If you will be the administrator for the mailbox, move to the next step. If not:
   • At the top of the form next to On Behalf of…Self, select Edit.
   • Using the text field above the list of names, enter the name of the user who will be the mailbox administrator.
   • Select their name from the drop-down list.
5. Set the Name for this Mailbox to something user-friendly and easily recognizable.
6. Set Preferred email address ([blank]@drexel.edu) to the email address you would like for the mailbox.
7. Fill in the List of people who should have permission to use the account. Be sure to include their name and userID (eg. abc123) separated by a comma as indicated in the field name.
8. Select Submit when you have completed the form.

Drexel IT will email you when the account is created. The new shared mailbox should then appear in the Navigation Pane of Outlook. If you do not see the shared mailbox, restart Outlook to re-sync your mailboxes.

How to Use and Manage a Shared Mailbox

The individual who initially requested the creation of the shared mailbox becomes the primary administrator, and can then grant access to others as needed.

Access Through the Web Interface

If you prefer to use the Web interface for email instead of Outlook, you can see other mailboxes by following these steps:

1. Sign in with your Drexel credentials at portal.office.com.
2. Go to your own mailbox by clicking the "Mail" tile.
3. Click on your icon or picture in the top right.
4. Select "Open another mailbox...."
5. Type the name of the other account to which you have been granted access.

Adding the Shared Mailbox to Outlook

If you are the administer for the mailbox, or have permission to access it, you can add it to your Outlook email client.

For PC:

1. Open Outlook.
2. Select the File menu.
3. Select Account Settings, and then select Account Settings… from the drop-down menu.
4. Select your email address from the list, and then select Change.
5. Select More Settings… > Advanced tab > Add....
6. Enter the email address associated with the shared mailbox in the Add mailbox field, and then select OK.
7. Select OK > Next > Finish > Close.

For macOS:

1. Open Outlook.
2. Select Tools at the top of the screen to show the Tools ribbon.
3. Select Accounts > your email address > Advanced… > Delegates tab.
4. In the Open these additional mailboxes: section, select the + icon.
5. Enter the email address associated with the shared mailbox, and then select it from the list.
6. Select Add > OK.
7. Close the Accounts window.
   1. If you receive a message stating that Outlook was redirected to the server …:
   2. Check the Always use my response for this server option.
   3. Select Allow.