Zimbra OSS Outlook and IMAP

[SurrealSystems]

I have issues with users using IMAP to connect to my Zimbra server.


Basically, whenever they erase a message in outlook, it puts a line through it to queue it for deletion, and thats as far as it gets.

It doens't actually erase it.

I can post a screenshot if needed.

Any ideas of a way to correct this? (I tried to search, but had no luck)

Thanks.

[soxfan]

Yeah, Outlook and IMAP don't really play that well, at least in my opinion (up to Outlook 2003; haven't played with 2007 or later). When you delete a message in Outlook it simply marks it for deletion and put the line through it (as you are seeing). You can "hide" these messages; it's somewhere under the View menu. To permanently get rid of these messages you have to do what is know as expunging the messages. To do this in Outlook you click on Edit --> Purge Deleted Messages (at least in Outlook 2003). The issue with this is that it is an all or nothing thing. You lose out on the Zimbra feature where you can control how long messages stay in the Trash folder. Maybe for some this isn't a problem, but I did not like it at all.

[bradb21]

Outlook likes to use the folders like "Sent Items" and "Deleted Items" rather than "Sent" & "Trash". They don't give you the option to change these defaults how you can in apps like Thunderbird. They may do this just to be different, and more of a reason to get you to buy Exchange. Who knows.

[fcash]

This is an Outlook issue, and only an Outlook issue.

MS, in their infinite wisdom, decided long ago to treat IMAP accounts differently from POP3 and MAPI (Exchange) accounts. They've taken a *very* literal view of the IMAP spec. There's no "move" action in IMAP, and "delete" simply means "mark for deletion" and make it available for "purge" later on.

So, instead of doing things behind the scenes to make e-mail work that same everywhere, they did the most literal thing they could:
- if you hit delete, they mark the message as "deleted". They don't copy it to the Deleted Items or Trash folder, they don't automatically purge it, they just mark it.
- if you move a message, they "copy" the message to the new folder on the server, and mark the original "deleted". Still shows it in the original folder, no auto-purge support.

And so, those that use Outlook to access IMAP servers start to think that IMAP is broken and stop using it. "Better get an Exchange Server, this IMAP stuff is crap."

Gotta love MS.

If you need an IMAP client, don't use any version Outlook or Outlook Express. Get a real e-mail program.

[dwmtractor]

I hated Outlook long before I even knew there was a Zimbra , but my impression is that there are two options to set up in Outlook (I know they're in Outlook Express) that would HELP to mitigate this frustration: One is an option to "hide deleted items", and the other is something to the effect of purging folders when leaving.

I don't have an installation of LookOut to check on, so I can't point to where they are in the menus, but hunt around for that verbiage and you may find some help.

Cheers,

Dan

[mmorse]

Originally Posted by SurrealSystems

Basically, whenever they erase a message in outlook, it puts a line through it to queue it for deletion, and thats as far as it gets.
Any ideas of a way to correct this? (I tried to search, but had no luck)

Sure, fired up Outlook 07 - some pics are attached.

Fcash explains the history the best, but in short: Essentially when you delete an email from an IMAP mail folder using Outlook, it's still displayed but with a line through it. These items are not removed permanently until you purge your deleted messages, and therefore they sit and still use up quota space.

So how do you get rid of deleted messages from your IMAP folders?

Manual:
Edit > Purge > Purge Marked Items In All Accounts

To add the Purge Deleted Messages button to your Outlook toolbar:
1. View > Toolbars > Customize > Commands Tab > Edit Category
2. Scroll down the commands list and select Purge Deleted Messages.
3. Click and drag the Purge Deleted Messages button to the toolbar at the top of the screen and drop it next to the Delete button or something.

Automatic *cough* I mean "continuously-variable-transmission"
Not really possible to set Outlook to fully automatically purge messages, but to get pretty close you can:
Edit > Purge > Purge Options > Purge items when switching folders while online

Other things that you might be interested in/extra info for others:
To help out performance: Ctl + Alt + S > Edit > Play with your header sync settings & frequency of subscribed folders.

Tools > Options > Other > Empty Deleted Items On Exit (for your local stuff)

To HIDE deleted items: View > Arrange By > Current View > Hide Messages Marked for Deletion

To GROUP deleted items perform the following: View > Arrange By > Current View > Group Messages Marked for Deletion

Note that in the above 2 examples these items are not deleted permanently and therefore still use up space until they are actually permanently removed/purged.

Or the best solution of all: Use the MAPI ability of ZCO to grab not only mail - but contacts, calendars, and task as well