Forum Discussion
Public Folders in New Outlook
This is a huge Microsoft Mistake in the New Outlook.
The New Outlook is designed to not allow access to all Public Folders!
I received the following response from Technical Support after several weeks of telling them about the problem and after they researched the issue, they responded: "We did the test and investigation on our test machine and found that 'All Public folders' can't be accessed at once like in Classic Outlook. In New Outlook each Public folder has to be added manually for Windows and it is by internal design."
I'm not sure who is leading the design team, but this is a huge mistake. Microsoft setup Public folders to allow a company to share project related email with staff. In our public folders, we have a large number projects and folders in Public Folders. This has been available since at least before 2011. I am sure we are not alone. It currently works perfectly. Why would Microsoft arbitrarily decide to not support a system that works well as it is???? If they are worried about the size of the database, allow users to create an online archive as you do with personal email?
Other forum members, please let Microsoft know this is not acceptable.
- This is from the Microsoft website: "Public folders are designed for shared access and provide an easy and effective way to collect, organize, and share information with other people in your workgroup or organization.
Public folders organize content in a deep hierarchy that's easy to browse. Users discover interesting and relevant content by browsing through branches of the hierarchy that are relevant to them. Users always see the full hierarchy in their Outlook folder view. Public folders are a great technology for distribution group archiving. A public folder can be mail-enabled and added as a member of the distribution group. Email sent to the distribution group is automatically added to the public folder for later reference. Public folders also provide simple document sharing and don't require SharePoint to be installed in your organization. Finally, end users can use public folders with the following supported Outlook clients: Outlook 2010 or later and Outlook on the web (formerly known as Outlook Web App), but with some limitations."
Clearly Public Folders was intended to be the location to save shared email by team members. It needs to be a high priority to maintain that system or provide an alterate way for team members to collaborate.
ArchitectChuck agree it seems to be a mistake to get rid of such a great system.
also no explanation by MS of what the alternative is.
- This is from the Microsoft website: "Public folders are designed for shared access and provide an easy and effective way to collect, organize, and share information with other people in your workgroup or organization.
Public folders organize content in a deep hierarchy that's easy to browse. Users discover interesting and relevant content by browsing through branches of the hierarchy that are relevant to them. Users always see the full hierarchy in their Outlook folder view. Public folders are a great technology for distribution group archiving. A public folder can be mail-enabled and added as a member of the distribution group. Email sent to the distribution group is automatically added to the public folder for later reference. Public folders also provide simple document sharing and don't require SharePoint to be installed in your organization. Finally, end users can use public folders with the following supported Outlook clients: Outlook 2010 or later and Outlook on the web (formerly known as Outlook Web App), but with some limitations."
Clearly Public Folders was intended to be the location to save shared email by team members. It needs to be a high priority to maintain that system or provide an alterate way for team members to collaborate. We sync contacts for our customers and one of the contact sources they use is Public Folders. Since issues have started with Public Folders it looks like Microsoft wants to retire them. Our suggestion has been for customers to transition to Shared Mailboxes, which has worked well for them. Please note they also use Public Folders, and now Shared Mailboxes for other sharing capabilities outside of contacts.
This is exactly how we use the public folders. We have shared contacts that include things like clients and suppliers that we all need access to. It lets me and it and says contacts have been added to "People" but when i go to the people tab nothing is there.
EllaNunez19 Shared folders don't work as we need. You can set just 10 users and if you need to set more users you must use Powershell and you will never see then on Oultook Shared Folder Properties...
Microsoft is doing very bad job since O365 came up. 😞
ArchitectChuck Is anyone still surprised by these situations with Microsoft? Absurd to think that such a convenient feature is abandoned, but these gentlemen are not the first time they have behaved in this way. Zero user interest. I'm still using the old version for this reason. I also can't find the "Folders" view in the new Outlook.
- It is clear that they have no concern for the interests of users. They put the simple options, as soon as they have one, perhaps, a little more complex they abandon it.. Does anyone know alternative methods or third-party products for viewing public folders?
In conclusion, public folders in Exchange and Office 365 offer a versatile solution for efficient collaboration and information sharing within organizations. With their easy accessibility, enhanced security features, and seamless integration with other Office 365 services, public folders empower teams to work together effectively and increase productivity. Whether you’re looking to simplify document management, facilitate team communication, or establish a centralized repository, public folders provide a valuable tool for streamlining your organization’s workflow. Embrace the power of public folders in Exchange and Office 365 and unlock a world of enhanced collaboration possibilities.
GROUPS DON’T WORK. LET’S ALL COMPLAIN AND ASK FOR PUBLIC FOLDERS BACK IN THE NEW OUTLOOK.
- The best place to leave such feedback is over at the Feedback portal: https://feedbackportal.microsoft.com/feedback/forum/89a8afa3-2e1c-ec11-b6e7-0022481f8472
Or under any of the announcement posts related to new Outlook. For example, there is at least one mention of Public folders in the comments under the latest "roadmap" post: https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/outlook-blog/things-to-look-forward-to-in-the-new-outlook-for-windows/ba-p/3975602
Those are the only places you can expect PMs on the Outlook team to look, forum posts are not something they frequent.- thanks, but I can't find the mention of public fodlers in the Feedback portal. Can you help me find it and post my suggestion (aka complaint?)
- Thank you very much Vasil. Great help!!
Am I the only who noticed that you can no longer forward emails that have attachments from a public folder. That was not an issue on the old outlook.ArchitectChuck
We have been waiting in vain for public folders in New Outlook for Mac since 2020. We have already lost hope...
