The University E-mail System is designed to offer all USC students, faculty, and staff e-mail service and includes an easy-to-use web interface.

With the exception of a few departments, the migration of faculty and staff accounts will be planned over a 2 year period beginning in July, 2007. Your network manager will be working with your department to determine the best time to schedule the move.

The University E-mail System supports web based access via Outlook Web Access; most users with Windows workstations will choose to run the Outlook Client. The Outlook client will be configured to run RPC over HTTPS. Most Macintosh users will choose to run the Entourage client.  Entourage can be configured securely as a webDAV client.

• Configuring Outlook 2003 via RPC/HTTPS
• Configuring Outlook 2007 via RPC/HTTPS
• Configuring Entourage as a secure webDAV client

The URL for web based access is: https://webmail.sc.edu. Please note that you must enable pop-ups from the Outlook Web Access site. Click here for instructions on how to enable pop-ups.

• Configuring the Outlook 2003 Client for Secure IMAP
• Configuring the Outlook 2007 Client for Secure IMAP
• Configuring the Thunderbird Client for Secure IMAP
• Configuring the Entourage Client for Secure IMAP

Your e-mail address will not change. The default e-mail address is yourusername@mailbox.sc.edu. The default e-mail address can be used, but when your mailbox is migrated to the system, your current e-mail address will be retained.

• Your mailbox can store up to 300 MB of data.
• Individual messages must be less than 32 MB.
• System backups are maintained for the sake of disaster recovery; University Technology Services will not be responsible for restoring e-mail messages.

You will receive a message from the system that your mailbox has exceeded the size limit. You will continue to receive messages but will not be able to send until you free up space by deleting some messages.

Your IT support staff can request a mailbox size increase. We do not expect to charge faculty/staff for additional mailbox space, but we do ask that you be a good steward of the resources.

To forward your e-mail messages to a personal e-mail account, you must establish a forward rule within Outlook Web Access.

1. Login to Outlook Web Access with your network username.
2. Select Rules on the menu in the lower left-hand corner of the screen.
3. Select new from the menu across the top of the window.
4. Enter a name for your forward rule. *This step is optional.
5. Under the heading Then, select the Forward it to button.
6. Enter your personal e-mail address to which your e-mail will be forwarded.
7. If you do not want to retain a copy in your University e-mail mailbox, uncheck the box labeled Keep a copy in my Inbox. Note that messages in student inboxes will be automatically deleted after 60 days.
8. Click Save and Close to finish.

The first thing it filters out, of course, are known viruses!
The anti-virus filter will not allow attachments with the following file extensions. 386, .ade, .adp, .asx, .bas, .bat, .bin, .ceo, .chm, .cmd, .cnf, .com, .cpl, .crt, .csh, .dll, .dot, .eml, .exe, .hiv, .hlp, .hta, .htt, .inf, .ins, .isp, .js, .jse, .jtd, .lnk, .mad, .maf, .mag, .mam, .maq, .mar, .mas, .mat, .mav, .maw, .mhtml, .msc, .msi, .msp, .mst, .ocx, .oft, .ovl, .pcd, .pif, .pl, .plx, .ppa, .reg, .scf, .scr, .sct, .sh, .shb, .shs, .sys, .vb, .vbe, .vbs, .vss, .vst, .vxd, .ws, .wsc, .wsf, .wsh, .xnk

Yes. The University E-mail system is running Trend Micro ScanMail to scan all incoming and outgoing e-mails; this scan will block known viruses from your e-mail messages.

NOTE: E-mail virus scanning does not replace the need for you to run virus protection software on your workstations, but supplements that protection. BE SURE your machine is fully patched and has up-to-date virus protection. See http://uts.sc.edu/virus fopr information on downloading this virus protection software.

Login to VIP. . Select Personal. Click on "Show Me Online Director Data and Alias". Go to the update form and update your preferred name. This is what will show as the first name in your University E-mail account. It also will appear in the USC online directory.

Outlook Web Access is configured to disconnect users after 60 minutes of inactivity.  Outlook Web Access works best with Internet Explorer.  Using other browsers may result in your session timing sooner than 60 minutes.

If you are not using a public or shared computer in a lab or some other location where multiple people use the same computer, you should select the ‘private computer’ option under the Security  heading displayed on the login screen for Outlook Web Access.

There is an extension for Firefox available at  https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1419 .  To utilize the extension, you must have Microsoft Internet Explorer installed on your computer and you must have the Active-X plug-in for Internet Explorer.

Typically, internal e-mail should not ever be trapped by a spam management filter as these  only apply to e-mail that is sent by external senders; however, not everyone at USC is using the USC E-mail system yet.  Thus, their mail is sent from systems external to the USC E-mail system and are, therefore, subject to filtering for spam.   Once every department has migrated to the USC E-mail system, this problem should no longer occur.

• Communicating with Listserv’s - Please note that your default reply-to address will be username@mailbox.sc.edu.  If you have registered on listserv’s with your username@gwm.sc.edu address, you will have to re-register to those listserv’s before you will be allowed to post messages.
• Reset Your Alias - If you have configured an alias that points to your GroupWise address, please update it via VIP to point to username@mailbox.sc.edu.
• Tune Your Spam Management Preferences. - E-mail that is classified as likely spam is quarantined by the SonicWall spam filter.  You may view quarantined messages that were addressed to you and customize your spam management configuration at:  https://myspam.sc.edu .  Please login with your network username and password.

To determine your USC Network Username and set a password, if you do not know these values, or if you have forgotten your password or your password has expired (passwords expire at least every six months for your security), follow these steps:

1. Login to VIP (https://vip.sc.edu)
   (Forget your PIN ? Students should contact the Registrar's Office; faculty/staff should contact their departmental Human Resources representative)
2. Select the "Technology" Link
3. Select "Show Me Network Username"
4. Your USC Network Username will be displayed and you will be prompted to choose a password. You will be asked to type it twice for verification. Your password must be a “strong” password. Rules on legal passwords will be displayed.
5. Click on the "SET PASSWORD" button to set your password to what you have specified.

ATTENTION GRADUATING STUDENTS:
Please be aware that access to your University E-mail account will be revoked 1 year after your last semester at USC if you are an undergraduate; access will be revoked 2 years after your last semester at USC if you are a graduate student.

Your network password must be at least 8 characters in length. Your network password may not include any part of your name or username. Your USC network password must contain at least 3 of any of the following:

Numerical symbols
Special Characters
Upper Case Letters
Lower Case Letters

Please avoid passwords that contain:

• Words found in a dictionary (English or other)
• Names of family, pets, friends, co-workers, fantasy characters, etc.
• Computer terms and names, commands, sites, companies, hardware, software.
• Organization or department names or building locations.
• Birthdays and other personal information such as addresses and phone numbers.
• Word or number patterns like aaabbb, abc123, qwerty, zyxwvuts, 123321, etc.
• Any of the above spelled backwards.
• Any of the above preceded or followed by a digit (e.g., secret1, 1secret).

You will be required to change your password at least every 180 days.

Outlook configured in caching mode maintains a local copy of the entire mailbox which can be accessed offline.  In caching mode, Outlook does not maintain a constant connection to the Exchange server; instead, it connects on a polled basis.  

The key advantages of using caching mode are as follows.

1. Outlook can be used in offline mode; users can respond to e-mails although the computer may not be connected to the network.  When the computer re-connects to the network, Outlook will send any messages that were created
2. Perceived performance is often improved.  Users who configure multiple shared folders or calendars with Outlook in non-caching mode often experience delays in connection when switching among folders or calendars.   When Outlook is configured in caching mode, users do not perceive these delays as a constant connection  to the server is not required. 

The key disadvantages of using caching mode are as follows.

1. An entire copy of the mailbox is stored on the local computer.   Anyone who has access to the computer and can login locally can view the contents of the mailbox without having to login to Exchange.  In addition, the copy is not encrypted by default.   The risk of maintaining a local copy of the mailbox can be mitigated by encrypting the hard drive or file system of the workstation.
2. Outlook must re-synchronize each time it is connected to the network.  Starting up Outlook after a prolonged disconnect from the network may take several minutes.
3. The address book is synchronized with the online address book on a periodic basis.  Updates typically are synchronized only on a daily basis.

Searching for content in a cached mailbox involves less optimal techniques than are available with context searches for non-cached mailbox.  See  http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb232132(EXCHG.80).aspx for more details.

The Exchange address book displays your name exactly as it appears in the HR or the student system.  If you prefer that the address book display your middle name or a nickname, please go to VIP (https://vip.sc.edu ) and update your directory data, found under the Personal functions menu.  Once you’ve logged into VIP, the steps are as follows:

• Select Personal from the left-hand menu.
• Select Online Directory Data and Alias.
• Select Update Form.
• In the box labeled ‘Preferred Name,’ enter the name you wish to display rather than your first name in the address book.  Do not include your last name.
• Select Update.

Please note that this update does not take effect immediately.  The updates for address book data are run each night; the Exchange global address book should display your preferred name  by the next day.

If you are currently registered as a student or have been registered as a student within the last year, your e-mail account reflects your student status; thus, the phone number displayed is the phone number you submitted when you registered.  If you would like for your office telephone number to be displayed, please go to VIP (https://vip.sc.edu ) and update your student information with your office telephone number. 

As the Exchange address book contains entries for students, faculty, and staff, it is not uncommon to find multiple people with the same name.  To ensure that you are e-mailing the correct person,  double-click on the name you have selected to view the complete properties.  Address book entries for students only contain their name and phone number while the entries for faculty and staff members should display department name and  office location as well.   You can also check the actual e-mail address to verify that you have selected the correct recipient.

Outlook remembers the e-mail addresses to which you have sent messages; however, the system has no means of detecting whether an e-mail address is no longer valid.   For example, as many departments within USC are still migrating from Exchange, you may have e-mailed a colleague recently, using an address book entry that is both upper and lower case (representing a GroupWise address) .  Let’s assume that colleague has now migrated to Exchange since your last message. 

If you attempt to send a message, using the auto completed upper lower case address which is no longer in the global address book, you will receive an undeliverable message reply from the system, typically known as a ‘bounce.’  Delete that address from your auto completion list by highlighting it and pressing delete, and search for the recipient’s name in the Exchange global address list to obtain the correct, updated e-mail address.

When you begin to type the person’s name or address, the auto completion list will display.  Scroll down to the incorrect entry using the up and down arrows.  Once the address is highlighted, simply press the delete key.

There may be several reasons why your name may not be displayed in the global address book.

• You may be a student who has elected, under FERPA regulations, to maintain your directory information as private.  If you would like to change this status, please contact the Office of the Registrar.

Yes. The University E-mail System is running the SonicWall anti-spam appliance to screen incoming e-mails. Any message detected as likely spam is quarantined. You will receive a daily summary in your inbox that you have spam. The message will provide you a link to the quarantine. You should periodically check your quarantined messages to ensure that nothing was tagged as spam that you would prefer to receive. You can configure your preferences for tagging spam and for receiving notifications.

No, messages that are recognized as “known” spam are, by default, deleted by the spam management system. You can change this setting via the Spam Management option on the Settings menu in the SonicWall spam management system.

Click here for a brief set of instructions for configuring spam management preferences.

The complete User Guide for the SonicWall spam management system can be found at the following URL: http://sonicwall.com/us/support/230_6166.html

When SonicWall has quarantined one or more spam message(s), you will receive a message in your inbox with the following subject “Summary of junked e-mails blocked” with instructions on how to view just that message or the contents of your junk box within SonicWall.

Please note that you may have a “Junk E-mail” folder within your mailbox by default; it should be empty as all of your messages that are classified as likely spam are quarantined by the SonicWall spam management system.

Typically, internal e-mail should not ever be trapped by a spam management filter as these  only apply to e-mail that is sent by external senders; however, not everyone at USC is using the USC E-mail system yet.  Thus, their mail is sent from systems external to the USC E-mail system and are, therefore, subject to filtering for spam.   Once every department has migrated to the USC E-mail system, this problem should no longer occur.

The reason that you may still be receiving messages in your inbox with “{SpamScore: ssss…}” in the subject line is that these messages are addressed to your @gwm.sc.edu address or your @sc.edu alias.  Until the GroupWise system is shutdown in early Spring, 08, these messages will still flow to your University E-mail account via the GroupWise system.  These messages are filtered by the spam management system associated with GroupWise spam filter which cannot quarantine the spam but simply adds the string  “{SpamScore:  ssss…}” to the subject line. 

The best way to deal with these messages until the shutdown of the GroupWise system is to configure a rule within your e-mail client, such as Outlook or Outlook Web Access, to move these messages to a junk folder that you check periodically.  Please note that once GroupWise is completely shutdown, all these messages should be logged in your daily junk e-mail summaries.  More information regarding spam management and instructions for configuring a rule can be found at  http://www.sc.edu/universityemail/spam.shtml .

Blackberry devices and some Palm devices require NotifyLink; most other PDAs support the Windows Mobile interface which allows you to configure your PDA to synchronize with the USC E-mail system directly.  Please see Windows Mobile Device Configuration on this site for more information (http://www.sc.edu/universityemail/doc_pda.shtml ).

What may be occurring is that If you have configured an iPhone or another PDA to synchronize with your e-mail account, it  may be trying to login with your previous password.  Once 7 login attempts have occurred with the incorrect password, your account is locked out.  If this situation occurs then go to VIP (https://vip.sc.edu) and reset your password again to the new password.  Then, immediately,  update your iPhone or PDA to use the new password.   Your account should then be unlocked.

Please make sure that your name is published in the Exchange Global Address Book; your name must be visible in the address book before the Outlook configuration can complete. If you are not sure if you are in the global address list, please contact the UTS Help Desk at (803) 777-1800.

No, username@webmail.sc.edu is not a valid e-mail address; your default e-mail address is username@mailbox.sc.edu. (Substituting your username).

Make sure that your internet browser allows pop-ups from Outlook Web Access; otherwise, some functions may return a script error or may default to the login screen.

The system can only provide availability information for users who have posted at least one appointment to their calendars.

Public folders are not supported on the University E-mail system; please note that attempting to create a public folder in Outlook Web Access may not report a meaningful error message, depending on the internet browser you are using.

Verify that the IMAP port is set to 993 and that SSL is enabled for this connection. The correct IMAP server name is imap.mail.sc.edu.

The correct port for SMTP is 2525. SSL also needs to be enabled for this connection.

Your client may not support the secure configuration or you may have a firewall between your connection and the server. Outlook Express is not a supported client for this configuration. Please review the list of tested email clients.

If you are using Outlook 2003, be sure that you have Office SP2 correctly installed. If you are unsure if you already have SP2 applied check ‘Help’ | ‘About’ to confirm your version.

Please verify that the client has the correct server name for both SMTP (asmtp.mail.sc.edu) and IMAP (imap.mail.sc.edu). Additional troubleshooting tips can be found in Microsoft KB article 813514

Outlook Express can not be configured as a secure IMAP client for Exchange 2003; this is a known issue with Microsoft.

The performance of Outlook depends on multiple factors.  Users with large inboxes tend to experience more delays in Outlook than users with smaller inboxes.  Also, when using shared folders and shared calendars, switching between the folders and calendars can also result in delays.  One option to alleviate this issue is to configure Outlook in caching mode.