Open an Outlook Shared Mailbox

Owned by Sean Stockburger (Unlicensed)
Last updated: May 24, 2022 by Peter Atwater

If you have permission to use a shared mailbox, you can access it using the Outlook client or using OWA in Web browser.

Outlook for Windows

  1. Open the Outlook client and click the FILE menu, then ACCOUNT SETTINGS, and then Account Settings again
  2. Select your personal account (it's usually the only account listed) and click the CHANGE button
  3. Click MORE SETTINGS

  4. Click the Advanced tab
  5. Click the Add... button and enter the display name (as it appears in the Address Book) of your shared mailbox. Click the OK button
  6. Click OK, NEXT, and FINISH on all remaining windows. There may be a slight delay in which Outlook says it's "Not Responding" as it connects to the inbox: this is normal.
  7. Close the Account Settings window. You should now see your shared mailbox in your list of folders in the Outlook Folder Pane to your left


Oultook for Mac

  1. Go to Tools on the menu bar and select Accounts…
  2. Click the ‘+’ in the lower left corner and select New Account… to add a new account.
  3. Add your group mailbox email address and click Continue
  4. Click Sign in with another account and then enter your universal cloud username (in the form of username@wwu.edu) and your password.
  5. Click Done
  6. You can change the Account description to the mailbox name. Close out of this window; the group mailbox will now be listed!

If you are not able to access a shared mailbox in the Outlook client:

First try to open the mailbox using a Web browser as described below. If you can access the mailbox using a Web browser, try removing the mailbox and re-adding it to Outlook. If it was recently created, there may be a delay between when the inbox is created and when it's in a fully usable state. If you're not sure if you have permissions to a shared mailbox, simply email the ATUS Help Desk to verify that you have access to that mailbox.

Access a shared mailbox using a Web browser:

  1. Login to OWA as yourself.
  2. Select your name in the upper right corner
  3. Click the link to Open another mailbox...
  4. Search for the mailbox you wish to open
  5. Click Open when the mailbox is found.

If the mailbox will not open for you, contact the Help Desk for assistance.

Mobile Devices

The Outlook app for iOS and Android allows you to add a shared mailbox from the settings.