Topics in this chapter   Ensuring a Quiet Installation and Startup     Installing in a Terminal Services Environment     Installing Before or After Office     Configuring Outlook for Roaming Users

Configuring Outlook for Roaming Users

Roaming users move between different computers on a network. With Office XP, these users can move between computers without changing the way that they work. Their documents and their application settings for Outlook and other Office applications travel with them, along with any system preferences.

You can help ensure a smooth roaming experience for Outlook users in your organization by following several recommended strategies and configuration options.

Recommended strategies for Outlook roaming

Roaming with Outlook 2002 works only between computers that are set up with the same operating system and the same versions of software. The following recommendations will ensure a smooth roaming experience for users:

• Roam between platforms on the same version of the same operating system.

  For example, Microsoft Windows 2000 to Microsoft Windows 2000, Windows 98 to Windows 98, and so on. Supported platforms are Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Windows Me), Microsoft Windows 98, and Microsoft Windows NT® 4.0 Service Pack 6a.

• Ensure that the same operating system language version is installed on all computers that users roam between.
  
  
• Ensure that the same language version and release version of Outlook are installed on all computers that users roam between.
  
  
• Install Outlook on all computers for roaming users as per-computer.

  Installing as per-user is also possible but is not recommended.

• Install Outlook in the same location on all computers that will be used for roaming users.

Upgrading roaming users to Outlook 2002

If your organization already has roaming configured for Outlook users, you can ensure a smooth transition when you upgrade to Outlook 2002 by following the guidelines mentioned in this section.

Users can only roam between computers running the same version of Outlook. If you have roaming users on an older version of Outlook, be sure to upgrade all users and computers in a single area (such as a domain) at the same time. New features in Outlook 2002 are not available to users with Outlook 2000 profiles, which can create confusion for users roaming in an environment with a mix of Outlook versions.

Setting up roaming users with Outlook 2002

• To set up roaming for users in Outlook 2002, you first decide how to manage users' data so the information they need is available to them as they roam. Then you configure user profiles for roaming by using the network Primary Domain Controller (PDC) computer.

Managing folder locations

To ensure that a user's e-mail messages and other Outlook information roam with the user, you might need to take special steps to configure Outlook folder locations.

For example, suppose the users in your organization receive mail in an Inbox located on their Microsoft Exchange server. They can view new mail when they roam without taking special steps. However, perhaps users also need access to a personal file folder (for example, to read mail that has been transferred off of the messaging server). In this case, you can put the files that contain this data on a network share.

When you enable roaming and specify a network share for roaming files, certain files and folders automatically roam with users. That is, the files are available for them on the network location when they roam to use different computers. Files and folders in the following locations (on the local computer) roam with users (with the exception of one folder, noted below):

• On Windows 2000: \Documents and Settings\%UserName%
  
• On Windows NT 4.0: \Winnt\Profiles\%UserName%
  
  
• On Windows 98: \Windows\Profiles\%UserName%
  
  
• On Windows Me: \Windows\Profiles\%UserName%
  
  
• On Windows 2000 after upgrading from Windows NT 4.0: \Winnt\Profiles\%UserName%

(%UserName% is replaced by the user's logon name on the computer.)

The one folder that does not roam with users in the default roaming scenario is the Local Settings folder under %UserName%. This exception affects Outlook users because, by default, the file folders for some Outlook services are created in this non-roaming folder.

Because the files reside in a non-roaming directory, Outlook can see and open them only on the local computer (on which the files were created). To allow users to use PST or PAB files while roaming, you can place the files on a network share.

There are several ways to place files on a network share. For example:

• You can set the file location to a network share for new services that you create in the Custom Installation Wizard or Custom Maintenance Wizard.

  You do this when you create a custom transform for deploying or updating Outlook. For example, you can add a PST file for all Outlook users and specify the location of a network share. This allows users to move e-mail messages to the PST file, and those messages will be available to them when they roam.

• You can notify roaming users to relocate local folders to a network share.

  Users can move folders by using the Outlook user interface. This is good choice for users who have existing Outlook files that must be accessible to them on other computers.

Another option is to relocate the files into a roaming folder on the user's local computer. However, these personal files can become large. The advisability of relocating the files depends on network speed and traffic, as well as the number of users who roam in your organization. Typically, placing PST and PAB files in folders that roam with users is not recommended.

Configuring Windows NT servers for roaming users

Setting up roaming user profiles for a Windows NT–based network involves two steps on the server side:

1. Create a shared Profiles folder on the server to store roaming user profiles.
   
   
2. Configure client user profiles to point to the shared Profiles folder.

Note   Use a file server rather than your Primary Domain Controller (PDC) to store user profiles. Using a file server helps you balance the workload without straining the resources on your PDC.

After you update the profile information to point to that shared folder, the profile is retrieved automatically when the user logs on, and updated automatically when the user logs off. This retrieving and updating process is called reconciling the user profile.

Create a Profiles folder on the server

The Profiles folder stores all your roaming user profiles on an NTFS-formatted disk drive on the server. Make sure your roaming users have full control permissions to their subfolders so they can update their profiles whenever the profiles change. However, do not give users access to any subfolders other than their own.

Note   Do not create the Profiles folder in the %Systemroot% directory on your server. If you use %Systemroot%\Profiles, the client computer uses the local profile instead of the server copy.

Next, you update all your client user profiles on the Windows PDC server. The procedures vary depending on version of Windows you use on your PDC server.

Configure client user profiles on Windows NT 4.0

If the operating system on your Primary Domain Controller (PDC) is Windows NT 4.0, use this procedure to configure profile information for each of the users in your organization who will roam.

To configure profile information for each roaming user on Windows NT 4.0

1. On a Windows NT 4.0 PDC server, click Start, point to Programs, point to Administrative Tools (Common), and then click User Manager for Domains.
   
   
2. In the list of user names, double-click a user name.
   
   
3. In the User Properties box, click Profile.
   
   
4. In the User Profile Path box, type the full path to the Profiles folder you created (for a Windows NT client or a Windows 2000 client).

   – or –

   Under Home Directory, in the Local Path box, type the full path to the Profiles folder you created (for a Windows 98 or Windows Me client).

   For example: \\Server\Subfoldername\Profiles

Repeat steps 2 through 4 for each user that you are configuring for roaming. When you have finished, these users can use other computers to gain access to Outlook with their existing Outlook profile configuration and settings.

Configure client user profiles on Windows 2000

If the operating system on your Primary Domain Controller (PDC) is Windows 2000, use this procedure to configure profile information for each of the users in your organization who will roam.

To configure profile information for each roaming user on Windows 2000

1. On a Windows 2000 PDC server, click Start, point to Programs, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Users and Computers.
   
   
2. In the console tree, expand the domain node, then click the folder where users are located (typically the Users folder).
   
   
3. In the list of user names, click to select a user name.
   
   
4. Right-click and select Properties.
   
   
5. In the Profile tab, in the Profile Path edit box under User Profile, type the full path to the Profiles folder you created (for a Windows NT client or a Windows 2000 client). For example:

   \\server\share\Profiles

   – or –

   In the Profile tab, under Home Folder, go to the Connect area. In the To: box, type the full path to the user folder in the Profiles folder you created (for a Windows 98 or Windows Me client). For example:

   \\server\share\Profiles\Username

Repeat steps 3 through 5 for each user that you are configuring for roaming. When you have finished, these users can use other computers to gain access to Outlook with their existing Outlook profile configuration and settings.

See also

You have considerable flexibility in configuring and deploying Outlook 2002. For more information about using the Custom Installation Wizard to create a custom transform for deploying Outlook 2002, see Customizing an Outlook Installation.