If you have full privileges to a shared mailbox that appears in an Exchange address book, you can use Outlook Web App or a desktop version of Outlook (for example, Outlook 2013), to open that mailbox.
Shared mailboxes allow a group of people to monitor and send email from a public email alias, like info@contoso.com or contact@contoso.com. When a person in the group replies to a message sent to the shared mailbox, the email appears to be from the shared mailbox, not from the individual user. You can also use the shared mailbox as a shared team calendar.
The admin for your organization has to create the shared mailbox and add you to the group of users before you can use it.
Display a shared mailbox using OWA
Use this method to monitor email from your primary mailbox and the shared mailbox at the same time. After you complete this task, each time you open Outlook Web App, the shared mailbox and its folders will display in the left navigation in Outlook Web App.
- Sign in to your account in Outlook Web App.
- Right-click your primary mailbox in the Folder pane, and then click Add shared folder.
- In the Add shared folder dialog box, type the name of the shared mailbox, select the name, and then click Add.
The shared mailbox displays in your Folder list in OWA. The shared mailbox will appear there each time you access OWA. You can expand or collapse the shared mailbox folders like you can your with your primary mailbox. You can remove the shared mailbox if you no longer want to view the shared mailbox in your folder list. To remove it, right click the shared mailbox, and then click Delete.
Display a shared mailbox in standalone mode
Use this method if you want to view and manage email for a shared mailbox in a its own browser window, rather than rendering the shared mailbox folder in OWA’s navigation tree.
- Sign in to your account in Outlook Web App.
- In the Navigation bar on the top of the Outlook Web App screen, click on your name. A drop-down list will appear.
- Click Open another mailbox.
- Type the email address of the other mailbox that you want to open. Another Outlook Web App session will open in a different window allowing access to the other mailbox.
Tip If you mistype the email address of the mailbox, a second window will open up stating that the webpage can’t be found. Try retyping the email address again.
Note also that shared mailboxes also attach to a calendar function. A shared calendar is established when administrators create a shared mailbox so that group members have mutual access and privileges to a shared calendar.