Overview
Academic Technology Services deployed a major upgrade to MSU's centrally supported e-mail service, mail.msu.edu, on December 22, 2008.Key points of information and frequently asked questions are listed below.
Will my e-mail address change?
No. Users will retain their current NetID@msu.edu e-mail address.Will my password change?
No. Users will retain their current MSU NetID password.Is the web interface different?
Yes. The web interface is different from the legacy service. It is essentially an IMAP client and it has additional features. Refer to our introduction article for general information about new features and a list of support articles.What web browsers are compatible with the service?
Current release versions of popular browsers are compatible with the service, provided you have cookies enabled. We also recommend that you update Java for best results.Yahoo Browser users: The Yahoo browser portal installed by SBCglobal, AT&T, or other providers is not compatible with mail.msu.edu at this time. Users are advised to use an unmodified version of Internet Explorer or other browser such as Firefox.
Why do I get "kicked out" of the service back to the log-in screen?
The most common reasons include:- Issues with your browser's security settings or cookies
- Failing to enable cookies for mail.msu.edu
- Use of an incompatible browser, including beta versions or the AT&T /Yahoo Browser
- Outdated Java software (mail.msu.edu makes use of javascripting)
I had contacts in the legacy e-mail service. Will they be listed in the new service?
Not automatically. However, an Export utility was added to the legacy e-mail service which users were able to use together with the Import Contacts function in the new e-mail service to populate your new address book. Please note that the legacy mail service was retired on May 11, 2009. Users who previously exported and retained the file can still use the import facility of the new service.Note: Distribution lists could not be exported. Please use the contact list function in the new mail service to create needed contact (distribution) lists.
Why can't I add contacts to my address book?
Certain settings on your account are incorrect. Follow the steps in our article about recommended address book settings to make sure your settings are correct.Can I still auto-forward to another e-mail service? Will I have to re-set my auto-forwarding if I have it set?
The new e-mail service provides an e-mail forwarding function that can be used to auto-forward all incoming e-mails, including those tagged as spam, to another service or account. Click on MSU Prefs in the sidebar menu to access this setting.If you had a forwarding address set in the legacy service using its Forwarding address preference, it was automatically transferred to the new service. Adding a new forwarding address, changing or deleting a forwarding address is only available in the new mail service.
To add, change, or delete your forwarding, access the Forwarding Address setting in the new e-mail service by clicking MSU Prefs in the sidebar menu.
I had created folders in the legacy e-mail service. Will they be available in the new service?
Yes. Any user-created folders in your e-mail storage space were retained and are available with the new e-mail service.Will filters from the legacy service continue to work?
No. With the retirement of the legacy e-mail service, old.mail.msu.edu, server-side filtering ceased to work. Users are advised to use the filtering capabilities in the new e-mail service and / or their e-mail client to create or re-create desired filters.Will any of the filters from the legacy service be transferred automatically?
E-mail filters set up in the legacy mail service could not be transferred centrally. Users will have to use the filter tools in the new service to create or re-create their filters as needed.I have a filter set in the legacy service that sends my e-mail to another service. Will this still work?
No, due to the retirement of the legacy mail service and its filtering, including filter-based (conditional) forwarding. See TB11545 for more information.All messages will be delivered to your mail.msu.edu Inbox unless you set a forwarding address on the mail.msu.edu service (refer to the auto-forward section above for additional information).
Note: Forwarding e-mails by using filters (IF-THEN conditional forwarding) is not available in (new) mail.msu.edu. An e-mail client such as Outlook or Thunderbird may have such a capability. Consult the help function within your client for further information.
Why are my message not displaying when I log in?
Please be sure to enable cookies in your browser. The new service requires that your browser accept cookies, and will not load properly if cookies are not enabled.Why is logging in to the new mail service slow for me?
The new service uses IMAP. As part of the synchronization that occurs, all of the e-mails in your Inbox are checked to see if their status has changed (ie: read / unread, deleted, etc). If you have more than an extremely large Inbox your log-in may be slow. A similar polling of the files and folders occurs whenever you refresh your Inbox.We suggest creating folders and using filters or manual filing to keep the number of messages in your Inbox low.
See also our article on reducing log-in problems and improving response time.
How do I sort messages in the new service?
Click on a column title to sort by that column's data. A small arrow displays on the top of the column currently being used to sort messages. You can toggle between ascending and descending sort order.Click once to sort on a column's data. Click a second time to reverse the order of sort.
Does this upgrade change the settings required for e-mail clients (ie: Outlook, Thunderbird and Eudora)?
No. This upgrade has not changed the settings and steps to set up an e-mail client for either POP mail or IMAP access. Refer to E-mail client configuration for more information regarding set up of common e-mail clients.Note: While the server setting and general set up of a client will not change, the change in spam processing will have an effect that users should consider. Suspected spam will be tagged (see corresponding FAQ question in this document) and delivered to your Inbox for handling.
Can I set a vacation message?
The mail service provides a Vacation Message function. Click on MSU Prefs in the sidebar menu to access this setting.To enable, add, change, or delete your vacation reply message, access the Vacation Message setting in the new e-mail service by clicking MSU Prefs in the sidebar menu.
Additional notes regarding the Vacation Message function:
- The function will detect the List headers in a message from a properly configured listserv and skip the vacation reply for that email.
- Replies to spam are generally harmless since most spam messages contain a bogus "Reply-to" in the header
Was my e-mail signature be transferred from the legacy service to the new service?
No, signatures were not transferred. You can set a new e-mail signature by editing your Options for Mail / Personal Information in the new mail service.Has SPAM handling changed?
YES. Now all incoming messages to mail.msu.edu are processed for spam (junk e-mail) using SpamAssassin. The analysis occurs regardless of forwarding or filter settings. Known spam is rejected, with a notice provided to the sender. Suspected spam is tagged with "*****SPAM*****" prefixing the subject line of the message and delivered to the user's Inbox.Users may want to use the filtering capabilities of the new service (or of their e-mail client) to sort the tagged messages into a separate folder or into the trash.
Note for Outlook, Thunderbird, or other desktop client users:
Except for marking the subject line with "*****SPAM*****", the central service will not further process suspected SPAM when delivering mail to your desktop. Users are advised to set up a filter in their client software to sort the marked messages according to their preference (typically to a SPAM, Junk, or Trash folder).
Why isn't the folder emptied when I click the "Empty Spam" icon
I selected the Display the "Empty Spam" link in the menubar?" option (found under the preference Options for Mail | Deleting and Moving Messages). But, when I click on the icon, the folder does not get emptied.Refer to our Spam Processing article for instructions on how to designate a spam folder.
Has e-mail storage space increased?
Yes, as part of this upgrade, e-mail storage space increased from 128 MB (megabytes) to:- 1024 MB (1 gigabyte) for faculty, staff, departments, and graduate students
- 512 MB for undergraduate students and Registered Student Organizations (RSO)
