How can I set up Thunderbird to work with MS Exchange?

Question

my workplace e-mail account utilizes Microsoft Exchange server, is there a way to set up Mozilla Thunderbird with this type of account? A tutorial outhere? Help please

Answer 1

It depends on how your company has their Exchange server set up.

Thunderbird uses a set of protocols (Internet rules or languages) to access mail that Exchange may or may not. Exchange inside the office uses MAPI and SMTP; Thunderbird uses POP and IMAP. So you have to find out if your company has the POP and IMAP functionality of Exchange turned on or not. The other question is if they have this functionality accessible outside of the corporate network--- in other words, they can set it up so you could use Mozilla at the office but not at home.

If they do have this turned on you will need your company's POP and IMAP server names and some other information to get your Thunderbird talking to Exchange.

The best way to find this out for sure is to open a call with your Helpdesk or IT Support. In all honesty, they probably do not have this functionality turned on because it is difficult to support--- instead of your email being kept in the central company server, it's easy to download it to your computer by mistake and that causes all sorts of headaches for your helpdesk folks. Plus it can be a security risk. But I have seen it done in some places so it is worth asking. Unfortunately if it is not turned on already, they are not likely to make this change just for you so don't get your hopes up too high. But it's free to ask!