Microsoft KB Archive/287574

= OL2002: How to Use an IMAP Account with Outlook 2002 =

Article ID: 287574

Article Last Modified on 2/27/2002

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Outlook 2002 Standard Edition

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This article was previously published under Q287574



SUMMARY
Outlook 2002 supports Internet Mail Access Protocol 4 (IMAP). IMAP uses server-based e-mail storage, and because its storage is server-based, there are differences between IMAP and other e-mail protocols. The article describes the major differences.



You Cannot Store Non E-mail Folders on an IMAP Server
Due to limitations of the IMAP protocol, as well as for efficiency and interoperability concerns, Outlook does not allow non e-mail folder storage on an IMAP server.

You Cannot Store Non E-mail Special Folders on the IMAP Server
Your Sent Items, Drafts, and Deleted Items folders cannot reside on an IMAP server. Outlook requires that all special folders exist in the default store. IMAP cannot act as the default store because it cannot contain the non e-mail special folders.

Different Deletion Model
Deletion works through marking items for deletion, and then purging all items marked for deletion in a given folder. There is not a Deleted Items folder because moving an item in IMAP is inefficient. The source item is not immediately deleted due to the two-phase deletion model. This requires that you double the storage requirement for that message.

You Cannot Start Outlook in the IMAP Inbox
Even if you use only IMAP accounts, or your IMAP account is set as your default e-mail account, Outlook starts using a personal folders (.pst) file Inbox, the Inbox of your default store. This is because IMAP cannot act as the default store.

As a possible work around, you can create a shortcut to the Inbox of the IMAP store on your desktop, and start Outlook from this shortcut.

Outlook Today Does Not Display Information for Your IMAP Inbox
Even if you use only IMAP accounts, or your IMAP account is set as your default mail account, Outlook Today only displays the unread count from your Post Office Protocol 3 (POP3) Inbox, the Inbox of your default store. This is because IMAP cannot act as the default store.

New Message Notifications
You receive a new message notification only if you have a persistent connection to the IMAP server. If you are using a dial-up connection to retrieve messages from the IMAP store, you do not receive a sound, the pointer does not change briefly, and the Envelope icon does not appear in the system tray.

Net Folders Do Not Function with IMAP
The Net Folders component depends upon the Rules Wizard, and therefore do not function when you use them with an IMAP e-mail server. For additional information about how to use Net Folders in Outlook 2002, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

287765 OL2002: Services That no Longer Coexist with Outlook 2002

Contact Linking Does Not Function with IMAP
In Outlook, Contacts can contain activity information, such as messages received from a particular contact. This type of activity tracking cannot be linked to an IMAP store. To work around this, use the Rules Wizard to create a rule that moves all incoming messages from the IMAP Inbox to the Inbox of the personal folders (.pst) file. You can then track activities based on this Inbox.