|
|
You can divide rules, whether created with Inbox
Assistant or Rules Wizard, into two types – server-side
and client-only. Server-side rules are handled entirely by
the Exchange Server, independent of the state of the
Outlook client. Client-only rules do not execute until the
user who created the rule logs in to the Outlook client
with the same profile used to create the rule.
One myth is that you can only use Inbox Assistant to
create server-based rules. This is not true. Some rules
created with IA run only on the client. Many rules created
with Rules Wizard run from the server. Whether a rule is
server-based or client-based depends, not on the tool you
use to create it, but on the exact conditions and actions
for that rule.
Certain rules are always client-only – those that
involve some element from the Outlook client that does not
exist on the Exchange Server. The following table
classifies these according to whether they depend on
Outlook features, client files or the mail profile. The
last group contains something of a surprise: A rule to
copy to a public folder fires only when the client is
logged in with the profile that created the rule. (TIP:
Try forwarding the message to the public folder instead. That
rule always fires on the server.)
|
|
Rule conditions or actions
|
Examples
|
|
Conditions
using Outlook client features
|
With
specific words in recipient’s address
With specific words in sender’s address
Flagged for action
Assigned to category
With specific words in the subject or message -- if you
specify multiple phrases
|
|
Actions
using Outlook client features
|
Notify me
using a specific message
Flag message for action
Clear the Message Flag
Assign it to a category
Play a sound
|
|
Actions
that use client files
|
Move it to
the specified folder (in a .pst file)
Move a copy to the specified folder (in a .pst file)
Reply using a specific template
Perform a custom action
|
|
Actions
dependent on the profile used to create the rule
|
Move it to
the specified folder
(in Public Folders or in a .pst file)
Move a copy to the specified folder
(in Public Folders or in a .pst file)
|
When you create a rule, the Rules Wizard
stores the rule settings (conditions, actions, and
exceptions) in a .rwz file with the same name as the
user’s profile. For rules for incoming messages, it also
stores that information in the Inbox folder itself, with
an indicator of what profile created the rule. This means
that the details of the rule are available to the server.
When a message arrives, the server
compares it with the list of rules. If the server can
execute the rule, it does so. If not, it places a deferred
action message (DAM) in a hidden Deferred Action folder in
the mailbox.
When the user runs Outlook, the client
checks the Deferred Action folder and examines each DAM.
If the rule was created with the current profile, Outlook
carries out the actions indicated in the DAM. This helps
explain why rules may fire in an order different from that
listed in the Rules Wizard: If the user is not logged in,
rules that run on the server execute first, while
client-only rules don’t fire until the next time the
user runs Outlook with the appropriate profile.
Note that if a mailbox is over its size
limit, it cannot execute any rules that will send replies
or forward items.
Portions of this article first
appeared in the April 1999 issue of the Exchange
& Outlook Administrator newsletter. |
Rules Wizard and Assistants
