Microsoft Outlook 2007: Connect to a Shared Calendar Folder (Exchange Only)

In previous articles, we explained how to setup sharing permissions on a particular folder in an Exchange environment in Outlook 2011 and Outlook 2007. In this article we will cover the flip side of the coin…how someone using Outlook 2007 can connect to the folder that was shared. Note that in this example we are using a shared calendar folder however, the same procedure would work for a shared contacts folder. Click here if you are trying to open a shared messages folder.

  1. Launch Outlook 2007 and click the “Calendar” or “Contacts” button corresponding to the type of folder you are attempting to share (In this case the “Calendar” button) and then click the “Open a Shared Calendar” link (circled in red).
  2. The “Open a Shared Calendar” dialog box will open. Click the “Name…” button.
  3. The “Add Users” dialog box will appear. Enter part of the name of the user or group (1) whose permissions you would like to alter, in the text field to the left of the “Go” button and then click the “Go” button (2). At minimum (if the user or group exists on the Exchange server), the user or group’s name should appear in the box below. Select the user or group (3) and click the “Add” button (4). The user or group’s name will be added to the right of the “Add” button. When finished adding users, click the OK button (5).
  4. The user or group’s name selected in the previous step will now appear in the “Open a Shared Calendar” dialog box. Click the OK button after confirming that the selected user or group is the desired option.
  5. If the sharing permissions were setup correctly then the desired user’s calendar should appear beneath the heading “People’s Calendars”.

    If for some reason an error message is generated that looks like this…

    …clicking the “Yes” button will deliver instructions to the owner of the calendar explaining how to properly setup the appropriate sharing permissions on his folders.