Shared Mailbox deleted and sent items separation

Most of us who has used Shared Mailbox in Microsoft Exchange environment, met with users complaints that emails which they sent a message using the shared mailbox account goes to Sent Items personal mailbox.

This behavior is normall for scenario when we use Microsoft Outlook with personal mailbox and automapped shared mailbox. Then when we delete or send message from shared mailbox account, the message goes to personal recycle bin or sent items.

How can we separate Shared Mailbox deleted and sent items ?

We have two solutions to separate sent and deleted items:

1. Use Microsoft Outlook 2010 and add shared mailbox as normal mailbox account
2. Change windows registry on client computer with different Outlook versions

1. Use Microsoft Outlook 2010 for Shared Mailbox to separate sent and deleted items

When you use Microsoft Outlook and you get permissions to shared mailbox, this mailbox will be automapped in Outlook.

After automapping when you send a message from shared mailbox this message will be saved in sent items of your personal mailbox. This behavior often is unwanted.

To make Outlook 2010 to save all sent items or deleted items from shared mailbox to sent items folder or deleted items folder in shared mailbox you have to add shared mailbox as equivalent mailbox in Outlook.

Close Microsoft Outlook 2010 with your personal mailbox, and go to Control Panel, Mail  next in Mail Setup – Outlook window choose:
E-mail Accounts…

Next in Account Settings window choose New…, and select

Manually configure server settings or additional server types

Click Next, select Microsoft Exchange or compatible service
and in next window write informations about Exchange Server and User Name (Shared Mailbox name).

After you fill all informations select Next and Finish.

2. Change windows registry on client computer with different Outlook versions to separate sent and deleted items of shared mailbox

If you don’t use Microsoft Outlook 2010 but 2007 or 2003 and you work with shared mailbox, you can make a change in windows registry to make Outlook to automatically move messages sent or deleted from shared mailbox to shared mailbox folders not personal mailbox.

As xx.0 write used Outlook version:

• 14.0 – Microsoft Outlook 2010
• 12.0 – Microsoft Outlook 2007
• 11.0 – Microsoft Outlook 2003

Before you will add or change registry for Microsoft Outlook 2007 or 2003 install belowed hotfix:

Microsoft Outlook 2007 install the June 30 2009 hotfix, KB970944

Microsoft Outlook 2003 install the June 18 2008 hotfix KB953803

To make saving deleted items in the Shared Mailbox Deleted Items folder:

If user has author rights to the shared mailbox and you need make that items deleted from shared mailbox goes to Deleted Items folder in shared mailbox, then you have to add this key to the registry:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\xx.0\Outlook\Options\General
DWORD: DelegateWastebasketStyle
Value: 4 (use shared mailbox's Deleted items)
Value: 8 (use the default deleted items folder)

To make saving Sent items in the Shared Mailbox Sent Items folder:

Change registry on client windows computer, and add this key to the registry:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\xx.0\Outlook\Preferences
DWORD: DelegateSentItemsStyle
Data Value: 1