26.1 Public folders
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## 26.1 Public folders

Public folders are special folders available to all users in the domain or all users of the Kerio MailServer (by default, public folders are created separately for each domain).

By default (upon their creation), public folders are available to all users in the read only mode. It is naturally possible to change their access rights as in case of other folders.

And what are public folders for? Above all, they can help share information across the company. The most frequently used public folder is the contact folder including all contacts in the company. This folder can be also generated automatically of the Kerio MailServer's user accounts. Another well understandable example is a special calendar where all company events, trainings and resource reservations (bookings of OHPs, meeting rooms, etc.) are scheduled.

Public folders can be created only by users with appropriate access rights. By default, these rules are assigned to the administrator of the Kerio MailServer's primary domain (the special administration account and its facilities are focused in section 8.1 Administrator account). This person can then assign rights to any other users.

### 26.1.1 Global versus Domain folders

As mentioned above, it is possible to decide whether public folders would be created separately for each domain or globally for all Kerio MailServer users. To set this, follow these instructions:

1. In the administration interface, go to Configuration → Domains.

2. Click on the Advanced button located in the right bottom corner of the window.

3. This opens a dialog where you can select one of the options (see figure 26.1 Advanced settings for public folders).

   Figure 26.1. Advanced settings for public folders

   ### Caution

   If you need to change this option when the system of public folders has already been created, bear in mind that public folders will not show when viewed by users and it will be necessary to create new ones.

### 26.1.2 Creating public folders

Public folders can be created either in MS Outlook (extended with the Kerio Outlook Connector) or in the Kerio WebMail interface or in MS Entourage.

In either case, new public folders are created by the same method as private folders. Check the following example:

1. Open MS Outlook extended with working Kerio Outlook Connector or Kerio WebMail as an administrator of the primary domain or as a user with rights for creation of public folders (rights and their settings are described in section 26.1.3 Assigning rights for public folders).

2. In the folder tree, select the Public folders root and create a new folder as if you created a private folder (using the context menu).

3. Once the folder is created, all users have the read only access to it automatically. If you want to assign improved privileges to any user, follow the standard sharing settings (details are provided in Kerio MailServer 6, User's Guide).

Public folders will be shared automatically with all selected users as subfolders of the Public folders root.

### 26.1.3 Assigning rights for public folders

Rights for public folders can be assigned by any user with Kerio MailServer administration rights:

1. In the administration interface, open the Domain Settings → Users section.

2. Use the cursor to select the user to assign rights to and open the settings dialog (e.g. by the Edit button).

3. In the dialog, go to the Rights tab and enable option This user has the administrator rights to the public folders.

### 26.1.4 Publishing accounts in the public contact folder

User accounts, namely full names of all Kerio MailServer users and their email addresses, can be published in the public contact folder. This makes all contacts available to any user within the company. It is not important whether accounts are saved in the Kerio MailServer's store or mapped from a directory service. This is how to publish contacts:

1. In the administration interface, open the Domain Settings → Users section.

2. Select all users to publish (it is recommended not to involve the primary domain's administrator) and click on Publish.

3. In the dialog just opened, select a folder where the contacts will be published. If no special folder has been created manually, a folder labeled as Contacts is created automatically on the server for this purpose.

   Figure 26.2. Export to Address Book

### Warning

It is recommended not to use this tool repeatedly for users already published. Otherwise, contact in the public folder will be duplicate.

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Chapter 26 Folder Administration | Contents | 26.2 Viewing public folders in individual account types