Tell me more ×
Ask Different is a question and answer site for power users of Apple hardware and software. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 2 down vote favorite

I have an Exchange server account which works fine on my Windows Vista pc. I have set it up with no problem on my iPhone. However, on my MacBook Pro it does not work: the icon under "Default Account" (next to the account name) remains yellow.

I tried setting up a Gmail account on the Mac Outlook and that worked with no problem.

What could be wrong?

I have set up:

  • Account description
  • Full name
  • E-mail address
  • Method (User Name and Password)
  • User name
  • Password

Under "Advanced" I also entered the Server.

The OS is Mac OS X version 10.7.1.

share|improve this question
What version of Exchange server are you trying to connect to? Outlook 2011 only supports Exchange 2007 and above. – canderson Oct 17 '11 at 18:55
@ChrisAnderson: yes, I think that is it. The Exchange version is 2003! If you put that into an answer, I will accept it. (Pretty poor of Apple though, since it works fine on iOS.) – Wikis Oct 18 '11 at 5:29

1 Answer

up vote 1 down vote accepted

Outlook 2011 requires an Exchange 2007 and above server. This is because Outlook 2011 works over the Exchange Web Services protocol (EWS). This wasn't Apple's decision, but Microsoft, as it is the latest form of the Exchange service as they are phasing out MAPI, the legacy Exchange protocol. Apple's Exchange implementation in 10.6 and 10.7 also uses EWS.

iOS devices however connect to Exchange via ActiveSync, which is supported all the way back to Exchange 2003. ActiveSync is designed for mobile devices and does not work on a desktop system.

share|improve this answer

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.