SFU Mail Migration: FAQ and Common Issues

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OVERVIEW

This article lists frequently asked questions (FAQs) and common issues you may encounter with the SFU Mail Upgrade & Migration to Exchange Online.

 

General FAQs

What is exchange online and why is it being adopted?
Exchange Online is a cloud-based email and calendaring solution provided by Microsoft as part of Microsoft 365. It offers secure and reliable email communication, calendaring, and collaboration tools accessible from anywhere with and Internet connection.

Aligned with the What’s Next: The SFU Strategy and SFU's digital transformation, IT Services continues to adapt to the evolving technological landscape and foster a culture of digital engagement that will empower students, faculty and staff to achieve our academic mandate.

SFU is introducing more Microsoft 365 (M365) features to help you with online collaboration and productivity at the university. By adopting Exchange Online with SFU Mail, these new M365 features will become available to you on SFU Mail.

How do I know if I have Exchange Online?

There will be two major changes once your account is upgraded to Exchange Online:

  • You will be asked to log into Microsoft when signing into SFU Mail. Your sign in email will be “YourComputingID@sfu.ca”.
  • The user interface will be modernized when accessing SFU Mail on browser.
New look for SFU Mail!
What are the benefits from transitioning to Exchange online?
With Exchange Online, SFU Mail users will have enhance IT security, improve user experience and utilize more Microsoft Cloud resources. For details on new features, visit New Change to SFU Mail.
How do I access SFU email with Exchange Online?
To access SFU Mail on browser, visit Sign into SFU Mail on Browser for instructions.
When WILL i BE transitioned TO EXCHANGE ONLINE?
Between 2023 and 2025, your SFU mailbox account will be upgraded to Exchange Online. You will receive an email two weeks prior to your account being scheduled to the upgrade. For the most up-to-date information, visit We're Upgrading SFU Mail.
CAN I BE transitioned EARLier?
To ensure a seamless migration process, we have established a structured plan that prioritizes specific groups of mailboxes within the organization. Unfortunately, we are unable to accommodate individual requests for early migration at this time due to these complex considerations.
Will there be interruptions or Impacts?
Yes, there is expected to be both interruptions to SFU Mail and impacts to how you use SFU Mail, which may include:
  • A new Microsoft sign in page
  • A new SFU Mail URL for browser access
  • Only approved apps can connect to SFU Mail

For details on what you need to know, see We're Upgrading SFU Mail.

I've just activated my computing ID, but I can't sign into SFU Mail. What should I do?
Sign in Error
If you encounter this issue and you've just recently activated your SFU computing ID, your mailbox account is still being set up. It will take approximately 1 hour. Please try again after at least one hour has passed after activating your SFU computing ID.

 

Common Issues after Upgrade

SIGN IN ISSUES
On browser, I see "Something went wrong. We couldn't find a mailbox for this recipient/account." What should I do?

You will see this error if your browser cookies may be invalid. Try clearing your browser cookies, or a different browser, and sign into https://outlook.office.com/.

If you are still encountering sign in issues after your upgrade, contact us using the SFU Mail - Report Migration Issue form.

On iOS or Apple Mail, I can't sign in after the upgrade. What should I do?
You will need to remove any existing SFU Mail account from Apple Mail and re-add your account. See Remove an existing SFU Mail account from Apple Mail for Mac for instructions.
 
Note for IMAP/POP Users: Before any re-configuring on an email account that has previously been set up with IMAP/POP, we strongly recommend backing up your emails. Any account modifications, such as removing the account, will result in a loss of certain messages. To reconnect with IMAP/POP accounts, update your server configurations shown on IMAP Setup.
On Outlook, I can't sign in after the upgrade. What should I do?
You will need to sign out all your existing mail accounts from the application, and re-add your SFU Mail account. Visit Sign into SFU Mail on Desktop for set up instructions for Outlook Desktop.
 
Note for IMAP/POP Users: Before any re-configuring on an email account that has previously been set up with IMAP/POP, we strongly recommend backing up your emails. Any account modifications, such as removing the account, will result in a loss of certain messages. Since Outlook no longer supports IMAP/POP, you will need to sign in using Exchange or another application that supports IMAP.
FEATURE-RELATED
My Email Signatures are missing, what do I do?
As part of the SFU Mail upgrade, email signatures are wiped on server-sided applications, such as on SFU Mail on web browser. We kindly ask you to re-add your email signatures to your account.
 
You may find your email signatures in a previously sent email.
Why are some legitimate emails getting junked or missing?
We've recognized this issue and collaborating with Microsoft to get this resolved. To assist us with this process, we encourage you to select Not Junk on legitimate emails by:
 
1. At your Junk Email folder, select messages that are misidentified as junk.
2. Select Report, then Not Junk.
 
 
If you believe to be missing legitimate emails, please send us a support ticket using the SFU Mail - Report Migration Issue form.
 
Note: If you're an alumni who have been using Alumni Email Forwarding, the service have been retired since June 1, 2024. For details, visit this SFU announcement.
How do I disable Focused Inbox?
Visit this Microsoft article on Focused Inbox for Outlook  for instructions on:
  • Turn Focused Inbox on or off
  • Change how your messages get organized (if you wish to move certain messages from Focused to Other, or the other way around).
How do i disable text prediction?
Visit this Microsoft article on Editor Text Predictions in Outlook  for instructions to turn off Text Predictions.

 

Shared Item Issues

SHARED CALENDARS, MAILBOX PERMISSIONS, SHARED FOLDERS, DELEGATE ACCESS
My Shared Calendar (Department Calendar, Vacation Calendar, Etc.) No longer works. How do I fix this issue?
If either myself or the calendar owner have upgraded to Exchange Online and the other haven't upgraded yet:
  Solution: You will need to wait until both yourself and the calendar owner have upgraded to Exchange Online. As a temporary work around, you may ask the calendar owner or a colleague who has the calendar working to add meetings/events on your behalf.
 
If both myself and the calendar owner have upgraded to Exchange Online:
  Solution: You will need to ask the calendar owner to re-share the calendar to you. See re-sharing a calendar.
 
Not sure if you have upgraded to Exchange Online? See How Do I Know If I have Exchange Online under General FAQs.
My Mailbox and Folder Permissions no longer works. How do I fix this issue?
If either myself or the account owner have upgraded to Exchange Online and the other haven't upgraded yet:
•  This feature is unavailable: You will need to wait until both yourself and the mailbox/folder owner have upgraded to Exchange Online.

If both myself and the account owner have upgraded to Exchange Online:
•  Solution: You will need to re-add the shared mailbox and folders. See re-add a shared mail folder or mailbox.

Not sure if you have upgraded to Exchange Online? See How Do I Know If I have Exchange Online under General FAQs.

My Delegate Permissions (Calendar and Respond to Invitations on Behalf of) no longer works. How do I fix this issue?
If either myself or the account owner have upgraded to Exchange Online and the other haven't upgraded yet:
•  This feature remains available only on Outlook for Windows. If you use SFU Mail on Browser, you can only view the calendar invites and won't be able to edit or respond to invitations as a delegate.

If both myself and the account owner have upgraded to Exchange Online:
•  This feature should be working normally. Double-check that both yourself and the account owner are on Exchange Online. If you're still encountering issues, send a request ticket on IT ServiceHub.

Not sure if you have upgraded to Exchange Online? See How Do I Know If I have Exchange Online under General FAQs.

My Send on Behalf/Send As Permissions no longer works. How do I fix this issue?
If either myself or the account owner have upgraded to Exchange Online and the other haven't upgraded yet:
•  This feature remains available only on SFU Mail on Browser or Outlook for Windows.

If both myself and the account owner have upgraded to Exchange Online:
•  This feature should be working normally. Double-check that both yourself and the account owner are on Exchange Online. If you're still encountering issues, send a request ticket on IT ServiceHub.

Not sure if you have upgraded to Exchange Online? See How Do I Know If I have Exchange Online under General FAQs.

My Location/Resource Account is no longer accessible. How do I continue using "Open as another mailbox" to access the account?
If either myself or the resource account have upgraded to Exchange Online and the other haven't upgraded yet:
•  Solution: You will need to wait until both yourself and the resource account have upgraded to Exchange Online. If you are using Outlook for Windows, this feature will remain available only on that application.

If both myself and the resource account have upgraded to Exchange Online:
•  This feature should be working normally. Double-check that both yourself and the resource account are on Exchange Online. If you're still encountering issues, send a request ticket on IT ServiceHub.

Not sure if you have upgraded to Exchange Online? See How Do I Know If I have Exchange Online under General FAQs.

 

Sponsored Account

MULTIPLE ACCOUNT USAGES, DELEGATE LOGIN
How do I use Delegate Login to sign into my Sponsored Account on SFU Mail?
For sign-in instructions for sponsored accounts and delegate login, see Sign into SFU Mail with Sponsored Accounts.
 
If you encounter the error, "You are not authorized to impersonate the indicated user at this time.", the account sponsor or manager will need to set you up with the delegate role for your SFU account. You may send the account sponsor/manager this article: Getting Started with the DAM as an Account Sponsor.
I use multiple accounts on SFU Mail. Will my accounts migrate together?
It's possible. Migration, or upgrade batches, are completed by the account's dependencies (whether or not the account has a shared item with another account). If one of your account don't have shared dependencies, it's likely your accounts will have different migration dates.
 
As a reminder, please take note of the following:
• Both weblinks, mail.sfu.ca and outlook.office.com, will work for both non-upgraded and upgraded accounts. Our system automatically detects whether or not your account has migrated and redirects you to the correct Microsoft environment.
• For each account upgraded, you may need to remove and re-add the upgraded account on your email applications.
My Sponsored account has upgraded whereas my personal account hasn't (or vice-versa). Will this cause complications with delegate login?
Delegate login will work on both outlook.sfu.ca and mail.sfu.ca. Our system automatically detects whether or not your account has migrated and redirects you to the correct Microsoft environment.
Delegate login on email applications, such as Outlook on Desktop, will continue to work normally.
 
For sign-in instructions for sponsored accounts and delegate login, see Sign into SFU Mail with Sponsored Accounts.

 

Technical FAQs

GENERAL

How secure is Exchange Online?

Exchange Online (or SFU Mail) at SFU is protected by the enterprise-level security from Microsoft. Microsoft also provides the following to SFU Mail:

  • Data access to files and folders on a user’s Exchange Online Mailbox is only limited to the user account,
  • Data replication of core user data to at least two geographically distributed Microsoft data center for disaster recovery purposes, and
  • Encryption of data in transit and at rest.

To learn more about Microsoft’s trust and security related information, visit the Microsoft Trust Center .

Why is mail.sfu.ca becoming outdated?
The current SFU Mail weblink, https://mail.sfu.ca, will continue to work even after upgrading to Exchange Online. However, you may encounter some issues with the redirects to Outlook, https://outlook.office.com, where your browser settings, certificates and cookies may cause problems.
 
Be sure to use https://outlook.office.com for the most seamless experience.
When I try to connect to SFU Mail on mobile, I see a "Device Administrator" Prompt. What is this?

The prompt, including the listed permissions, is standard messaging when an Exchange account is connected to an email server with controls in place. In this case, SFU Mail has cybersecurity rules imposed by Exchange ActiveSync to enforce a consistent level of security and controls across connected devices. SFU IT administrators do not have such capabilities on your personal devices.

All users of SFU systems are bound by GP-24 which outlines appropriate use and access to electronic records, and IT staff are given appropriate role-based access to perform the work necessary for only their job function; accessing data on a personal device without user consent would be a violation of that policy.

Activating Device Administrator allows Exchange to enforce cybersecurity rules onto your device for it to operate securely within the SFU environment (i.e., signing into SFU using your computing ID and MFA), and conversely, allowing your device to access SFU-related data, such as role and contact information, through a secure connection.

EXTERNAL AND THIRD-PARTY APPS/TOOLS

Can I use my personal Email app to access SFU Mail?
Only third party tools approved for use by a University-supported initiative and backed by Privacy Impact and Security assessments will be enabled for SFU Mail access. Personal productivity and personal preferences for workflow aren't sufficient to allow third party tools that consume SFU email or calendar data.
 
We encourage you to try Microsoft Outlook to access SFU Mail, as it's SFU's fully supported email client for personal desktop and mobile use while providing the most seamless experience.
My App is critical for research, learning, or other university business needs. How do I get my app approved?
If you believe that your third-party application is critical for research, learning, or other university business needs, visit External Apps/Tool Changes and FAQs for details on getting your application approved by IT Services.
Can I use IMAP/POP with my Email application?
You can only connect to SFU Mail through IMAP/POP with select applications. Email applications will require OAuth2 authentication method and approved by IT Services (enabled by an Exchange IT Administrator) for it to connect to SFU Mail. Unless you are using this connection/app for teaching-, research- or business-critical activities, we recommend switching to a modern connection method.
 
Visit IMAP/SMTP Setup for details.
I can't sign into my application, even though it's approved. What should i Do?
Ensure that your application is up to date on the latest version. Older versions may not support Exchange Online requirements and cause this error.

 

Looking for technical details on changes to third-party applications connected to SFU Mail? See External Apps/Tools Changes and FAQs.

Looking for support? Send a support ticket using the SFU Mail - Report Migration Issue form.

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Details

Article ID: 6951
Created
Fri 10/6/23 4:12 PM
Modified
Thu 8/22/24 8:54 AM

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SFU mail is the emailing system at SFU for all SFU members.