RRU has been on a mission to move Exchange to the cloud for some time. We started with non-student mailboxes, then student mailboxes, and now we’re moving distribution lists.

Program and course related distribution lists have not yet been migrated.

Resources for when we are in the cloud

You must be logged into Confluence to see the pages listed below, which will help you find information about new distribution lists.

How can you tell if you’re logged in?

If you see this icon in the upper right hand corner instead of your initials or avatar, you’re not logged in: Open

If you see this message, you’re not logged in. Open

• Need help to find the new name of a distribution list? (old and new list names)

• Can’t find it there? It may have been deleted. Check the lists not migrated.

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Here are some common questions.

Why do I see old distribution lists when I click on the ‘to’ field and type '@'?

This is your cached/remembered frequently used distribution list names. These will eventually be replaced with new lists but if you’d like to clean up now to avoid accidentally using them now that they don’t exist (recommended):

1. Type ‘@RRU’ in the ‘to’ field

2. See the frequently used distribution list names

3. Hover (don’t click!) over the name and click the X in the far right corner.

4. Repeat for all distribution lists in the cache

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What will I need to do differently?

In Outlook, when you start typing a distribution list in the ‘To’ field, you are offered suggestions of people, mailboxes, and distribution lists that you use frequently. Many of these will no longer work because they’ve been assigned new names.

Here’s an example:

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@RRU-EPMO-Ambassadors will no longer work because that will have been renamed.

You can hit that X to the right to delete the distribution list name from your ‘recently used’ list, if you like. Or wait for it to be replaced with things you use frequently over time.

Notice that RRU Student Services, RRU-Key-Requests, and RRU Computer Accounts don’t have an ‘@' symbol to the left. That’s because these are mailboxes, not distribution lists. These are not changing.

Do I need to change anything?

If you have rules in Outlook that refer to distribution list names, these will need to be updated to use the new names.

If you reference distribution lists in any template replies etc., these will need to be updated.

How can I find the distribution lists I want if I don’t know the new names?

Open a new email message and click on the ‘To’ field. This will open the global address list. All distribution lists and mailboxes etc. will be displayed here.

(you still see the ‘RRU’ here because this is a screen shot of how it is now.)

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If you can’t read the full name of the distribution list, grab the column divider between ‘Name’ and ‘Title’ (highlighted in yellow) and slide it to the right.

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Alternately, you can type something in the ‘To’ field and then press Ctrl-K to have a list of possibilities displayed, from which you can choose.

Will I be able to manage my own distribution list membership?

Yes. When the lists are migrated to the cloud, you’ll be assigned as the ‘owner/editor’ of your distribution lists. You can modify the membership as needed without requiring assistance from IT.

More than one person can edit the distribution list membership.

Background information

Why are we migrating Exchange to the the cloud?

To keep our technology current, pave the way for the new communications system, and take advantage of integrations between the Microsoft 365 suite of applications. 

When will we start using distribution lists in the cloud?

We will do a ‘hard cutover’ when all distribution lists have been moved to the cloud. April 14, 2025.