Recent searches


No recent searches

Exchange Connector Early Access Program (EAP)



image avatar

Jacek Sałacki

Zendesk Product Manager

Posted Oct 09, 2024

Welcome to the Exchange Connector Early Access Program (EAP)! We're thrilled to have you participate in this exclusive opportunity to shape the future of the Exchange Connector. Your insights and feedback will be instrumental in refining the product. This document outlines the scope, prerequisites, signup process, configuration steps, and feedback mechanisms for the EAP.

What is Exchange Connector

Exchange Connector is a new functionality that allows to connect Zendesk instance directly  to mailboxes managed by MicrosoftExchange Server. 

 

  • Connect to Microsoft Exchange via direct API communication
  • Ideal for Microsoft customers looking to connect their online Microsoft 365 and/or Exchange servers, and leverage their Exchange/Outlook workflows

What value Exchange Connector provides

  • Take ownership of your end-user communications with a direct connection between Zendesk and Microsoft email servers
  • Keep teams & operations agile by leveraging existing workflows in Exchange and Outlook
  • Secure communication between mail server and Zendesk instance.

What's in scope for the EAP?

The Exchange Connector is a tool designed to integrate Zendesk with Microsoft Exchange servers, eliminating need for email forwarding and outbound email configuration.. It facilitates the secure delivery of outbound emails from Zendesk to specified Exchange server mailboxes also fetching inbound emails, both through using the Exchange API. 

The Early Access Program for the Exchange Connector focuses on the following key features and functionalities to enhance your experience:

  1. Send Emails: Securely send emails from Zendesk to an Exchange server mailbox.
  2. Receive Emails: Fetch new emails, including attachments, from Exchange mailboxes.
  3. User Interface: Easy setup and management of Exchange connections.
  4. Address Management: Add or remove Exchange email addresses easily.

By participating in the EAP, you'll have access to a new email integration approach that allows you to fully control email communication with your customers. All inbound and outbound emails will be served by your Exchange server. 

Participating in this EAP will help us fine-tune these functionalities and ensure the product meets user needs in real-world scenarios.

Prerequisites for EAP

  1. Mail system based on Microsoft Exchange Online (also Microsoft 365 service)
  2. Admin access to mail configuration (ability to grant access rights to Oauth applications)
  3. Existing, active Zendesk account (both paid or  trial)

Signing up for Exchange Connector EAP

To sign up for the Exchange Connector EAP, follow these steps:

  1. Visit the Sign-Up Form: Go to link
  2. Complete the Form: Fill in the required details, including your name, organization, system specifications, and reasons for joining the EAP.
  3. Accept Terms and Conditions: Review and agree to the EAP terms and conditions, including the NDA if applicable.
  4. Submit Application: Submit your application. Our team will review it and notify you of your acceptance via email.

Configuring Exchange Connector

  1. Log in to your Zendesk account as an administrator
  2. Navigate to Admin Center/Channels/Email
  3. Click on Add address/Connect external address. You will be presented with a popup window
  4. Select Microsoft Exchange Connector. You will see Continue with Microsoft button
  5. Click on that button. You will be redirected to Microsoft. 
  6. You may need to log in using credentials for the account which you want to connect to Zendesk. 
  7. In the next step you need to approve access to that email account. Click Accept. 
  8. Then you will be redirected back to Zendesk admin center and should see a confirmation message. 
  9. Now Zendesk platform can read and send emails directly through the configured account and exchange server. 

How can I provide feedback for the Exchange Connector EAP?

Your feedback is crucial for the successful improvement of the Exchange Connector. Here’s how you can provide it:

  1. Email: Send any feedback, bug reports, and suggestions to Exchange Connector to your Success Manager Include screenshots or logs where applicable
  2. Survey: During the EAP running you will be asked to participate in a survey that we will send out via email to gather structured feedback.
  3. Community Forum: Join our EAP Community Forum at [Forum Link] to engage in discussions, share your experiences, and seek advice from fellow participants and our development team.

FAQ

What if I have existing email configuration (i.e. email forwarding)

You may have several different email addresses configured at the same time. However to properly utilize Exchange Connector for an email address, you should configure that email address only through Exchange Connector. You should remove all other configuration for that address  and disable email forwarding. 

You should also configure Exchange connector address to be a default address. 

Are there any changes to ticket creation or outgoing communication

No. There will be no difference in ticket creation or outgoing communication. Except that emails will be exchanged using API between Zendesk and Exchange Server  instead of mail protocols. 

What types of MS Exchange servers are supported

We support the online version of Exchange Servers and services based on that (Windows 365). We DO NOT support the on premise version of Exchange Server. In this situation SMTP Connector should be a better option. 

 

 

Thank you for participating in the Early Access Program for Exchange Connector. Your involvement and feedback will directly contribute to the product’s success. We welcome you aboard and look forward to working with you!

 


2

11

11 comments

  • must be fewer than 128 characters

1


Jacek, sent you a few emails to do the session you recommended to resolve the fact that we can not use the connector on unlicensed group mailboxes, even after “consent on behalf of organisation”. Can you please take up contact. Would really love to help to get this connector working. 

1


image avatar

Jacek Sałacki

Zendesk Product Manager

Hi Willem Auret 

We are still interested in discussing that case. I just reached to you through email, let's move our further discussion to that channel . 

0


This is great news! Would this also work for a shared mailbox? We have a support mailbox that multiple people have access to, but there are no logon credentials for this mailbox. Would this still work? Or is this the same type of question that Willem asked?

1


image avatar

Jacek Sałacki

Zendesk Product Manager

Curtis Morissette thanks for your comment. Shared mailboxes are important topic for us while building Exchange Connector. To address that well we would like to learn about specific use cases and scenarios related to shared mailboxes and other functionalities related to Exchange Servers. Let me move our discussion to private channel, I'll reach to you through email. 

0


Can you give an indication of when this will move from EAP to production? 

0


Hi Curtis Morissette 

This is the same one I had, as we have the same situation. I did have a video call with Jacek Sałacki so I know they are working on this in the background. This is obviously still a WIP, hence the EAP program. Currently we can not yet use it in its current state due to the same situation you have, but I remain hopeful for improvements before the production release. 

0


image avatar

Jacek Sałacki

Zendesk Product Manager

Can you give an indication of when this will move from EAP to production? 

At this moment we are not able to share any exact date. However this functionality is under heavy testing and developing, we should be able to share more information soon.  

0


We also have multiple shared mailboxes that currently forward to Zendesk that we want to switch to using the Exchange Connector.  However, as they are Shared mailboxes, there are no logon credentials for them.

What is the plan for this?  Are you suggesting we have to get ‘user’ accounts created for all our Shared mailboxes and have to logon using these accounts when we set-up the connections?  Thanks

1


image avatar

Jacek Sałacki

Zendesk Product Manager

Ian Hawkins , thanks for your comment.

At this moment the best approach is to convert shared mailbox into regular user account or generate credentials for shared mailbox. And use this account or credentials to connect Zendesk with mailbox. 

In fact this approach is more robust, because such connection is not dependent on any personal account credentials. 

1


I also left a comment on this page, but could you please provide more information about the content described here?Currently, we are participating in the EAP.

 

Is it necessary to enable the CC and follower settings?

We noticed that the header mentioned in the explanation is not included in the sent email. Could this be an issue?

0


Please sign in to leave a comment.

Didn't find what you're looking for?

New post