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Microsoft 365 - Outlook on the Web (How To) Open Shared Mailboxes and Edit Membership or Ownership
This article describes the process for opening shared mailboxes in Outlook on the web as well as editing shared mailbox membership and ownership.
Opening a Shared Mailbox
Follow these steps to open a group account as a shared mailbox.
1. From the Outlook on the Web, click your name/profile picture in the upper-right corner and select Open another mailbox...
2. In the open another mailbox window, type the shared mailbox's full UWM email address (i.e., mailbox@uwm.edu) and click "Search Directory" (if you've opened this mailbox before, the name should appear as you type).
3. Select the mailbox you wish to open from the menu.
4. Click Open and the shared mailbox will open in another browser tab.
5. View and send emails for your shared mailbox in the new tab.
Note: If the client does not have permission to access that mailbox they will receive two possible error messages:
- A blank screen with the words Bad request.
- An error message stating: You don't have permission to open this mailbox. (This may appear after the first error message if the client attempts to enter the mailbox again.)
Accessing Your Distribution Groups
1. From Outlook on the Web in your mailbox (NOT the shared mailbox), Click on the Gear Icon next to your profile picture and select "View all Outlook Settings" toward the bottom of the drop-down menu.2. Select General in the left-hand menu then click Distribution groups in the option pane on the left side of the screen:
3. Select the group you wish to edit under the Distribution groups I own heading (remember that distribution groups associated with shared mailboxes end in -owners@uwm.edu) and click the pencil icon:
Note: Remember to always click the Save button at the bottom right of the main Distribution Group window:

Note: This is done from the mailbox's owner's user account in Outlook on the web and NOT the shared mailbox itself.
To change the membership of a shared mailbox called abc, you must edit the abc-owners@uwm.edu distribution group that appears in your account options. You must also be an owner of the group in order to make these changes. Follow these steps to change a shared mailbox's members or owners.
1. Click membership along the left side of the Distribution Group window to edit the group's members.
2. Click the + icon to add a new member (or select an existing member and click the - icon to remove them).
2. Click the + icon to add a new member (or select an existing member and click the - icon to remove them).
3. Search for the new member's name or email address and click the + next to their name.
4. The persons name will appear under the save button at the top of the window to confirm that you have selected that person.
5. Click Save to keep any changes you made.

Note: Remember to always hit the Save button at the bottom right of the main Distribution Group window!

Note: This is done from the mailbox's owner's user account in Outlook on the web and NOT the shared mailbox itself.
To change the ownership of a shared mailbox called abc, you must edit the abc-owners@uwm.edu distribution group that appears in your account options. You must also be an owner of the group in order to make these changes. Follow these steps to change a shared mailbox's owners.
1. Click ownership along the left side of the Distribution Group window to edit the group's owners.
2. Click the + icon to add a new owner (or select an existing owner and click the - icon to remove them).
3. Search for the new owner's name or email address and click the + next to their name.
4. Click Save to keep any changes you made.

Note: Remember to always hit the Save button at the bottom right of the main Distribution Group window!
