Message Encoding Options

Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 will reach end of support on April 11, 2017. To stay supported, you will need to upgrade. For more information, see Resources to help you upgrade your Office 2007 servers and clients.

Applies to: Exchange Server 2007, Exchange Server 2007 SP1, Exchange Server 2007 SP2, Exchange Server 2007 SP3

The content conversion options that you can set in a Microsoft Exchange organization can be described in the following categories:

• TNEF conversion options   These conversion options specify whether Transport Neutral Encapsulation Format (TNEF) should be preserved or removed from messages that leave the Exchange organization.

• Message encoding options   These options specify message encoding options, such as MIME and non-MIME character sets, message encoding, and attachment formats.

This topic describes message encoding options that you can specify at the following levels:

• Remote domain settings

• Mail user and mail contact settings

• Microsoft Outlook settings

  • Message format

  • Internet message

  • Internet recipient message format

  • Message character set encoding options

Message Encoding Options for Messages That are Sent to Remote Domains

In Exchange Server 2007, you can set the message encoding options for recipients in remote domains in the Exchange Management Shell or on the Remote Domains tab in the Exchange Management Console. Although the settings are functionally equivalent in the two management interfaces, they may use slightly different terms.

The following table describes the message encoding options that are available for remote domain recipients in the Exchange Management Shell.

Message encoding options for remote domain recipients in the Exchange Management Shell

The message encoding options that are available for remote domain recipients in the Exchange Management Console are described in the following procedure.

To use the Exchange Management Console to configure the message encoding options for recipients in remote domains

1. Open the Exchange Management Console.

2. In the console tree, click Organization Configuration, and then click Hub Transport.

3. In the result pane, click the Remote Domains tab.

4. In the result pane, select the remote domain entry that you want to configure. In the action pane, click Properties, and then on the Properties page for that remote domain, click the Message Format tab.

5. On the Message Format tab, under Message Format Options, select the settings that you want to use for messages sent to this remote domain. The following options are available:

   • Display senders name on messages   The default value is enabled.

   • Use message text line wrap at column   The default value is not specified. This corresponds to a value of unlimited.

   • Character Sets

     - MIME character set:   For the default remote domain, the value is set to match the regional settings of the operating system. For example, Western European (ISO). For user-created remote domains, the default value is None.

     - Non-MIME character set: For the default remote domain, the value is set to match the regional settings of the operating system, for example, Western European (ISO). For user-created remote domains, the default value is None.

6. Click OK.

Message Encoding Options for Mail Users and Mail Contacts

You must use the Exchange Management Shell to set the message encoding options for mail users and mail contacts.

The following table describes the message encoding options that are available for mail users and mail contacts in the Exchange Management Shell.

Message encoding options for mail users and mail contacts in the Exchange Management Shell

Message Encoding Options That are Available in Outlook

You can set the default message format for all new messages that you compose to TNEF as described in the following procedure.

To use Outlook 2007 to set the default message format to plain text or HTML

1. In Microsoft Office Outlook 2007, from the toolbar, click Tools, and then click Options.

2. Click the Mail Format tab.

3. In the Message format section, in the Compose messages in this format option, and then select Plain Text or HTML.

4. Click OK.

You can override the default message format for an individual message while you compose the message as described in the following procedure.

To use Outlook 2007 to set the message format to plain text or HTML while you compose the message

1. In Outlook 2007, select the File menu, select New, and then select Mail Message.

2. In the new message window, select the Format menu, and then select Plain Text or HTML.

You can specify the message encoding options for messages that are sent to all recipients outside the Exchange organization. These options are called Internet message format options. The options only apply to remote recipients, and not to recipients in the Exchange organization. These options are described in the following procedure.

To use the Outlook 2007 to set the default Internet message format options

1. In Outlook 2007, from the toolbar, click Tools, and then click Options.

2. Click the Mail Format tab.

3. In the Message format section, click Internet Format....

   1. In the Plain text options section, select the default options for plain text messages that are sent to the Internet. The following options are available:

      - Automatically wrap text at nn characters   The default value of the placeholder nn is 76. The valid input range is 30 to 132 characters.

      - Encode attachments in UUENCODE format when you send a plain text message   By default, this option is not selected. Uuencode is an encoding algorithm that converts binary attachments to US-ASCII text in the message body. Uuencode is only available for plain US-ASCII text messages as defined in RFC 2822. MIME-encoded messages can't use Uuencode.

   2. Click OK.

4. In the Message format section, click International Format....

5. Click OK.

You can control the message encoding options for messages that are sent to specific recipients outside the Exchange organization. These options are called Internet recipient message format options. The options only apply to remote recipients, and not to recipients in the Exchange organization. These options are described in the following procedure.

To use Outlook 2007 to set the Internet recipient message encoding options

1. Use one of the following methods

   • For an Internet recipient stored in the Contacts folder, open the contact, right-click the e-mail address in the E-mail... field, and then select Send Options....

   • For Internet recipients on the To:, Cc: or Bcc: fields, as you compose the message, right-click the recipient, and then select Send Options....

2. Select I want to specify the format for messages to this recipient.

3. Select one of the following options in the Message Format section:

   • MIME   This option specifies MIME encoding for messages that you send to this recipient. This is the default option. When you select MIME, you must select one of the following options in the Message Body: section:

     - Plain Text   This option specifies that the MIME-encoded message body should use plain text formatting. The message body may only contain unformatted text.

     - Include both Plain Text and HTML   This option specifies that the message is a multipart MIME message that contains a plain text version and an HTML-Formatted version of the message body.

     - HTML   This option specifies that the MIME-encoded message body should use HTML formatting. The message body may contain different fonts, embedded graphics, and other formatting options.

   • Plain Text/UUEncode   This option specifies that the message should be a message composed of only US-ASCII text as specified in RFC 2822. The Uuencode encoding algorithm for is used for any attachments.

     -By default, the BINHEX attachment format for Macintosh files is selected. To force the attachment format for Macintosh files to UUEncode, clear the check box next to BINHEX.

4. Click OK.

By default, Outlook uses automatic character set message encoding by scanning the whole text of the outgoing message to determine the appropriate encoding to use for the message. This setting applies to messages that you send to Internet recipients and recipients in the Exchange organization.

To use Outlook 2007 to set the default message character set encoding

1. In Outlook 2007, from the toolbar, click Tools, and then click Options.

2. Click the Mail Format tab.

3. In the Message format section, click International Options.... In the Encoding Options section, select the default encoding options for outgoing messages. The following options are available:

   • Auto select encoding for outgoing messages   By default, this option is selected. Outlook scans the whole text of the outgoing message to determine the most compatible character set for the message. For automatic encoding selection in Outlook to work correctly, you must make sure that appropriate international support NLS files and fonts are installed on the client computer.

   • Preferred encoding for outgoing messages   This encoding option specifies the default MIME character set for all outgoing messages. This encoding is used when the auto select encoding method is not selected, or when the auto select encoding method finds multiple appropriate encoding methods.

4. Click OK.

You can override the default character set message encoding for an individual message, but only when you have specified a default preferred encoding for outgoing messages. To override the default character set message encoding while you compose a message as described in the following procedure.

To use Outlook 2007 to set the message character set encoding while you compose a message

1. In Outlook 2007, from the toolbar, click Tools, and then click Options.

2. Click the Mail Format tab.

3. In the Message format section, click International Options.... In the Encoding Options section, clear Auto select encoding for outgoing messages.

4. Click OK to close the International Options window.

5. Click OK to close the Options window.

6. Select the File menu, select New, and then select Mail Message.

7. In the new message window, select the Encoding menu, and then select the character set that you want to use.

Order of Precedence for Message Encoding Options

Exchange 2007 uses the order of precedence as described in the following list to determine the message encoding options for outgoing messages that are sent to recipients outside the Exchange organization:

• Remote domain settings

• Outlook settings

• Mail user or mail contact settings

The list specifies the order of precedence from lowest to highest. A setting made at a higher level may override a setting made at a lower level.

The following table describes the order of precedence from lowest priority to highest priority for message character set encoding options.

Order of precedence from lowest priority to highest priority for message character set encoding options

The following table describes the order of precedence from lowest priority to highest priority for plain text message encoding options.

Order of precedence from lowest priority to highest priority for plain text message encoding options

The following table describes the order of precedence from lowest priority to highest priority for MIME message encoding options.

Order of precedence from lowest priority to highest priority for MIME message encoding options

For More Information

For more information, see the following topics:

• Understanding Content Conversion

• TNEF Conversion Options