Find mailbox folders with recently changed content

Posted on December 21, 2017 by Scott — No Comments ↓

Mailbox settings can be stored in a number of places inside a mailbox. A number of my scripts use Exchange Web Services to manipulate these settings, usually when there isn’t another way for an admin to manage them on behalf of a user. An example is Office 365’s app launcher, which is currently being updated to v3 for tenants. Because the method of managing the v2 launcher doesn’t work with v3, I had to try and find where the settings are stored. The first step in doing that is changing a setting the way a user does (in this case, OWA) and then looking for changed folders as an indication that the setting is stored somewhere in one of them. I decided to share how I do that.

The folder property PR_LOCAL_COMMIT_TIME_MAX (0x670A) stores the last time an item in the folder has changed. This can be used in a search filter to quickly find all folders that have changed since a specific time. First, I define all the MAPI properties I am going to be using in a search filter or in the results:

#MAPI property types being referenced
$propFolderType = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(13825,[Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::Integer) 
$propFolderLastChanged = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(0x670A, [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::SystemTime);  
$propFolderPath = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(26293, [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::String)  
$propDisplayName = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderSchema]::DisplayName

#MAPI property types being referenced

$propFolderType = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(13825,[Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::Integer)

$propFolderLastChanged = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(0x670A, [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::SystemTime);

$propFolderPath = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(26293, [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::String)

$propDisplayName = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderSchema]::DisplayName

For efficiency, you usually only want to return as many properties as you will be using in some way. (It is easier/simpler, though, to return the first class properties, when you will be using a lot of the common properties.) So I define a property set to return only what I need:

#Properties to include in search result
$ps = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.PropertySet([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.BasePropertySet]::IdOnly)  
$ps.Add($propFolderLastChanged)
$ps.Add($propFolderPath)
$ps.Add($propDisplayName)

#Properties to include in search result

$ps = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.PropertySet([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.BasePropertySet]::IdOnly)

$ps.Add($propFolderLastChanged)

$ps.Add($propFolderPath)

$ps.Add($propDisplayName)

After creating a folder view and adding the property set to it, I need to create a search filter. This filter gets all folders (that aren’t search folders) where the last commit time is newer than a date and time:

#Search filter: Non-search folders with changed content since last N minutes
$sfItem1 = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+IsGreaterThan($propFolderLastChanged,$changedTimeStart)  
$sfItem2 = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+IsEqualTo($propFolderType,1)  
$sfCollection = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+SearchFilterCollection([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.LogicalOperator]::And)
$sfCollection.Add($sfItem1)
$sfCollection.Add($sfItem2)

#Search filter: Non-search folders with changed content since last N minutes

$sfItem1 = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+IsGreaterThan($propFolderLastChanged,$changedTimeStart)

$sfItem2 = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+IsEqualTo($propFolderType,1)

$sfCollection = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+SearchFilterCollection([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.LogicalOperator]::And)

$sfCollection.Add($sfItem1)

$sfCollection.Add($sfItem2)

Next, I connect to the mailbox’s root folder because I want to search all folders in the mailbox, not just the ones the user can see, and execute a search:

$folderId = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderId([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.WellKnownFolderName]::Root,$EmailAddress)   
$baseFolder = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.Folder]::Bind($exchangeService,$folderId,$ps)
$findFolderResults = $baseFolder.FindFolders($sfCollection,$fv)

$folderId = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderId([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.WellKnownFolderName]::Root,$EmailAddress)

$baseFolder = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.Folder]::Bind($exchangeService,$folderId,$ps)

$findFolderResults = $baseFolder.FindFolders($sfCollection,$fv)

I then loop through the results. First class properties, even if you manually add them to a property set, can be referenced by the object’s property name, e.g., $folder.DisplayName, but all other properties (known as extended properties) are collectively stored in another property. You have to attempt to retrieve a defined extended property from this collection. To do this, you have to define a variable in which the value of the extended property will be stored. If you don’t, you will get an error. Then you call the TryGetPropertymethod, specifying the defined property you want and, by reference, which variable you want to put its value. For example, such as with the last commit time:

$lastChangeTime = $null  
[void]$folder.TryGetProperty($propFolderLastChanged,[ref]$lastChangeTime)

1 2	$lastChangeTime = $null [void]$folder.TryGetProperty($propFolderLastChanged,[ref]$lastChangeTime)

(Using the [void] type accelerator suppresses the output of the object that is returned, which in this case is just True or False as to whether the extended property is in the collection. It is the same as piping the command to Out-Null .) While having the folder name is helpful, that alone doesn’t always make it clear where that folder is. Therefore, I also get the path to the folder. But the property stores it as a binary value, so I convert it to a string:

#Get the folder path and convert to readable string
$folderPathPropValue = $null 
[void]$folder.TryGetProperty($propFolderPath,[ref]$folderPathPropValue)
$byteArray = [Text.Encoding]::UTF8.GetBytes($folderPathPropValue)  
$hexString = ($byteArray | ForEach-Object {$_.ToString("X2")}) -join ''
$hexString = $hexString.Replace("FEFF","5C00")  
$path = Convert-HexToASCII($hexString)

#Get the folder path and convert to readable string

$folderPathPropValue = $null

[void]$folder.TryGetProperty($propFolderPath,[ref]$folderPathPropValue)

$byteArray = [Text.Encoding]::UTF8.GetBytes($folderPathPropValue)

$hexString = ($byteArray | ForEach-Object {$_.ToString("X2")}) -join ''

$hexString = $hexString.Replace("FEFF","5C00")

$path = Convert-HexToASCII($hexString)

I put all the folders in an object, reverse sort by the last modified date, and output it to the screen:

To make it more consumable for others, I prettied it up and put it into a script. You can download the script or copy the code below (after expanding).

Get-FoldersWithContentChanges.ps1 (5.6 KiB)

<#
	.Synopsis
		Get folders that have had recent content changes
	.Description
		Search a mailbox for folders that have changed content in the last number of specified minutes
	.Parameter EmailAddress
		Email address of the mailbox to search
	.Parameter MinutesBeforeNow
		Integer value of the number of minutes before now to set as a search restriction.  Default is 30.
	.Example
		Get-FoldersWithContentChanges.ps1 johndoe@company.com
	.Example
		Get-FoldersWithContentChanges.ps1 -EmailAddress johndoe@company.com -MinutesBeforeNow 5
	.Notes
		Version: 1.0
		Date: 12/21/17
#>

Param (
	[Parameter(Position=0,Mandatory=$true,HelpMessage="Email address of mailbox")][string]$EmailAddress,
	[Parameter(Position=1,Mandatory=$false)][int]$MinutesBeforeNow = 30
	)

function Convert-HexToASCII($hex)
	{  
    $text = ""  
    for ($i=0;$i -lt $hex.Length;$i++)
		{  
		$text = $text + [Convert]::ToString([Convert]::ToChar([Convert]::ToInt32($hex.Substring($i,2),16)))  
		$i++  
    	}  
    return $text  
	}  

#Check for EWS API
$apiPath = (($(Get-ItemProperty -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue -Path Registry::$(Get-ChildItem -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Exchange\Web Services' |
			Sort-Object Name -Descending | Select-Object -First 1 -ExpandProperty Name)).'Install Directory') + 'Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.dll')
if (Test-Path $apiPath)
	{
	Add-Type -Path $apiPath
	}
else
	{
	Write-Error "The Exchange Web Services Managed API is required to use this script." -Category NotInstalled
	break
	}
  
$exchangeVersion = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExchangeVersion]::Exchange2010_SP1  
$exchangeService = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExchangeService($exchangeVersion)  
$exchangeservice.Url = 'https://outlook.office365.com/ews/exchange.asmx'    

if (-not($creds))
	{
	$creds = Get-Credential
	}
$exchangeService.Credentials = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.WebCredentials($creds)

$changedTimeStart = [datetime]::Now.AddMinutes(-$MinutesBeforeNow)  
$output = @()

#MAPI property types being referenced
$propFolderType = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(13825,[Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::Integer) 
$propFolderLastChanged = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(0x670A, [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::SystemTime);  
$propFolderPath = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(26293, [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::String)  
$propDisplayName = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderSchema]::DisplayName

#Properties to include in search result
$ps = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.PropertySet([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.BasePropertySet]::IdOnly)  
$ps.Add($propFolderLastChanged)
$ps.Add($propFolderPath)
$ps.Add($propDisplayName)

#Folder view: Search subfolders and return properties in property set
$fv = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderView(1000)  
$fv.Traversal = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderTraversal]::Deep  
$fv.PropertySet = $ps

#Search filter: Non-search folders with changed content since last N minutes
$sfItem1 = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+IsGreaterThan($propFolderLastChanged,$changedTimeStart)  
$sfItem2 = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+IsEqualTo($propFolderType,1)  
$sfCollection = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+SearchFilterCollection([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.LogicalOperator]::And)
$sfCollection.Add($sfItem1)
$sfCollection.Add($sfItem2)

#Bind to folder to search from and check its own changed time because the search won't include itself
$folderId = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderId([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.WellKnownFolderName]::Root,$EmailAddress)   
$baseFolder = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.Folder]::Bind($exchangeService,$folderId,$ps)  
$lastChangeTime = $null  
[void]$baseFolder.TryGetProperty($propFolderLastChanged,[ref]$lastChangeTime)

if ($lastChangeTime -gt $changedTimeStart)
	{
	$row = "" | Select-Object -Property FolderName,LastChanged,Path
	$row.FolderName = 'Root'
	$row.LastChanged = $lastChangeTime.ToLocalTime()
	$row.Path = '\'
	$output += $row
	}

#Execute search and process results
$findFolderResults = $baseFolder.FindFolders($sfCollection,$fv)

foreach ($folder in $findFolderResults.Folders)
	{
    $row = "" | Select-Object -Property FolderName,LastChanged,Path
	$row.FolderName = $folder.DisplayName
	#Get the value of the last commit time
	$lastChangeTime = $null  
	[void]$folder.TryGetProperty($propFolderLastChanged,[ref]$lastChangeTime)
	$row.LastChanged = $lastChangeTime.ToLocalTime()
	#Get the folder path and convert to readable string
	$folderPathPropValue = $null 
    [void]$folder.TryGetProperty($propFolderPath,[ref]$folderPathPropValue)
    $byteArray = [Text.Encoding]::UTF8.GetBytes($folderPathPropValue)  
	$hexString = ($byteArray | ForEach-Object {$_.ToString("X2")}) -join ''
    $hexString = $hexString.Replace("FEFF","5C00")  
    $path = Convert-HexToASCII($hexString)    
	$row.Path = $path
	$output += $row
	}

if ($output.Length -gt 0)
	{
	$output | Sort-Object -Property LastChanged -Descending
	}
else
	{
	Write-Output 'No folders have changed content in the specified window.'
	}

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.Synopsis

Get folders that have had recent content changes

.Description

Search a mailbox for folders that have changed content in the last number of specified minutes

.Parameter EmailAddress

Email address of the mailbox to search

.Parameter MinutesBeforeNow

Integer value of the number of minutes before now to set as a search restriction. Default is 30.

.Example

Get-FoldersWithContentChanges.ps1 johndoe@company.com

.Example

Get-FoldersWithContentChanges.ps1 -EmailAddress johndoe@company.com -MinutesBeforeNow 5

.Notes

Version: 1.0

Date: 12/21/17

Param (

[Parameter(Position=0,Mandatory=$true,HelpMessage="Email address of mailbox")][string]$EmailAddress,

[Parameter(Position=1,Mandatory=$false)][int]$MinutesBeforeNow = 30

)

function Convert-HexToASCII($hex)

{

$text = ""

for ($i=0;$i -lt $hex.Length;$i++)

{

$text = $text + [Convert]::ToString([Convert]::ToChar([Convert]::ToInt32($hex.Substring($i,2),16)))

$i++

}

return $text

}

#Check for EWS API

$apiPath = (($(Get-ItemProperty -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue -Path Registry::$(Get-ChildItem -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Exchange\Web Services' |

Sort-Object Name -Descending | Select-Object -First 1 -ExpandProperty Name)).'Install Directory') + 'Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.dll')

if (Test-Path $apiPath)

{

Add-Type -Path $apiPath

}

else

{

Write-Error "The Exchange Web Services Managed API is required to use this script." -Category NotInstalled

break

}

$exchangeVersion = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExchangeVersion]::Exchange2010_SP1

$exchangeService = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExchangeService($exchangeVersion)

$exchangeservice.Url = 'https://outlook.office365.com/ews/exchange.asmx'

if (-not($creds))

{

$creds = Get-Credential

}

$exchangeService.Credentials = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.WebCredentials($creds)

$changedTimeStart = [datetime]::Now.AddMinutes(-$MinutesBeforeNow)

$output = @()

#MAPI property types being referenced

$propFolderType = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(13825,[Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::Integer)

$propFolderLastChanged = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(0x670A, [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::SystemTime);

$propFolderPath = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.ExtendedPropertyDefinition(26293, [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.MapiPropertyType]::String)

$propDisplayName = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderSchema]::DisplayName

#Properties to include in search result

$ps = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.PropertySet([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.BasePropertySet]::IdOnly)

$ps.Add($propFolderLastChanged)

$ps.Add($propFolderPath)

$ps.Add($propDisplayName)

#Folder view: Search subfolders and return properties in property set

$fv = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderView(1000)

$fv.Traversal = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderTraversal]::Deep

$fv.PropertySet = $ps

#Search filter: Non-search folders with changed content since last N minutes

$sfItem1 = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+IsGreaterThan($propFolderLastChanged,$changedTimeStart)

$sfItem2 = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+IsEqualTo($propFolderType,1)

$sfCollection = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.SearchFilter+SearchFilterCollection([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.LogicalOperator]::And)

$sfCollection.Add($sfItem1)

$sfCollection.Add($sfItem2)

#Bind to folder to search from and check its own changed time because the search won't include itself

$folderId = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.FolderId([Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.WellKnownFolderName]::Root,$EmailAddress)

$baseFolder = [Microsoft.Exchange.WebServices.Data.Folder]::Bind($exchangeService,$folderId,$ps)

$lastChangeTime = $null

[void]$baseFolder.TryGetProperty($propFolderLastChanged,[ref]$lastChangeTime)

if ($lastChangeTime -gt $changedTimeStart)

{

$row = "" | Select-Object -Property FolderName,LastChanged,Path

$row.FolderName = 'Root'

$row.LastChanged = $lastChangeTime.ToLocalTime()

$row.Path = '\'

$output += $row

}

#Execute search and process results

$findFolderResults = $baseFolder.FindFolders($sfCollection,$fv)

foreach ($folder in $findFolderResults.Folders)

{

$row = "" | Select-Object -Property FolderName,LastChanged,Path

$row.FolderName = $folder.DisplayName

#Get the value of the last commit time

$lastChangeTime = $null

[void]$folder.TryGetProperty($propFolderLastChanged,[ref]$lastChangeTime)

$row.LastChanged = $lastChangeTime.ToLocalTime()

#Get the folder path and convert to readable string

$folderPathPropValue = $null

[void]$folder.TryGetProperty($propFolderPath,[ref]$folderPathPropValue)

$byteArray = [Text.Encoding]::UTF8.GetBytes($folderPathPropValue)

$hexString = ($byteArray | ForEach-Object {$_.ToString("X2")}) -join ''

$hexString = $hexString.Replace("FEFF","5C00")

$path = Convert-HexToASCII($hexString)

$row.Path = $path

$output += $row

}

if ($output.Length -gt 0)

{

$output | Sort-Object -Property LastChanged -Descending

}

else

{

Write-Output 'No folders have changed content in the specified window.'

}

Updated script that applies retention tag to items in a default folder

Posted on November 20, 2017 by Scott — No Comments ↓

Articles in the "Retention tag on default folder items" series

Use EWS to apply retention policy to items in a default folder
Script to set retention tag on default folder items updated to v1.1.1
Default folder retention tag script updated to 1.3
Updated script that applies retention tag to items in a default folder [This article]

Edit 12/1/17: The issue with the retention tag GUID not being set by Exchange Online has been resolved. Therefore, I have removed the code that distinguishes between online and on-premises so that the GUID is always applied.

My script that adds a personal tag to items in a default folder stopped working correctly recently. Even though it was applying a tag to matching items, the collection size was never getting smaller. After investigating, I found that a change has been made in Exchange Online. The property that holds the GUID of the applied tag is no longer used by Exchange Online. This is also the property I am using to search for items to tag. You can tell Exchange to set a value for the property, and it will respond without error, but it doesn’t actually update the property. So my script kept getting items that had already been updated. I suspect this has something to do with added support for labels from the Security and Compliance Center.

I have updated the script to instead filter items that do not have a retention period set. To accommodate this distinction from how Exchange on-premises still operates, I have added the Environment parameter, which defaults to Exchange Online, so that the GUID will still be applied when run against an on-premises mailbox. The code that handles changed result sets (where the number of items in the results changes while in the middle of processing) had a display issue where it would double the number of items processed (it didn’t affect the items, but was only a display issue); I have changed the processing loop to now retrieve all items first, then process them in one batch, rather than retrieving and processing them in 50-item batches.

Set-DefaultFolderItemsTag.ps1 (9.4 KiB)

Previous in series |

Delegate management module updated

Posted on September 7, 2017 by Scott — 4 Comments ↓

Articles in the "Mailbox Delegate Management" series

The module has been updated to version 1.5.1. This version adds automatic support for localization of the Sent Items and Deleted Items folders. If the display name of those folders in the owner’s mailbox is not in English, the localized display name of the folder will be used when getting, setting, or removing delegates.

I have also added permission validation to the owner’s mailbox for the person executing a cmdlet. When using impersonation, if you don’t have permission to a mailbox Exchange responds with an error indicating as much. But if using full access, Exchange doesn’t respond with such an error, just failing on whatever request is being made. Usually when permission is the issue, the error contains “The specified object was not found in the store,” so the module checks for that error, informs you that it appears you don’t have permission, and then gracefully aborts the cmdlet.

Download the updated module and overwrite your existing copy. If you were already using v1.5.0, keep your existing settings file so your specific settings remain.

DelegateManagement.zip (9.2 KiB)

Previous in series |

New form for creating travel time appointments in Outlook

Posted on September 7, 2017 by Scott — 2 Comments ↓

Articles in the "Outlook Travel Time Appointments" series

Add travel time appointments in Outlook
New form for creating travel time appointments in Outlook [This article]

I still use my code to create travel time appointments in Outlook. I updated it a little while ago, though, to streamline it. It now uses a VBA form to ask for the travel from and travel to times in one dialog:

The travel time form now lets you create both appointments from one dialog.

This saves a little real estate in the ribbon because now you only need one button:

The custom button runs the macro for launching the form and creating the appointments.

It also saves time because you can have it create both appointments in one go. If you don’t need the to or from appointment created, leave its field blank. You can download the two form files below, extract them anywhere, then in the VBA editor you can click File->Import File… and select the .frm file.

TravelTimeForm.zip (1.6 KiB)

You can copy the updated macros below and paste them into ThisOutlookSession in the VBA editor (and delete the macros from the old version). The OpenOutlookFolder macro hasn’t changed, but is included for convenience. The CreateTravelAppointment macro is now called CreateAppointment and the only change is that it sets the appointment’s category to Travel. The CreateTravelToAppointment and CreateTravelFromAppointment macros are now combined into one called CreateTravelAppointment. This is the macro you want your ribbon button to execute.

Function OpenOutlookFolder(ByVal strPath As String) As Object
    Dim objSession As NameSpace
    Dim arrFolders As Variant, varFolder As Variant, bolBeyondRoot As Boolean
    
    Set objSession = Outlook.Application.GetNamespace("MAPI")

    On Error Resume Next
    Do While Left(strPath, 1) = "\"
        strPath = Right(strPath, Len(strPath) - 1)
    Loop
    arrFolders = Split(strPath, "\")
    For Each varFolder In arrFolders
        Select Case bolBeyondRoot
            Case False
                Set OpenOutlookFolder = objSession.Folders(varFolder)
                bolBeyondRoot = True
            Case True
                Set OpenOutlookFolder = OpenOutlookFolder.Folders(varFolder)
        End Select
        If Err.Number <> 0 Then
            Set OpenOutlookFolder = Nothing
            Exit For
        End If
    Next
    On Error GoTo 0
    
    Set objSession = Nothing
    
End Function
Sub CreateAppointment(path, subject, starttime, duration, setreminder)
    Dim objCalFolder As Outlook.Folder
    Dim objCalItem As Outlook.AppointmentItem
    
    'Get folder object for given path
    Set objCalFolder = OpenOutlookFolder(path)
    'Create appointment item and set properties
    Set objCalItem = objCalFolder.Items.Add
    objCalItem.subject = subject
    objCalItem.Start = starttime
    objCalItem.duration = duration
    objCalItem.BusyStatus = olOutOfOffice
    objCalItem.Categories = "Travel"
    'Don't set reminder for return travel time
    If setreminder = False Then
        objCalItem.ReminderSet = False
    End If
    objCalItem.Save
    
    Set objCalItem = Nothing
    Set objCalFolder = Nothing
End Sub
Sub CreateTravelAppointment()
    Dim objExplorer As Outlook.Explorer
    Dim objSelection As Outlook.Selection
    Dim objSelectedAppointment As Outlook.AppointmentItem
    Dim strFolderPath As String, intMinutes As Integer, dtStartTime As Date, strSubject As String
    Dim TravelTimeTo As Integer, TravelTimeFrom As Integer
    
    'Get currently selected appointment item and the calendar it is in
    Set objExplorer = Outlook.ActiveExplorer
    Set objSelection = objExplorer.Selection
    'Get path to current calendar folder (allows for working with non-default and additional calendars)
    strFolderPath = objExplorer.CurrentFolder.folderPath
    
    If objSelection.Count <> 1 Then
        noItem = MsgBox("You must first select an appointment item.", vbCritical, "No item selected")
    Else
        Set objSelectedAppointment = objSelection.Item(1)
        'Display form to get travel time durations
        TravelTimeForm.Show
        TravelTimeTo = TravelTimeForm.TravelToTextBox.Value
        TravelTimeFrom = TravelTimeForm.TravelFromTextBox.Value
        'Create travel time appointments only if value provided
        If TravelTimeTo >= 0 Then
            dtStartTime = objSelectedAppointment.Start - TimeSerial(0, TravelTimeTo, 0)
            strSubject = "Travel to " & objSelectedAppointment.subject
            Call CreateAppointment(strFolderPath, strSubject, dtStartTime, TravelTimeTo, True)
            'Disable reminder because travel appointment has one
            objSelectedAppointment.ReminderSet = False
            objSelectedAppointment.Save
        End If
        If TravelTimeFrom >= 0 Then
            dtStartTime = objSelectedAppointment.End
            strSubject = "Travel from " & objSelectedAppointment.subject
            Call CreateAppointment(strFolderPath, strSubject, dtStartTime, TravelTimeFrom, False)
        End If
        Unload TravelTimeForm
    End If
    
    Set objSelectAppointment = Nothing
    Set objSelection = Nothing
    Set objExplorer = Nothing
        
End Sub

Function OpenOutlookFolder(ByVal strPath As String) As Object

Dim objSession As NameSpace

Dim arrFolders As Variant, varFolder As Variant, bolBeyondRoot As Boolean

Set objSession = Outlook.Application.GetNamespace("MAPI")

On Error Resume Next

Do While Left(strPath, 1) = "\"

strPath = Right(strPath, Len(strPath) - 1)

Loop

arrFolders = Split(strPath, "\")

For Each varFolder In arrFolders

Select Case bolBeyondRoot

Case False

Set OpenOutlookFolder = objSession.Folders(varFolder)

bolBeyondRoot = True

Case True

Set OpenOutlookFolder = OpenOutlookFolder.Folders(varFolder)

End Select

If Err.Number <> 0 Then

Set OpenOutlookFolder = Nothing

Exit For

End If

On Error GoTo 0

Set objSession = Nothing

End Function

Sub CreateAppointment(path, subject, starttime, duration, setreminder)

Dim objCalFolder As Outlook.Folder

Dim objCalItem As Outlook.AppointmentItem

'Get folder object for given path

Set objCalFolder = OpenOutlookFolder(path)

'Create appointment item and set properties

Set objCalItem = objCalFolder.Items.Add

objCalItem.subject = subject

objCalItem.Start = starttime

objCalItem.duration = duration

objCalItem.BusyStatus = olOutOfOffice

objCalItem.Categories = "Travel"

'Don't set reminder for return travel time

If setreminder = False Then

objCalItem.ReminderSet = False

End If

objCalItem.Save

Set objCalItem = Nothing

Set objCalFolder = Nothing

End Sub

Sub CreateTravelAppointment()

Dim objExplorer As Outlook.Explorer

Dim objSelection As Outlook.Selection

Dim objSelectedAppointment As Outlook.AppointmentItem

Dim strFolderPath As String, intMinutes As Integer, dtStartTime As Date, strSubject As String

Dim TravelTimeTo As Integer, TravelTimeFrom As Integer

'Get currently selected appointment item and the calendar it is in

Set objExplorer = Outlook.ActiveExplorer

Set objSelection = objExplorer.Selection

'Get path to current calendar folder (allows for working with non-default and additional calendars)

strFolderPath = objExplorer.CurrentFolder.folderPath

If objSelection.Count <> 1 Then

noItem = MsgBox("You must first select an appointment item.", vbCritical, "No item selected")

Else

Set objSelectedAppointment = objSelection.Item(1)

'Display form to get travel time durations

TravelTimeForm.Show

TravelTimeTo = TravelTimeForm.TravelToTextBox.Value

TravelTimeFrom = TravelTimeForm.TravelFromTextBox.Value

'Create travel time appointments only if value provided

If TravelTimeTo >= 0 Then

dtStartTime = objSelectedAppointment.Start - TimeSerial(0, TravelTimeTo, 0)

strSubject = "Travel to " & objSelectedAppointment.subject

Call CreateAppointment(strFolderPath, strSubject, dtStartTime, TravelTimeTo, True)

'Disable reminder because travel appointment has one

objSelectedAppointment.ReminderSet = False

objSelectedAppointment.Save

End If

If TravelTimeFrom >= 0 Then

dtStartTime = objSelectedAppointment.End

strSubject = "Travel from " & objSelectedAppointment.subject

Call CreateAppointment(strFolderPath, strSubject, dtStartTime, TravelTimeFrom, False)

End If

Unload TravelTimeForm

End If

Set objSelectAppointment = Nothing

Set objSelection = Nothing

Set objExplorer = Nothing

End Sub

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Delegate management module updated to v1.5.0

Posted on August 15, 2017 by Scott — No Comments ↓

Articles in the "Mailbox Delegate Management" series

Super duper delegate retrieval script
PowerShell module for managing Exchange mailbox delegates
Small update to delegate management module
Delegate management module updated to v1.3.5
Delegate management module updated to support Exchange Online
Delegate management module updated to v1.4.5
Delegate management module updated to 1.4.6
Delegate management module updated to v1.5.0 [This article]
Delegate management module updated

It had been some time since I updated the delegate management PowerShell module. I started to update it last year after I decided to move the admin configuration settings to their own file, but didn’t complete it. After a user of the module recently contacted me about adding one of the supported options for delegate meeting forwarding, I went back and finished updating it. These are the changes:

Configuration settings have been moved to a file. This allows for drop-in updates to the module without you having to reconfigure your settings again. The file, DelegateManagementSettings.xml, should be located in the same directory as the module. A default file is included in the download, but you can also use the new Set-DelegateManagementSetting cmdlet with the CreateDefaultFile parameter to have the module create one for you. You can run Get-DelegateManagementSetting to view your current settings. If you want to change one or more settings for the current session, the Set-DelegateManagementSetting cmdlet can do that, and you can use the Persist parameter if you want the changed setting to be written to the file. (Comment-based help is available for both new cmdlets, e.g., Get-Help Set-DelegateManagementSetting .)
The following functionality has been moved from static values to configurable settings: whether to use Autodiscover, specifying an EWS URL, whether to use impersonation, and if permission should be added/set by default for the Deleted Items and Sent Items folders when adding a delegate.
The Azure AD module is no longer needed for managing delegates in Exchange Online.
The ability to specify that meeting requests for the owner/manager should not be forwarded to delegates. (This is supported with Exchange 2013+ and Exchange Online mailboxes.) NoForward has been added as a valid value with the MeetingRequestDeliveryScope parameter.
All functions for connecting via PowerShell to on-premises Exchange and Exchange Online have been removed. Connection to the appropriate environment should be handled externally to the module, as would usually be done with any other module or cmdlet. The exception to this is for Exchange Web Services (seeing as it is a stateless connection). If managing delegates in Exchange Online, the first time you run a delegate cmdlet it will prompt for EWS credentials, which will be used for all future cmdlets in the same shell. On-premises will use the current user credentials. If you would like the module to be able to store and recall credentials automatically (in Credential Manager, for example), specify credentials for on-premises, or other credential options, let me know.

The updated module, along with a settings file, is here:

DelegateManagement.zip (9.2 KiB)

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Meeting cancellation script updated

Posted on August 4, 2017 by Scott — 8 Comments ↓

Articles in the "Meeting cancellation script" series

Cancel future meetings in a mailbox
Meeting cancellation script updated [This article]
Meeting cancellation script updated for large result sets

I have updated the Cancel-MailboxMeetings.ps1 script. These are the changes:

Changed the date parameters to align with Microsoft’s Remove-CalendarEvents cmdlet. StartDate is now QueryStartDate and EndDate is now QueryWindowInDays. The default time frame is still one year from the query start date, but is now specified as an integer of days instead of a specific date.
Added a preview mode via the PreviewOnly switch parameter (also to align with Microsoft). Using the parameter will list which meetings (by subject and start date, first occurrence start date if a recurring meeting) would be affected. To provide enough detail, it will indicate if it is a standalone meeting or series and whether the meeting is being canceled (because the mailbox is the organizer) or declined (because the mailbox is an attendee). If you use the EndOrganizedRecurringMeetings parameter, it will also use wording to show that a meeting series’ end date would be updated instead of canceled.
Added detection of modified occurrences that will be lost if a recurring series’ end date is changed. Because exceptions to a meeting (only modifications, not deletions) are removed when a series’ end date is changed, the script checks for modified occurrences that occurred in the past of the query start date and prompts you to confirm that you want to update that meeting.
Added a switch parameter named SuppressLostExceptionPrompt. Use this if you want to prevent the confirmation prompt about lost modified occurrences and have it change the end date anyway. This parameter only has an effect if also used with EndOrganizedRecurringMeetings.
Although added only while I was testing, but decided to leave in, are some extra details written to the screen if you use the Verbose parameter.

The code in the first post has been updated, as has the downloadable version:

Cancel-MailboxMeetings.ps1 (12.7 KiB)

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The consequence of not having six hydrocoptic marzelvanes fitted to the ambifacient lunar waneshaft.

Category Archives: Scripts

Find mailbox folders with recently changed content

Updated script that applies retention tag to items in a default folder

Articles in the "Retention tag on default folder items" series

Delegate management module updated

Articles in the "Mailbox Delegate Management" series

New form for creating travel time appointments in Outlook

Articles in the "Outlook Travel Time Appointments" series

Delegate management module updated to v1.5.0

Articles in the "Mailbox Delegate Management" series

Meeting cancellation script updated

Articles in the "Meeting cancellation script" series