2.1.17 Microsoft Outlook

Microsoft Outlook is an Internet messaging application that also provides a comprehensive time and information manager, enabling users to prioritize, organize, and search information. For common operations such as authenticating users and accessing files, Microsoft Outlook 2013, Microsoft Outlook 2010 and Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 use the protocols that are identified and described in section 2.2.1, except the data access protocols that are described in section 2.2.1.4. To support application-specific operations and integration with protocol server technologies, Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010 and Office Outlook 2007 use additional protocols.

To communicate with protocol servers that are running Microsoft Exchange Server, Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010 and Office Outlook 2007 use the protocols that are listed and described in the Exchange Server Protocols System Overview document ([MS-OXPROTO]).

Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010 and Office Outlook 2007 can also integrate with protocol servers that are running Microsoft SharePoint Server 2013, Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 or Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007, primarily by receiving alerts about content on SharePoint sites, and storing and synchronizing data with SharePoint lists (1). A user of SharePoint Server 2013, SharePoint Server 2010 or Office SharePoint Server 2007 can choose to be notified when a document, Web page, or other type of resource changes on a site. These notifications are referred to as alerts. An alert is a standard Internet message, as described in [RFC2822], that uses X-header fields, as described in [RFC822], to store additional information about that alert. To parse the information in those X-header fields, display the appropriate icons for alerts, and to catalog alert subscriptions, Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010 and Office Outlook 2007 use the Alerts Interoperability Protocol, as described in [MS-OSALER]. To enable users to manage alert subscriptions, Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010 and Office Outlook 2007 use the Alerts Service Protocol, as described in [MS-ALERTSS].

To store and synchronize data with SharePoint lists (1), Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010 and Office Outlook 2007 use the StsSync Data Structure, as described in [MS-STSSYN], and the Lists Web Service Protocol, as described in [MS-LISTSWS]. If Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010 or Office Outlook 2007 is installed on a client computer, the Actions menu in the user interface of a SharePoint list (1) provides an option to connect the list (1) to Outlook. When a user selects this option, an stssync URL (stssync://) is opened, Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010 or Office Outlook 2007 is registered with the operating system as a handler for that protocol, and Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010 or Office Outlook 2007 use the parameters specified in the initial stssync message to connect to the list (1), as described in [MS-STSSYN]. After it connects to the list (1), the protocol client creates a local copy of the list (1) data by using the Lists Web Service Protocol, as described in [MS-LISTSWS]. Thereafter, any changes to the local or server copies of the list (1) data are transmitted by using the Lists Web Service Protocol. For more information about these interactions, including how Outlook 2013, Outlook 2010 and Office Outlook 2007 handle the list (1) schema, see [MS-OUTSPS].

For a complete list of the protocols that are used for application-specific operations, see section 2.2.8.