Email
The TCM application uses email as follows:
- You automatically receive an email notification when certain teamspace events occur. For example, emails are sent to teamspace members when they are invited to join a teamspace and when they are assigned tasks within a teamspace. If you are a member of a teamspace, you can also subscribe to events, in which case you will receive an email when the subscribed event occurs. Each email includes a link to the teamspace and the email address of the teamspace.
- As a teamspace member you can send email from within the teamspace about specific objects. For example, when you send email about a task, the email includes a reference to the task, as well as the teamspace address. Users can send email to other members, anyone else with an email address, and can also copy the teamspace where the email will be made available to all members.
- The TCM application archives email received via the mail server in the appropriate teamspace. Each teamspace has a unique email address that is automatically included in all outgoing emails from the teamspace. You use that email address to send email to the teamspace.
Each email sent from the TCM application (either as a notification or sent from within a teamspace by a TCM user) contains a link to the teamspace object. (Note that the recipient may need to sign in to access the teamspace. Recipients who are not teamspace members or guests will not be able to enter the teamspace.)
For specific procedures, see Email tab.
Administrators can customize the templates used for emails that originate in the teamspace. See Customizing email templates for more information.
Configuring the Process Engine for email functionality
You must configure the Process Engine to process emails. See the Team Collaboration Manager Installation Guide for details on how to do this.
NOTE Unless the Process Engine is configured correctly, the Collaboration Engine will receive errors when it attempts to send an email. These emails remain in the queue and are marked InError, but are not retried when the problem on the Process Engine is corrected. Your administrator will need to manually resend the messages by resetting them to InQueue.
Configuring the mail server to archive teamspace email
To receive email into a teamspace, the mail server must be working as follows:
- The mail engine must be configured properly and running. (Refer to the Team Collaboration Manager Installation Guide.)
- The email must be addressed properly. Use the email address included in a teamspace-generated email, or the contact card provided on the Overview page for the teamspace to obtain an email address.
- The DNS entries and other mail servers in your enterprise are properly configured to forward email addressed to the teamspace to the email engine.
Email queuing
Email notifications generated by the TCM application are queued to the Content Engine to be sent by the Collaboration Engine. Because of this, outgoing emails will be sent successfully only if the Collaboration Engine is running properly. Check the status of the Collaboration Engine if email notifications are not being sent or received as expected.