8.1. Blocking Specific Versions of Outlook from Connecting
Problem
You want to be able to control which versions of Outlook connect to your Exchange servers using MAPI, to prevent users from running older, unpatched versions or from running beta versions. Or you may want to completely disable the use of MAPI.
Solution
Using a graphical user interface
Log on to the server where you want to block certain versions of Outlook from connecting. You must perform the following steps individually on each server.
Using Registry Editor (regedit.exe), locate the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\MSExchangeIS\ParametersSystem
Add a REG_SZ value named
DisableMAPIClients. For the value data, enter a string containing a list of the MAPI client versions you wish to prevent connecting in one of the formats listed in Table 8-1. (You can get version data in ESM by checking the Logons node under each mailbox database; the Client Version column will tell you what clients and versions are currently in use.) You can specify multiple versions and ranges by separating them with commas.
Table 8-1. Registry formats for blocking Outlook connections
Format | Effect | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Blocks the specified version only | |
| Blocks everything except the specified one | |
| Blocks all version in the specified range | |