What is the best way to setup a shared calendar? I want to create a calendar for my dept so people can post when they are out of the office, etc. We are using Exchange 2007 and Outlook 2007. I've tried by creating a room/equipment mailbox in exchange but it does not give me the option to configure the calendar then. Do I need certain tools installed for this option or possibly a schema extension?

In place of Shared or a common calender . probabaly better idea will be to go for a PF. Still if you want to go for common calender , have a look into this linkhttp://www.pcreview.co.uk/forums/thread-3655439.phpRaj

We use public folders for this purpose, and it works very well. Some notes:You have to create the public folder from within Outlook: New Folder, Folder contains: Calendar Items.You should add it to your Favorites. This gives you the option to view the shared calendar side by side with your personal calendar. In addition you get the option to cache the shared calendar locally in your .ost file. In Outlook 2007, select Tools, Account Settings, Change More Settings, Advanced. Under Cached Exchange Mode, Select Download Public Folder Favorites.These are the basics. But if you have a more complicated environment (we do with lots of linked mailboxes):Resource Forest, Exchange 2007 and Public Folder Permissionshttp://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/exchangesvrdeploy/thread/98583d77-f4f8-4954-91e2-788c70057798 How-to: Set cross-forest client permissions on public foldershttp://jesperbernle.blogspot.com/2009/10/how-to-set-cross-forest-client.htmlThen there is the issue with ActiveSync:There is no means to get public folders through any of the ActiveSync implementations - which includes the iPhone. That is a limitation imposed by Microsoft. Your only option is third party, for instance add2exchange from Diditbetterhttp://www.diditbetter.com/add2exchange.aspxFinally, public folders are de-emphasized, supported until 2016 (they're still there in Exchange 2010)Exchange 12 and Public Foldershttp://msexchangeteam.com/archive/2006/02/20/419994.aspx The replacement for public folders is SharePoint. You should investigate the calendar options there. But for now: Public Folders just work. Jon-Alfred Smith MCTS: Messaging MCSE: S+M

Hey wjreinhard,I agree with Jon in that PF cals can offer some nice features but it is the way of the past (As jon said we are looking at removing PF from our mail application). I have linked a couple linka to this post that should help you setup the resource account. If you have question setting up the account after you look over these articles or the resource mailbox does not meet your needs please let me know.http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb124374.aspxhttp://www.msexchange.org/articles_tutorials/exchange-server-2007/management-administration/managing-resource-mailboxes-exchange-server-2007-part1.htmlChrisChristopher C

I am battling with this issue myself and would appreciate some advice on the best way to share staff vacation and flex time. I'd like to set up an easy method for all staff to see who is in the office. We are a fairly small organization of about 40 people. We use Exchange 2010 and Outlook 2010. Just moved from GroupWise. I am looking for information on best practices. My role is to help with application solutions for improving office efficiency. Currently one person has a set up a shared calendar to which staff are posting their flex days and vacation. I do not believe it is the best solution as that current owner of this shared calendar could leave. It also requires staff to update both their own calendar and this shared calendar. I tried to set up a Group Schedule view which would quickly show all staff but it doesn't seem to be available in Outlook 2010/exchange 2010. The new schedule view is nice but not very practical for a group of 50. It appears that team calendars is a feature with exchange and active directory but I can not find any information on how to get it working. Still digging on that one. I have been looking into setting up an all staff calendar in a public folder but we did not set up public folders with our exchange rollout with the understanding that public folders are not needed with Exchange 2010 and we are hesitant as Jon indicated they are being replaced with sharepoint. Now I'm wondering if we should be using Sharepoint but it seems like overkill for our basic needs. Are there any best practices out there for having a shared organizational vacation calendar.