When you first connect to Mimecast, we do not know who you regularly communicate with. The result is that all external senders are treated as unknown, which can potentially slow down your inbound email processing and affect message acceptance.

To avoid this, you can let us know in advance who you regularly communicate with, by using the Contacts Export Wizard. The wizard gathers the email addresses of people you communicate with, and adds them to a file that can be imported into Mimecast via the:

• Administration Console
• Connect Application. See the Connect Application: Importing Permitted Senders  page for further assistance.

Once imported, the email addresses are added to your Managed Senders list. This list allows messages from your managed senders to bypass scanning for spam, whilst applying strict screening to all inbound email from unknown external senders.

What You'll Need

• .NET Framework version 4 installed on a Windows PC or server.
• The Contacts Export Wizard application (see below).
• An account with Application Impersonation.
• For an On-Premises Exchange installation, a publicly published EWS endpoint (Exchange 2007 SP1 and later).

Downloading the Contacts Export Wizard

To download the Contacts Export Wizard:

1. Open the Applications Downloads page in your browser.
2. Scroll down to the Tools section.
3. Click on the Download button against the Contacts Export Wizard section.
4. Specify a download location.
5. Click on the Save button. A zipped file is downloaded.
6. Extract the .ZIP file to a location on your Windows PC or server.

Using the Contacts Export Wizard

Logging In

To log in to the Contacts Export Wizard:

1. Run the Contacts Export Wizard application. 
   
   If you have run the Contacts Export Wizard before, proceed to step 5. Steps 2 to 4 are only required the first time you use the Contacts Export Wizard.
2. Read the License Agreement.
3. Once read, click on the I Accept the Terms in the License Agreement option.
4. Click on the Confirm button. The Welcome dialog is displayed.
5. Click the Next button.
6. Complete the Log In to Your Exchange Server or Office 365 Account dialog as follows:
   

   Field / Option	Description
   Email Address or Domain \ Username	Enter the primary email address of an account that holds Application Impersonation permissions, for the users / mailboxes that you want to run the Contacts Export Wizard against. Depending on your configuration, you may have to enter your domain before your user name (e.g. domain\username).
   Password	Enter the primary email address account's password.
   Use Auto-Discovery	Select this option if auto discovery has been configured on your Office 365/Exchange, to automatically identify the hostname. Your domain must have a valid CNAME DNS record setup for auto discovery.
   EWS Server Hostname	Specify the hostname of your publicly published Client Access Server (CAS). This option is only available if the "Use Auto Discovery" option is not selected.

7. Click on the Log In button to authenticate your credentials. If authentication was successful, confirmation of the email account being used is displayed.
   
8. Click on the Next button.

Adding Mailboxes / Distribution List to Export

To add mailboxes and / or distribution lists to export:

1. Click on the  icon. A search dialog is displayed.
2. Select the mailboxs / distribution lists you want to export:
   1. Click in the search box at the top of the search dialog.
   2. Enter a mailbox / distribution list name.
      
      A search is performed as you type, with results displayed below the search field. User mailboxes have an  icon, whilst distribution lists have an  icon.
   3. Select the mailbox / distribution list to be added to the file. Multiple results can be selected.
   4. Click on the OK button.
      
3. Add further mailboxes / distribution lists to export, or remove some already added as required.
   
4. Click on the Next button.

Configuring the Search Criteria

To configure the search criteria:

1. Complete the Search Criteria dialog as follows:
   

   Field / Option	Description
   Contacts	Select this to search the contacts of the selected mailbox or distribution list members.
   Inbox	Select this to search the Inbox of the selected mailbox or distribution list. Select how far the search should go back, by selecting either 15, 30, 60 or 90 days. The higher the number, the more addresses will be found. The Inbox might hold unwanted email addresses (e.g. the user has received spam or graymail in the past).
   Sent Items	Select this to search the Sent Items folder of the selected mailbox or distribution list. Select how far the search should go back, by selecting either 15, 30, 60 or 90 days. The higher the number, the more addresses will be found.

2. Click on the Next button.

Specifying an Export Destination

To specify a destination for the export file:

1. Complete the Select Export Destination dialog as follows:
   

   Field / Option	Description
   Directory	Click the  icon to select a directory into which the export file will be placed.
   Filename	Displays the export file name with the file extension derived from the "Select Export Format" field value. The file name cannot be changed, but you can rename the file once ithas been exported.
   Select Export Format	Select a file format for the export file. The available values are: File Format Description Connect Managed Senders (csv) This creates a .CSV file that can be imported via the Connect application. Administration Console Managed Senders (xls) This creates a .XLS file that can be imported via the Administration Console. External addresses only (txt) This creates a .TXT file to hold the external addresses. The list can’t be imported into your Mimecast service. Alternatively, a user can paste the file's content into their personal allow list using the Mimecast Personal Portal.

    

2. Click on the Export button.

The Export Process

As the export process starts, a progress indicator is displayed.

When the export has completed, and the export file has been successfully created, a summary is displayed:

1. Click on the Close button to exit the wizard.

See Also...

• Contacts Export Wizard Configuration File