Outlook Web Access

Set Reminder Polling Interval

Outlook Web Access users using Internet Explorer 5 or later can set reminders on items in their Calendar folder. This includes Calendar items created in Outlook as well as in Outlook Web Access. By default, Outlook Web Access will initially download 24 hours worth of reminder information from the Exchange server, and thereafter poll the Exchange server every 15 minutes to see if reminders have changed. However, users can change this polling interval on the Options page.

By adding the following registry key, administrators can override user settings to keep network traffic in check and to conserve server resources. If this registry key is set at 20 minutes, and a user specifies 15 minutes, the polling interval will be every 20 minutes.

Warning    Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it, and you should also update your Emergency Repair Disk (ERD).

To set the polling interval for reminders:

  1. On the Start menu, click Run, type Regedt32.exe, and then click OK.
  2. In Registry Editor, under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE on Local Machine, go to SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\MSExchangeWEB\OWA.
  3. On the Edit menu, select Add Value.
  4. In Add Value, type ReminderPollingInterval as the value name, select REG_DWORD as the data type, and then click OK.
  5. In DWORD Editor, in the Data field, type the number of minutes you want the polling interval to be.