Configure Office 365 Exchange to use Email Signature Server

About this article

In this article we will be creating and configuring a mail flow rule and the connectors in the Exchange Online Admin Center. These will identify the e-mails that will redirected through the Templafy Email Signature Server cluster for processing.

• Step 1. Create the inbound connector
• Step 1a. Update the SPF record for all email sending domains
• Step 2. Create the Outbound connector
• Step 3. Create the mail flow rule

Prerequisites

Step 1. Create the inbound connector

• Go to https://admin.microsoft.com/ or go directly to https://admin.exchange.microsoft.com/

• Click Show all

  

• Click Exchange

  

• Click Mail flow and then Connectors

  

   

• Click [+ Add a connector]

• Choose Your organization's email server
• Click [Next]

  

• Enter a name for the connector: templafyemailsignatureserver-inbound

• Click [Next]

• Choose the By verifying that the IP address... option

• Add the public hostname/IP of the smarthost. The IP address can be retrieved in Kubernetes portal for the cluster created earlier in Configure a new Email Signature Server in kubernetes

• For Templafy-hosted solutions you will be provided the IP address of your dedicated Email Signature Server hosted by Templafy.

  Update the SPF record for all email sending domains   To ensure the Email Signature Server is identified as authorized to process mail for your domains it is important to add the Inbound Connector IP address to the DNS SPF record for each domain that may be sending emails through the Templafy Email Signature Server for processing. nslookup -type=txt <your primary domain> Below an example (SPF Record): v=spf1 ip4:<ess_inbound_connector_ip> -all

  • Click the [+] sign

  

• Click [Next]
• Click [Create connector]

Step 2. Create the Outbound connector

• Click [+ Add a connector]

• Choose Office 365
• Click [Next]

  

• Enter a name for the connector: templafyemailsignatureserver-outbound
• Click [Next]

  

• Choose Only when I have a transport rule set up that redirects messages to this connector

• Click [Next]

  

• Specify the smart host (public hostname/IP with port forwarding on port 25 to the docker service)

• Click the the [+] sign

• Click [Next]

  

• Select Any digital certificate, including self-signed certificates

• Click [Next]

  

• Validate the connector

• Provide an email address from outside of the domain.

• Click [+]

• Click [Validate]

  

• There will be a three step validation progress bar. This will take a few moments to complete.

• Click [Save]  

  Note: If the second part of the test failed, then please check if other connectors are already configured, if yes, then make sure that those are not the ones used for executing the send test for your new connector. This can be done by adding an Exception rule for the built-in user O365ConnectorValidation@<current domain> to the other connector's mail flow rule.

   

Step 3. Create the mail flow rule

• Go to Rules
• Create a new rule specifying a group of users that should have email signatures attached to their emails from Templafy Email Signature Server.
  • Click [+] Create a new rule...
  • Name: templafy email signatures
  • Apply this rule if...
    • Select The sender... -> is external/internal Inside the organization

    Test users setup: Additionally, you can add the condition "Sender is a member of..." and use a Distribution Group, or Mail Enabled Security Group, of users.

    • Click [Save]
  • Do the following...
    • Select Redirect the message to... -> the following connector Connector: templafyemailsignatureserver-outbound
    • Click [Save]
  • Except if...
    1. Add 1st Exception
       
       • Select The message headers... -> includes any of these words
       • Click Enter text...
         specify header name: Templafy-EmailSignatureServer-Processed
         Click [Save]
       • Click Enter words... specify words or phrases: true
         Click [Add]
         Click [Save]
    2. Add 2nd Exception 
       • Select The message headers... -> matches these text patterns
       • Click Enter text... specify header name: x-processedbytemplafyor x-unsupportedformatbytemplafy

         Use the header x-processedbytemplafy if you prefer the emails already processed by Templafy via the Outlook VSTO Plugin on PC or via the Templafy Outlook Web Add-in in to skip the Email Signature Server Use the header x-unsupportedformatbytemplafy if you prefer all the traffic will go to Templafy Email signature for a sanity check (in case the signature was removed by the end users while the add-ins are in use in their sending application) except the non-supported format items (meeting invites and vote feature in Outlook Application for PC)

       • Click [Save]
       • Click Enter words... specify words or phrases: true
         Click [Add]
         Click [Save]
    3. Add 3rd Exception
       
       • Select The message properties... -> Include the message type
       • Select Permission controlled from the dropdown list
       • Click [Save]
       • Click [Next]
       • Select the option for Stop processing more rules

         The rest of the rules you might have will be applied when the email is sent back from the Templafy solution to Exchange.

       • Click [Next]
       • Click [Finish]
• Select the newly created rule verify the rule is enabled. To raise the priority of the rule, click Move Up to place it at the top of the list or click the Edit icon and set the Priority textbox to 0

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