Nexus calendaring using iCal on Snow Leopard

1. Configuring iCal to connect to Nexus

If you have already configured Mail or Address Book to use Nexus the chances are that your iCal application has already been set up for you to use with Nexus. That is because when you add an Exchange account to Mail or Address Book the default behaviour is to also set up the other components that make up the suite of programs that can be used with Exchange at the same time. However, if you need to configure iCal to connect to Nexus manually follow the instructions below.

To configure iCal to connect to Nexus, open the programme, either from the dock or by finding it in the Applications folder. If this is the first time you have opened iCal, the Setup Assistant will start automatically.

Otherwise, you can add a new accounts by clicking on the [Preferences] from the iCal menu, and then clicking the Accounts button on the Accounts window that appears.

Adding a new account to iCal

Click the + at the bottom of the screen to start the process of adding a new account. You will then be taken to a screen that is identical to the initial setup assistant. You need to select [Exchange 2007] from the Account type drop down menu. The screen then prompts you for your Full Name, Email address and Password. The Password you need to enter here is your Single Sign-On password.

First screen to add an account prompting for name, email address, and password after selecting Exchange 2007 account

Once you have entered your details, click Create.

Once you have supplied this information iCal will be able to find all the details it needs from the Nexus AutoDiscovery server and the next screen you should see will be an Account Summary screen that confirms the account details.

Account Summary screen listing account details

When you click Create, the account will be created on your Mac and you will be returned to the Accounts screen where the details of the newly created account are displayed.

Account screen showing details of newly created account

You can now simply close this window using the red button in the top left window corner. The new account now appears in the left hand pane of iCal showing Calendar and Tasks.

Main iCal window showing new Nexus account

You are now ready to use the Nexus calendaring with iCal. Snow Leopard's inbuilt support for Exchange means that you can also use Mail for your Nexus email and Address Book for your Nexus contacts.

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