Domino and Exchange repeating calendar entries

HCL Domino Domino Forum
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Here is the situation we are seeing. My company uses Domino 8.5.1. Our clients use Notes 6.5.x and 7.0.2. The template we use is based in R6. We have a business partner and they use Exchange 2003 and Outlook 2007.

The issue we are seeing is when we send them repeat calendar entries, or they send us repeat entries, it typically works. However, if they (or we) make a change to the repeat series then it will disappear of our calendar.

So, for example, I will send a meeting (from Notes) for each Friday for the next 5 weeks. This goes to Outlook and is fine. Then I change one meeting to Monday (leaving the other 4). The person in Outlook gets a meeting update and accepts. Then bad things happen, like the entry disappears from Outlook entirely. The reverse is also true where the meeting will disappear from Notes.

In researching I have found lots of people reporting this incompatibility. There is a difference in the way Outlook/Exchange and Notes/Domino handle the iCal spec that causes the issues. What I need to know is can we fix the situation given our configuration. I know there is a way, using calendar compatibility mode in Notes 8.5.1, to avoid the issue. But we don’t use Notes 8.5.1. I need a solution, using Domino 8.5.1, or some other Lotus add-on to help translate the invites between Domino and Exchange.

Any lead or help will be greatly appreciated.

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Subject: Outlook doesn’t do custom repeating meetings

When you reschedule one occurrence of a repeating meeting that does not “fit” a standard pattern, Outlook doesn’t know what to do with it. We have had a ton of problems with this, since folks in our organization love interesting patterns that Outlook simply cannot handle (like the first Tuesday after the 15th of the month…)

My suggestion would be to take the limitation into account: cancel that one occurrence and set the “oddball” as a separate meeting of the same name and membership. I know it’s a pain, but even Outlook 2010 is remarkably rudimentary when it comes to calendaring.