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Customizing OWA 2007 language settings

With the continuation of the previous blogpost, today we’re going to see how we can use Microsoft Office Outlook Web Access or the Exchange Management Shell to configure language settings for Outlook Web Access in Microsoft Exchange Server 2007. Microsoft have provided various options to customize the OWA pages, contents/images/themes in a simpler way. As a part of that, we cam make sure that we can do the language setting for OWA, which determines the language of the Outlook Web Access logon page and error messages, and can be changed by the user at any time.

There are three language settings that you can configure for Outlook Web Access.

1. The logon and error language setting applies to individual Outlook Web Access virtual directories. The logon and error language is the language that will be used for errors and the forms-based authentication logon page. If a value is not set for this language, the default value is 0. This means that the default logon and error language is not defined. Note: If the logon and error language is not defined, Outlook Web Access will default first to the language set on Internet Explorer on the client computer. If the language set on Internet Explorer on the client computer is not supported by Outlook Web Access, Outlook Web Access will use the language of the Client Access server.
   
2. The default client language setting applies to individual Outlook Web Access virtual directories. The default client language is the client language that is used by Outlook Web Access unless the user uses Regional Settings in Outlook Web Access to change the language and time zone. The default value for this setting is 0. This means the default client language is not defined. If the default client language is not defined, users will be prompted to choose a language and time zone the first time that they log on to Outlook Web Access. If the default client language value is defined, users will not be prompted to choose a language and the Outlook Web Access time zone will use the time zone of the Client Access server. Note: Defining the default client language causes the default folders to be renamed based on the specified language. Users can change the client language and time zone by using Regional Settings in Outlook Web Access, and can rename the default folders after they log on.
   
3. The client languages are set on individual mailboxes and affect the language that is used in Outlook and Outlook Web Access. If multiple languages are configured, the first language in the list that is supported by the Web browser will be used. Note: If none of the languages in the default languages list is supported by the Web browser, the Client Access server language will be used.

Note:

• In order to modify the various attributes in OWA Virtual directory, you need to use Set-OwaVirtualDirectory cmdlet to modify the properties of Outlook Web Access virtual directories on a computer that is running Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 that has the Client Access server role installed.
  
• In order to modify the settings of an existing mailbox we need to use the Set-Mailbox cmdlet. You can use this cmdlet for one mailbox at a time.
  
• To perform bulk management, you can pipeline the output of various Get- cmdlets (for example, the Get-Mailbox or Get-User cmdlets) and configure several mailboxes in a single-line command. You can also use the Set-Mailbox cmdlet in scripts

How to do OWA Customization for…

How to use the Outlook Web Access client to configure language settings ?

1. Use a Web browser to access Outlook Web Access.

2. Click Options, and then click Regional Settings.

3. Under Language, in the Choose language list, click the language that you want to use.

   Note: The language that you select will determine the date and time settings in the Date and Time Formats section.

4. Click Save to save your language settings.

How to use the Exchange Management Shell to configure the logon and error language settings for Outlook Web Access ?

1. Run the following command to set the logon and error language setting:

   Set-OwaVirtualDirectory -identity "Owa (Default Web Site)" -LogonAndErrorLanguage <language code>

How to use the Exchange Management Shell to configure the default client language setting for an Outlook Web Access virtual directory ?

1. Run the following command to set the default client language setting:

   Set-OwaVirtualDirectory -identity "Owa (Default Web Site)" -DefaultClientLanguage <language code>

How to use the Exchange Management Shell to configure the client languages setting for an individual mailbox ?

1. Run the following command to set the client languages setting for an individual mailbox:

   Set-Mailbox -identity <mailbox identity> -languages <language code>