# Outlook question from a non-Outlook user

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 7, 2002, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782 "2002-08-07T14:32:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 11\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/1 "2002-08-07T14:32:06Z")

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I use Eudora and if I want to see the full headers of an email I received, I click a button (usefully labeled “blah blah” :)) and it shows me something like this:

> [@](#):
>
> Status: U  
> Return-Path: \<[Firstname.Lastname@COMPANY.com](mailto:Firstname.Lastname@COMPANY.com)\>  
> Received: from [nyex02.company.com](http://nyex02.company.com) ([000.39.1.98])  
> by penguin (EarthLink SMTP Server) with ESMTP id 17Cg706wf3NZFl40  
> for \<[ahunter3@myisp.net](mailto:ahunter3@myisp.net)\>; Tue, 6 Aug 2002 18:59:46 -0700 (PDT)  
> Received: by [nyex02.company.com](http://nyex02.company.com) with Internet Mail Service (5.5.2653.19)  
> id \<Q1G50ALF\>; Tue, 6 Aug 2002 21:59:45 -0400  
> Message-ID: \<7C91FA4802286B4CA35B944154DAA7DB01C3E553@nyex03\>  
> From: Firstname Lastname \<[Firstname.Lastname@COMPANY.com](mailto:Firstname.Lastname@COMPANY.com)\>  
> To: “‘ahunter3’” \<[ahunter3@myisp.net](mailto:ahunter3@myisp.net)\>  
> Subject: RE: Exit Ticket button MIA?  
> Date: Tue, 6 Aug 2002 21:57:02 -0400  
> Return-Receipt-To: Firstname Lastname \<[Firstname.Lastname@COMPANY.com](mailto:Firstname.Lastname@COMPANY.com)\>  
> MIME-Version: 1.0  
> X-Mailer: Internet Mail Service (5.5.2653.19)  
> Content-Type: text/plain

So I get a tech support call from an Outlook user and (skipping irrelevant bits of story) I direct her to look at the full email headers and examine the received path of the message and she says she doesn’t see it. After unsuccessful continuations over the phone, I drop by and discover this about Outlook–there is a View menu with a menu item “Full Headers” which I thought would be exactly what I was looking for. But…

**Headers as they appear without “full headers” checked:**

From: Firstname Lastname \<[Firstname.Lastname@COMPANY.com](mailto:Firstname.Lastname@COMPANY.com)\>  
Subject: RE: Exit Ticket button MIA?

**Headers as they appear _with_ “full headers” checked**

From: Firstname Lastname \<[Firstname.Lastname@COMPANY.com](mailto:Firstname.Lastname@COMPANY.com)\>  
Sent: Wednesday, August 7, 2002 9:42 AM  
To: “‘ahunter3’” \<[ahunter3@myisp.net](mailto:ahunter3@myisp.net)\>  
Subject: RE: Exit Ticket button MIA?

:rolleyes: :smack:

C’mon, how the heck to you get Outlook to show the REAL full headers, the whole ugly routing and forwarding and server identifier strings and IP addresses and whatnot?

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**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/2 "2002-08-07T14:34:29Z")

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I do it by dragging the message out onto the desktop and then opening it in Notepad; crude, but it works.

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**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/3 "2002-08-07T14:52:42Z")

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If you actually mean Outlook (and not Outlook Express), the headers can be found under “View” and “Options.” There is a field labelled “Internet Headers” that contains the header information. (This is for Outlook 2000, BTW, but it should be similar for other versions).

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**Author:** ![milquetoast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@milquetoast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/milquetoast)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/4 "2002-08-07T14:55:43Z")

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You can also select **View \> Options…**. The resluting Message Options dialog box contains an _Internet Headers_ field which contains all the ugly truth for which you are searching.

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**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/5 "2002-08-07T14:57:00Z")

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If it’s Outlook Express, all you have to do is right-click the message and look under properties. The second tab will have all the information you want. If you want the source, click on the “message source” button.

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**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/6 "2002-08-07T16:42:00Z")

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It’s Outlook (Exchange Server Edition), not Express. Hold on, I’ll look.

::Timbuktu’s into machines that have Outlook::

On the Macintoshes, they’re running version 8.2.1 and there is no **Options** menu item under **View**.

The PCs are using “Outlook 98” and the **View** menu contains nothing but **Previous, Next,** and **Toolbars** , each with hierarchical submenu items but none of which seem relevant.

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**Author:** ![rsa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@rsa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsa)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/7 "2002-08-07T17:34:21Z")

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Try what **slortar** suggested for Outlook Express, that may still work with Outlook. Note that when he says to right click the message, he means to right click the message when it is highlighted in the folder list. Or from the open message click File / Properties.

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**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/8 "2002-08-07T22:54:15Z")

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On the PC, right-clicking the message from the folder list:  
Menu choices= Open, Print | Reply, Reply to All, Forward | View Attachments | Categories…, Flag for Followup…, Mark as Unread | Find All | Delete, Move to Folder | Junk e-mail

(pipes equal dividers in the menu). No “Internet Headers”. No “Properties”. There **is** a “Properties” menu item in the File menu once you open the email, but it gives you Type (Message plain text) , Location, Size (KB), Sent (date), Received (date), and Modified (date) – not the headers.

On the Mac, same results. (Control-clicking rather than right-clicking but otherwise identical).

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2002, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/9 "2002-08-07T23:12:35Z")

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AHunter3: are you looking at the menus available in the window of the opened message? (they are different to the menus available in the inbox view).

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2002, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/10 "2002-08-09T15:22:50Z")

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The above were menus available from the “Inbox” view (i.e., not from within the opened messages), with the exception of the “Properties” menu item referenced in the second paragraph.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\
**Post date:** [August 9, 2002, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/outlook-question-from-a-non-outlook-user/122782/11 "2002-08-09T16:02:00Z")

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1. You need to have the message open for this to work. Click “View” on the message window.

2. If “Options” doesn’t show, it may be hidden. Click on the double down arrows at the bottom of the menu.