How to add signatures to emails sent from shared mailboxes

With CodeTwo, you can set up two kinds of signatures for emails sent using shared mailboxes:

• Personal signatures with the sender’s details (name, job title, phone number, etc.) pulled from Entra ID (Azure AD).
• Shared mailbox signatures including information from a shared mailbox’s own Entra ID profile.

Watch the quick video below to see how you can use CodeTwo signatures with shared mailboxes or read on for setup instructions.

Depending on your needs, you can either allow users to choose between personal and shared mailbox signatures or configure CodeTwo to apply a single signature type to all emails sent using shared mailboxes. Select one of the options below to continue:

• Let your users switch between personal and shared mailbox signatures (Outlook signatures only)
• Always add personal signatures
• Always add shared mailbox signatures

How to let users choose between personal and shared mailbox signatures (Outlook signatures only)

In this scenario, the CodeTwo add-in automatically inserts a shared mailbox’s signature into emails sent as or on behalf of that mailbox, but users can change this behavior and make the add-in use their personal signatures instead, as shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 1. Sending an email from a shared mailbox – you can switch between shared mailbox signatures and personal ones.

Prerequisites:

• Delegate permissions for the shared mailbox (either Send as or Send on behalf) must be granted to the sender.
• The advanced setting Change CodeTwo Outlook (client-side) signatures to match the email address in the From field must be enabled for the add-in in CodeTwo Admin Panel, as shown in Fig. 2.

See this article to learn more about the prerequisites

Fig. 2. Enable this option to let users choose between personal and shared mailbox signatures after selecting a shared mailbox in the email’s From field.

First, let’s create a new rule that will automatically add a shared mailbox’s signature when you select that mailbox in the From field in Outlook. Go to app.codetwo.com and create a new Outlook (client-side) signature rule. For detailed steps, check out this article.

Next, go to the Senders step (Fig. 3.). Click Add > Selected senders under the top list and find your shared mailbox in the picker that opens. Select it and confirm by clicking OK.

Fig. 3. A shared mailbox added to the Senders condition of your Outlook (client-side) signature rule.

Go to the Logic step and select the options shown in Fig. 4. to make sure your signature is added automatically when changing the email address in the From field in Outlook.

Fig. 4. Ensure these options are selected so that the shared mailbox signature is added automatically.

Go to the Design step and create a signature template that will be added to emails sent from your shared mailbox. See this quick guide for step-by-step instructions

Finally, save your changes to the signature template and close the editor. Then, click Save & Publish in the rule creation wizard to go live with your new email signature.

End users will see your changes within up to 15 minutes, but they can also get the new signature faster by manually updating the CodeTwo add-in’s cache. Learn more

Now, while composing an email in Outlook, if you select a shared mailbox address instead of your personal one in the From field, the signature will auto-update, as shown in Fig. 5.

Fig. 5. Sending an email from a shared mailbox – CodeTwo Outlook signature updates automatically.

However, you can still switch back to your personal signature. To do this, select the Use my signature option under If sending from alternative “From” address. This option becomes available in the add-in pane after you specify the shared mailbox address in the From field (Fig. 6).

Fig. 6. Using these options in the add-in pane, you can switch between personal and shared mailbox signatures.

The CodeTwo add-in remembers this setting for each user (Outlook account), so you can choose the signature type once and use it for all your emails sent as or on behalf of shared mailboxes. If a single shared mailbox is used by multiple users, they can independently choose which signature they want to be added by CodeTwo if they specify the mailbox’s address in the From field.

How to add a personal signature to emails sent from shared mailboxes

There are a few ways to set up personal signatures for users who send emails from shared mailboxes. Choose the option that best fits your needs and the signature type you’re using:

Outlook (client-side) signatures:

• Use one of your existing personal signatures
• Create a shared mailbox signature with the sender’s personal details

Cloud (server-side) signatures:

• Use one of your existing personal signatures
• Create a shared mailbox signature with the sender’s personal details
• Combine a native Outlook signature with a cloud signature added by CodeTwo

Use one of your existing personal signatures when sending emails from a shared mailbox (Outlook signatures only)

Prerequisites:

• Delegate permissions for the shared mailbox (either Send as or Send on behalf) must be granted to the sender.
• The advanced setting Change CodeTwo Outlook (client-side) signatures to match the email address in the From field must be disabled for the add-in in CodeTwo Admin Panel, as shown in Fig. 7.

See this article to learn more about the prerequisites

Fig. 7. To keep your personal signatures in emails sent from shared mailboxes, disable this option.

Now, while composing an email in Outlook, if you select a shared mailbox address instead of your personal one in the From field, your personal signature will remain in the email (Fig. 8.).

Fig. 8. You get your personal signature automatically when sending an email as or on behalf of a shared mailbox.

Create a shared mailbox signature with the sender’s personal details (Outlook signatures only)

Prerequisites:

• Delegate permissions for the shared mailbox (either Send as or Send on behalf) must be granted to the sender.
• The advanced setting Change CodeTwo Outlook (client-side) signatures to match the email address in the From field must be disabled for the add-in in CodeTwo Admin Panel, as shown in Fig. 7.

See this article to learn more about the prerequisites

Now, you need to create an email signature for the shared mailbox in CodeTwo Email Signatures 365. To do this, go to app.codetwo.com and create a new Outlook (client-side) signature rule. For detailed steps, check out this article.

In the Senders step, select who will send emails from the shared mailbox with this signature. You can either specify individual users or select a group whose members will get the signature, as shown in Fig. 9.

Fig. 9. Select the users for whom you want to set up a separate signature.

Go to the Logic step and unselect (clear) the Set this signature as default for new messages and Set this signature as default for replies and forwards options, as shown in Fig. 10. This ensures the signature you’re setting up isn’t automatically added to emails sent from a regular (user) mailbox.

Fig. 10. Leave these options unselected.

In the Design step, create a signature template that you want to use with shared mailboxes (see this quick guide for step-by-step instructions). Make sure your shared mailbox signature contains both:

• The sender’s personal details (e.g., first and last name, job title, etc., as shown in Fig. 11.). This information is fetched from Entra ID (Azure AD) using placeholders.
• Fixed (non-changing) shared mailbox contact info (e.g., shared phone numbers and email address, as shown in Fig. 11.).

Fig. 11. Example of a shared mailbox signature (with the user’s personal data and shared contact info).

Save your changes to the signature template and close the editor. Then, click Save & Publish to go live with your signature rule.

Now, when end users create an email in Outlook and select or enter a shared mailbox address in the From field, they can manually add the signature designed for the shared mailbox from the add-in pane, as shown in Fig. 12.

Fig. 12. Inserting the signature designed for a shared mailbox.

Use one of your existing personal signatures when sending emails on behalf of a shared mailbox (cloud signatures only)

You can allow your users to send emails on behalf of a shared mailbox and sign them with their personal signatures.

Prerequisites:

• The Send on behalf delegate permission for the shared mailbox must be granted to the sender.
• The shared mailbox must be included in CodeTwo’s scope of licensed users and the scope of senders whose emails are routed through CodeTwo.
• (Optional) Message copying to the Sent Items folder of the shared mailbox must be enabled if you want to use the Sent Items Update feature.

See this article to learn more about the prerequisites

Now, if you select a shared mailbox address instead of your personal one in the From field, your personal signature will be automatically added to the email by the CodeTwo service after the email is sent (Fig. 13.).

Fig. 13. A personal signature inserted into an email sent on behalf of a shared mailbox.

Create a shared mailbox signature with the sender’s personal details (cloud signatures only)

You can allow your users to send emails on behalf of a shared mailbox and automatically add a signature designed for that shared mailbox that also includes the sender’s personal details, such as full name or job title.

Prerequisites:

• The Send on behalf delegate permission for the shared mailbox must be granted to the sender.
• The shared mailbox must be included in CodeTwo’s scope of licensed users and the scope of senders whose emails are routed through CodeTwo.
• (Optional) Message copying to the Sent Items folder of the shared mailbox must be enabled if you want to use the Sent Items Update feature.

First, you need to create an email signature for the shared mailbox in CodeTwo Email Signatures 365. To do this, go to app.codetwo.com and create a new cloud (server-side) signature rule. For detailed steps, check out this article.

In the Senders step, click Add (in the top section) and select the Email addresses option. Next, enter the email address of the shared mailbox (Fig. 14.) and click OK.

Fig. 14. Adding a shared mailbox’s email address in the Senders step.

Configure other rule conditions and options until you reach the Design step. Now, create a signature template that you want to use with shared mailboxes (see this quick guide for step-by-step instructions). Make sure your shared mailbox signature contains both:

• The sender's personal details (e.g., first and last name, job title, etc., as shown in Fig. 15.). This information is fetched from Entra ID (Azure AD) using placeholders.
• Fixed (non-changing) shared mailbox contact info (e.g., shared phone numbers and email address, as shown in Fig. 15.). If you want to fetch the mailbox’s name and email address from Entra ID, you can also use the Display name (e-mail’s From field) and E-mail (e-mail’s From field) placeholders.

Fig. 15. Example of a shared mailbox signature (with the user's personal data and shared contact info).

Save your changes to the signature template and close the editor. Then, click Save & Publish to go live with your signature rule.

Finally, drag and drop the new rule (or use Move up) to place it at the top of your cloud (server-side) signatures list (Fig. 16.). This is very important because cloud rules are applied in the order in which they are listed, from top to bottom. If you have more general rules in place (likely configured for personal email addresses), these rules will also apply to emails sent on behalf of shared mailboxes, potentially resulting in the wrong signature being added.

Fig. 16. Make sure the rule for your shared mailbox address is placed at the top of the cloud (server-side) signatures list.

Now, emails sent by delegated users on behalf of the shared mailbox will be stamped with the shared mailbox’s signature populated with the sender’s personal details (Fig. 17.).

Fig. 17. Cloud (server-side) signature designed for a shared mailbox and including the actual sender’s full name and title.

Combine a native Outlook signature with a cloud signature added by CodeTwo (cloud signatures only)

You can use a combination of a native Outlook personal signature and a CodeTwo cloud (server-side) signature. In this case, the Outlook signature would contain only the sender’s personal details, while the automatic CodeTwo cloud signature would include the remaining elements, like the company logo, marketing banner and general contact details, as shown in Fig. 18.

Fig. 18. A personal signature added on top of a shared mailbox signature.

Prerequisites:

• The Send as delegate permission for the shared mailbox must be granted to the sender.
• The shared mailbox must be included in CodeTwo’s scope of licensed users and the scope of senders whose emails are routed through CodeTwo.
• (Optional) Message copying to the Sent Items folder of the shared mailbox must be enabled if you want to use the Sent Items Update feature.

See this article to learn more about the prerequisites

1. Set up a personal email signature in an email app

Users can create their own simple signatures in Outlook, e.g., by following the steps in this article.

Once set up, the personal signature can be added to emails automatically or manually by the user. For example, a signed reply from a shared mailbox in Outlook will look like the one in Fig. 19. below.

Fig. 19. A personal email signature added to a message sent from a shared mailbox.

2. Set up an email signature template for a shared mailbox in CodeTwo

Now, create an email signature for the shared mailbox in CodeTwo Email Signatures 365. To do this, go to app.codetwo.com and create a new cloud (server-side) signature rule. For detailed steps, check out this article.

In the Senders step (Fig. 20.), click Add > Selected senders under the top list and find your shared mailbox (e.g. [email protected]) in the picker that opens. Select it and confirm by clicking OK.

Fig. 20. Selecting a shared mailbox as a sender.

Configure the remaining rule conditions and options, and prepare a signature template that suits your needs.

When your signature rule and template are ready, click Save & Publish to go live with the new signature.

Now, if a delegated user sends an email with the shared mailbox’s address in the From field, CodeTwo will add the signature set for this mailbox below the personal signature inserted in the email app (as shown in Fig. 18. before).

How to set up a shared mailbox signature

There are two ways to set up an email signature for a shared mailbox. Choose the option that fits the signature mode you’re using:

Outlook (client-side) signatures:

• Create an Outlook signature for a shared mailbox

Create a signature for a shared mailbox (Outlook signatures only)

CodeTwo allows you to create and add dedicated Outlook signatures for emails sent from shared mailboxes, as described in this section.

Note that this solution will let your users switch to their personal signatures after selecting a shared mailbox in the From field. To always add the signatures designed for that shared mailbox, you can ask users to:

• convert the shared mailbox to a full account in the new Outlook for Windows and access it using that account (it requires the Full Access permissions for the shared mailbox), or
• access the shared mailbox using the Open another mailbox option in Outlook on the web (it requires the Full Access permissions for the shared mailbox), as shown in Fig. 21.

Fig. 21. Using the Open another mailbox option in Outlook on the web allows delegated users to access a shared mailbox.

Create a signature for emails sent as a shared mailbox (cloud signatures only)

Prerequisites:

• The Send as delegate permission for the shared mailbox must be granted to the sender.
• The shared mailbox must be included in CodeTwo’s scope of licensed users and the scope of senders whose emails are routed through CodeTwo.
• (Optional) Message copying to the Sent Items folder of the shared mailbox must be enabled if you want to use the Sent Items Update feature.

See this article to learn more about the prerequisites

First, create a signature rule that will add an email signature to messages sent from a shared mailbox. To do this, go to app.codetwo.com, create a new cloud (server-side) signature rule. For detailed steps, check out this article.

Next, go to the Senders step (Fig. 22.). Click Add > Selected senders under the top list and find your shared mailbox (e.g., [email protected]) in the picker that opens. Select it and confirm by clicking OK.

Fig. 22. Selecting a shared mailbox as a sender.

Configure the other rule conditions and options, and prepare a signature template that suits your needs.

When your signature rule and template are ready, click Save & Publish to go live with the new signature.

If a user sends an email as the shared mailbox specified in the new rule, CodeTwo will add a signature created for this mailbox (Fig. 23.).

Fig. 23. An email sent as a shared mailbox with a cloud signature added by CodeTwo.

See next

How to preview cloud (server-side) signatures (including shared mailbox signatures)