Mail Essentials

Create
Reply
Send
Manage
Mail Essentials
Create, reply to, send, and manage mail in Aconex.
Get started with Mail
• Viewing Mail
• Mail Statuses

Who can see my mail and documents?

• When you upload a document into Aconex
• Nobody outside your organization can see your document until you transmit it
• Who can see my mail?
• If you need to send a mail with sensitive information

Create and send mail

• Creating mail

Add recipients to mail

• Finding and adding mail recipients
• Help! The recipients can't be found

Attach files or documents to mail

• Should I use a transmittal instead?
• Attach a document or image
• Attach a document from your organization's document register
• Attach a project mail
• Attach files from your computer

Reply to or forward mail

Send a draft mail
• Finding draft mail

Options in mail
Send confidential mail
The difference between documents, transmittals, and mail
• Documents
• Transmittals
• Mail
• Creating documents, transmittals, and mail
Manage Mail
Create a mail signature
• Set this signature as a default

Mark mail as read

Mark mail as unread
Mark sent mail as your response
• Required User Role Permissions
• Mark your response

Close-out sent mail

Create a mail template (auto-text)
• Who can create an auto-text template?

Set a default template (auto-text) for a mail type

• Set default auto-text
• How to enable the edit button
Contents
Get started with Mail ..................................................................................................................................... 1
Viewing Mail ................................................................................................................................................................ 1
Viewing mail sent to you ............................................................................................................................................. 1
Tip!................................................................................................................................................................................ 1
Viewing the mail recipients list .................................................................................................................................. 1
Tracking responses to your mail ................................................................................................................................ 2
Mail Statuses ................................................................................................................................................................ 2
Who can see my mail and documents? ...................................................................................................... 3
When you upload a document into Aconex ............................................................................................................... 3
Nobody outside your organization can see your document until you transmit it .................................................. 3
If you have a document with sensitive information.................................................................................................. 3
Who can see my mail? ................................................................................................................................................. 3
If you need to send a mail with sensitive information.............................................................................................. 3
Create and send mail ..................................................................................................................................... 4
Creating mail ................................................................................................................................................................ 4
Tip!................................................................................................................................................................................ 4
Tip!................................................................................................................................................................................ 6
Tip!................................................................................................................................................................................ 6
Tip!................................................................................................................................................................................ 7
Tip! ................................................................................................................................................................................ 7
Add recipients to mail ................................................................................................................................... 8
Finding and adding mail recipients............................................................................................................................ 8
Tip!................................................................................................................................................................................ 9
Help! The recipients can't be found ......................................................................................................................... 10
Attach files or documents to mail ............................................................................................................. 11
Should I use a transmittal instead? .......................................................................................................................... 11
Attach a document or image ..................................................................................................................................... 11
Attach a document from your organization's document register .......................................................................... 11
Attach a project mail ................................................................................................................................................. 11
Attach files from your computer .............................................................................................................................. 12
Reply to or forward mail ............................................................................................................................. 13
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 14
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 14
Send a draft mail .......................................................................................................................................... 15
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 15
Finding draft mail ...................................................................................................................................................... 15
Editing draft mail ....................................................................................................................................................... 16
Deleting draft mail ..................................................................................................................................................... 16
Options in mail ............................................................................................................................................. 17
Send confidential mail ................................................................................................................................ 18
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 18
The difference between documents, transmittals, and mail ............................................................... 19
Documents ................................................................................................................................................................. 19
Transmittals ............................................................................................................................................................... 19
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 19
Mail ............................................................................................................................................................................. 19
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 20
Creating documents, transmittals, and mail............................................................................................................ 20
Create a Mail signature ............................................................................................................................... 21
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 21
Set this signature as a default ................................................................................................................................... 22
Mark mail as read......................................................................................................................................... 23
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 23
Mark mail as unread .................................................................................................................................... 23
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 23
Mark sent mail as your response .............................................................................................................. 24
Required User Role Permissions .............................................................................................................................. 24
Mark your response .................................................................................................................................................. 24
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 24
Close-out sent mail ...................................................................................................................................... 25
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 25
Closing out mail from the thread view................................................................................................................. 26
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 26
Create a mail template (auto-text)............................................................................................................ 27
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 27
Who can create an auto-text template? ................................................................................................................... 27
Create an auto-text template .................................................................................................................................... 27
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 28
Set a default template (auto-text) for a mail type.................................................................................. 30
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 30
Set default auto-text .................................................................................................................................................. 30
Tip!.............................................................................................................................................................................. 31
How to enable the edit button .................................................................................................................................. 32
 Mati Ullah Khan
Get started with Mail
Learn more about how mail in Aconex works.

Play Video

Aconex mail isn't like regular email.

• When Mail has been sent, it cannot be edited, recalled, or lost.

• All Mail is securely retained and tracked in the un-alterable project record, giving you a full history
of changes and decisions.
• There is a maximum size of 4MB for each mail, this excludes attachments.
• There are no limits on the size of mail attachments, either individually or in total.
• Each mail is identified by a unique number which makes mail tracking and reporting easy.

Viewing Mail
1. Log in to Aconex
2. Double click the Mail module in the toolbar, or select Mail/Inbox.
By default, you can see all the mail for your organization except those marked as confidential.

Viewing mail sent to you

Select Show my mail only. You can then refine the results using the Search field.

Tip!
Why can you see everyone's mail? Find out who can see your mail and documents in Aconex.

Viewing the mail recipients list

Click on the symbol beside to to see the names of all people who received the mail.

1|Page
 Mati Ullah Khan

Tracking responses to your mail

Whenever someone responds to, or forwards mail, this is added to the mail thread, which you can use track
your mail's progress. You can see an example of a mail thread in the following graphic. Note that the
responses shown are not sequential, they are under the related mail. In this example Patrick O'Leary
responded to Barney Baynes, not to Camilla Etherton . The three round icons shown in Patrick O'Leary’s
response show the following:

• how many orgs are involved

• how many recipients there are
• how many attachments there are.

Mail Statuses
These statuses are applied to mail during its workflow. Your project administrator can edit some status
labels to reflect your project's process terminology.

When: Mail status displayed as:

Due date is set and responses not yet received Outstanding
Due date has passed and responses not yet received Overdue
Due date is set and some responses received Partial
Due date is not set (or viewing as a Cc recipient) N/A (No Action Needed)
Due date is set and all responses received Responded (Default)
Initiator has indicated that no further action is required Closed-Out (Default)

2|Page
 Mati Ullah Khan
Who can see my mail and documents?
Once you have uploaded a document or created an Aconex mail, everyone in your
organization can see it.

Play Video

When you upload a document into Aconex

When you upload your document into Aconex, it can be accessed by anyone who

• is in your organization, and is working on the project.

• has the appropriate permissions. Permissions are managed in Aconex via user roles.

Nobody outside your organization can see your document until

you transmit it
Nobody outside of your organization can see your document until you want them to.

To share your document with another organization, you'll need to transmit it.

If you have a document with sensitive information

Sometimes you need to upload documents into Aconex that should only be accessed by certain people.

In this case, you can upload a confidential document.

Who can see my mail?

When you receive a mail via Aconex, it can be accessed by anyone who
• is in your organization, and is working on the project.
• has the appropriate permissions. Permissions are managed in Aconex via user roles.
When you write a mail and save it to draft it can also be accessed by these people.
When you send a mail it can also be accessed by anyone in the recipient's organization who:
• is working on the project
• has the appropriate permissions.

If you need to send a mail with sensitive information

Sometimes you need to send a mail in Aconex that should only be accessed by certain people. In this case,
you should send a confidential mail. Only the people you add as recipients will be able to access the mail.
However, some orgs may authorize some of their users to see any confidential mail received by their
organization.

3|Page
 Mati Ullah Khan
Create and send mail
Writing a memo, an RFI, or some general correspondence? You need Aconex Mail.

Play Video

Required permissions

Create mail

Mail is used for everyday communications and processes.

Every mail must have a mail type, which does a few things:

• It identifies the different processes on the project, such as Request for Information.
• It sets up a form, helping you to enter the right details.
• It helps you find mail again later.
The Project Admin decides which mail types are available for each organization, so you may not see the
same types on every project you work on.

Creating mail
1. From the main navigation menu, click Mail and select Blank Mail.
2. Now select an option in the Type field. When you do this, all mandatory fields that have to be
completed are shown with an asterisk.

Tip!
Some mail types are set up to be automatically sent to certain people. If this is the case, you'll see a
message about distribution rules. To see who's included in the automatic distribution, select Preview.
3. Enter the names of recipients into the To and Cc fields.You can find their names by either:
• Typing all or part of their name or group in the Search field, then pressing Enter.
A matched result will be added, or you'll need to choose from a list of possible recipients.

4|Page
 Mati Ullah Khan
• Clicking the To or CC links and searching the directory. See Adding recipients to mail

4. (Optional) Attach documents, other mail, or local files to the mail.

5. If required, select one or more values for each attribute field listed. Some projects do not use mail
attributes.
6. Choose the response type from the Response Required list, and select the respond by date.
This sets the mail status.
7. Complete the Subject field with a meaningful description of the content to make it easier to
find this mail later.

8. Complete the mail details, if they’re available. Mandatory details are identified with a red asterisk,
but the more information you include in this section, the easier it will be to find and report on this mail.

5|Page
 Mati Ullah Khan

Tip!
These fields are configured by your Project Administrator. Each project and mail type can have a different
configuration so you may see different fields here.
9. (Optional) If configured, add auto text to prefill the body of this mail:
• Position the cursor where you want the text to be added.
• Select the auto text name from the list. You can add as many auto text items as required.

Tip!
If your auto text is not appearing, make sure you have enabled 'Compose mail using rich text editor (HTML)'
in your user preferences.
10. (Optional) If you've set a default mail signature it will appear in the mail body. You can select
another signature if you have created several.

6|Page
 Mati Ullah Khan
11. Complete the mail body. You can type your message or paste text or images. Use the Format menu
to apply formatting to your text.

Tip!
All Aconex mail is automatically scanned for potentially malicious links, encoding, and other obfuscated
content when it's sent. If any of these elements are found, they are removed to protect the sender and the
recipients. In some instances, this can affect the formatting of some mail.
12. (Optional) Click Save To Draft to send this mail later.
If you save your mail to draft, it will be available to anyone in your organization to view, edit or delete.
13. Click Send and the mail will be available to all recipient organizations (unless you marked it
confidential).

Tip!
If you receive an error 'Max Size of 4 MB exceeded', you'll need to remove any large images that have been
embedded/pasted into the mail body. Large images can be attached to the mail instead. For any other
errors, follow these troubleshooting steps.

7|Page
 Mati Ullah Khan
Add recipients to mail
This article describes how you can easily find and add multiple recipients to a Mail.

Finding and adding mail recipients

1. Start by selecting either the To or CC links. This opens Mail at Search – Directory. You can also
click on the Directory button as shown.

2. Click either:
• Project – to search for project users (and guests) currently invited to the project.
• Global – to search all Aconex users and guests.
3. Now enter your search terms in one or more search criteria fields. In this example the search is
for ‘architect’.
4. Click the Search button. The results are shown below the search fields. When you have a list,
you can then add them en-masse using the To, Cc and Bcc options.
5. To do this, select the checkbox for each recipient or recipient group you want to add.
6. Now click the To, Cc and/or Bcc buttons appropriate.
7. When you do this they are added to the field above, which is now called Recipients. Notice
that they are listed as the sending option you selected. The following example shows the mail is
being sent to three To recipients and two Cc’d ones. You can remove any of these using the
individual Delete icons.

8|Page
 Mati Ullah Khan

Tip!

9|Page
 Mati Ullah Khan
The blank area above the search fields will show the recipients when you’ve searched and selected them.
Initially you will only see the following message: No recipients currently selected.
8. When you’ve finished, click OK. This adds all the recipients you’ve selected to the Mail.

Help! The recipients can't be found

If you can't find someone in the project directory:
• Make sure they are invited to the project.
• Make sure they are visible (not shadowed) in the directory.
• Try and search for them in the global directory
If you can't find someone in the global directory:
• They may be hidden in the global directory. They can unhide themselves following
these steps.
• They may not have an Aconex account yet. They can ask their org admin to create one.

10 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Attach files or documents to mail
Find out how to attach a document, a file or another mail to a project mail.

The sections below describe how to add attachments. Before you begin, you'll need to create a mail.

Should I use a transmittal instead?

In most cases, we recommend that you use a transmittal, instead of a mail attachment, when you are
sending a document, drawing, report or another file that directly relevant to your project.

This ensures the document updates the recipient organization's document register.

See What's the difference between a mail and a transmittal?

Attach a document or image

1. Click Attach.
2. Select:
• Document, to attach a file or image from your Document Register.
• Project Mail, to attach a mail.
• Local File, to attach a file or image from your computer.

Attach a document from your organization's document register

1. Click Document
2. Search for your document in the register.
3. Select the document.
4. Click Attach.
5. Your document is now listed under Attachments. Note: This attaches the file only. Metadata
content is not included.

Attach a project mail

1. Select Project Mail.
2. Search for the project mail.
3. Select it.
4. Click Attach.
11 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
5. Your mail is now listed under Attachments.

Attach files from your computer

1. Click Attach.
2. Click Local File.
3. Click Choose File.
4. Select your file(s) or drag and drop.
5. Click Attach.
6. Once uploaded, click Close. Your file(s) are now listed under Attachments.

12 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Reply to or forward mail
See how to respond to mail, or forward it to someone else.

Required permissions

Create mail

1. Open Mail > Inbox and select the appropriate mail.

2. If you have a large number of mails you can filter them or use the Search field.

3. Click the Subject link of the mail to open it.

4. Click:
• Reply/Reply to all to reply to the sender only or to everyone, without the original
attachments.
• Forward to forward the mail to new recipients, with the original attachments (if required).

13 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan

5. Complete all mandatory mail fields, and any other fields as required. See Create a new project mail.

Tip!
If there are no mail types available for selection, this means the Project Admin has restricted the mail types
used to send a response. Ask them to review mail rules and make sure the appropriate mail types are
available for your organization.
6. Click Send.
The mail will be marked as Responded, as long as you replied to the organization that sent the initial
mail. Note: You can reply to any mail in a thread and it will be marked as Responded.

Tip!
If you receive an error 'Max Size of 4 MB exceeded', you'll need to remove any large images that have been
embedded/pasted into the mail body. Large images can be attached to the mail instead. For any other
errors, follow these troubleshooting steps.

14 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Send a draft mail
Want to know how to edit, send and delete mail saved as a drafts? Here's how.

Tip!
Your mail is automatically saved to draft every five minutes. You'll see a notification message with the time
of each save. Any Project mail saved to Drafts is available to anyone in your organization.

Finding draft mail

1. Select your project from the Project Selector at the top of the page.
2. Click the Mail button on the Module Menu, and under Search, click Drafts.

3. Select the Show my mail only checkbox to include only mails that you've created.
4. Enter search criteria as required.
5. Click the Search button.

15 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Editing draft mail
1. To edit a draft mail click the link in the Subject column to open the mail.

2. Click the Edit button.

3. Edit the project mail as required. See Create a project mail for more information.
4. Then select either of the following:
• Save to Draft to save the mail so you can continue working on it later.
• Send to send the mail.

Deleting draft mail

1. To delete draft mail select the ones you want to delete. This enable the Delete Draft button.
2. Click Delete Draft.
3. Click Delete in the confirmation window.

16 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Options in mail
Take control of your mail numbering and restrict visibility of your mail

Before sending your mail, Aconex provides a number of Options to view or set certain behavior of that
mail. To begin you’ll need to create a new mail, reply to, or forward an existing mail.

Clicking Options from the top of the page will present you with several options.

Those options are:

Option Description
Selected by default. Aconex will set the mail number automatically,
Use auto-numbering choosing from the next available number in the sequence defined on
your project.
Auto-number mail now - Please select a Selecting this option and clicking OK, allows you to preview the mail
mail type before choosing this option. number that will be set for this mail.
Select this option if you prefer to set your own customized mail
Enter my own mail number
number for this mail
Tick this box so that only the sender, and recipients can view this mail.
Send as confidential mail
Note however some orgs may authorize some of their users to see any
confidential mail received by their organization.
This option is only available when replying or forwarding mail, and is
useful if you want to manage a separate flow of communication
within the current mail thread.
Reset Reference No? (Set this mail as the
For example, an Architect receives an RFI from the Head Contractor,
Reference No for all future mails in this
who forwards it to their Consultant for review. The Architect resets
thread)
the reference number allowing them to create a 'new thread' from
the existing thread. If the orginal thread between the Head Contractor
and the Architect is closed out, the new thread between the Architect
and Consultant will remain open.

17 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Send confidential mail
All project mail or transmittals you send are visible to all recipients and everyone in
your organization - this article shows how to hide them by making them confidential.

If you have potentially sensitive mail that only certain people should have access to, you can mark it as
confidential before sending it. This means that only the recipients of your mail will be able to view it. Before
sending a mail, make sure you check for any automatic recipients set for your project. You can do this by
choosing to Preview your mail before sending.
You can also upload confidential documents.

Tip!
Organization Administrators may choose to authorize some of their users to view all confidential mail
received by their organization.
1. Double click Mail.
2. Then click New Mail
3. Select the Type of mail you want to create.
4. Fill in the other mail details as appropriate.
5. Click the Options button.
6. Check Send as confidential mail.
7. Press OK
8. Click Send.

18 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
The difference between documents, transmittals, and mail
Understand these tools, and when to use each one.

Documents
A document is a digital record of information that’s relevant to the project, and will be amended and
updated over time, probably by different people.

Drawings, schedules, and specifications are examples of project documents. Documents are stored in the
Aconex Document Register.

Once you upload a document to your organization's document register, everyone in your organization can
see it. This makes collaboration easy and ensures everyone works from the current revision.
Other organizations on the project won't see your documents until you decide to send those documents to
them. You do this using a mail type called a Transmittal.
By default, a transmittal automatically shares the document to the recipient's document register. This makes
the documents immediately visible to all users in their organization.

Transmittals
A transmittal is used to send updated documents to organizations working on the project.

If you’re working with documents that will be modified over time by different users, send them using a
transmittal.

When you use a transmittal, the documents you transmit are updated in the recipients’ document
register as part of the Aconex audit trail. This can happen automatically or manually, depending on the
organization's settings.

All the document details, including revision, revision date, and so on, are included in the transmittal.

Tip!
The transmittal includes all the details of the document being sent.

Mail
Mail is used for everyday communications and processes between collaborators on a project.

You can attach documents to a mail, but attaching them won’t upload them into the document register—
you (or the recipient) will have to do that separately. None of the document details are captured in mail,
either. The file is simply attached and sent.

For stand-alone documents that don’t have any dependencies, or for highly sensitive documents that
should be seen by certain users only, sending by mail may be more appropriate than uploading the
documents to the register.

19 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Tip!
In a mail, attached documents appear as files. They won’t appear in the document register unless you
upload them to it.

Creating documents, transmittals, and mail

You create documents outside of Aconex (for example, using CAD programs, and applications like Word
and Excel).

To make the document a part of your project, upload it to the document register.
You can send your document to others using a transmittal you create through the document register.
You create project mail using Aconex’s Mail module.

20 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Create a Mail signature
Also have a video.

Create a signature, edit an existing one, or copy your existing signature from another
application to attach when you create project mail.

Creating a new signature and editing an existing are carried out in the same place – in Configure mail
signatures in Personal Settings/Mail.

Tip!
You need to be invited to at least one project before setting up your signature.
1. Click on Setup.
2. Under Configuration, select Preferences.

3. On the User tab, scroll down to Personal Settings, Mail, Configure mail signatures.
4. Click the Edit button.

5. Click the:
• New - HTML button – to create a formatted signature, selecting font, color
and so on.
• New – Plain Text button – to create a signature with no formatting.

21 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan

6. Enter a name in the Signature Name field to identify this signature. A meaningful name is
useful if you have more than one signature.
7. Complete the Signature field. You can type directly into the field, or paste a signature from
your email.
8. Click the Save button.
This signature is now available to select when you create mail.

Set this signature as a default

1. Select the signature in the Signature Name list.
2. Click the Set To Default button.
This signature will now appear in the mail body for you when you create mail.

22 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Mark mail as read
This is how you remove mail from your unread mail list without opening it first.

Tip!
• Unread mail is displayed in bold.
• You can only mark your own mail as read.
• Mail items you mark as read are automatically removed from the Unread list on the My Tasks page.
1. Select Mail > Inbox.
2. Select My unread to see a list of all your unread mails.
3. If needed, you can filter the list further using the Search field.
4. Select the checkbox for each mail you want to mark as read.
5. Click Tools and select Mark As Read.

Mark mail as unread

Reset mail to unread so that it appears in your Unread mail list on the My Tasks page.

Tip!
Project mail is automatically marked as read when you open it.
1. Select Mail/Inbox.
2. Select My mail only.
3. If required, filter the results using the Search field.
4. Click the Subject link to open the mail.
5. Click Actions and select Mark as Unread.
6. The Mail will now be displayed as unread in your Tasks page. It will be displayed with bold
text in the mail search page, indicating the mail is unread.

23 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Mark sent mail as your response
Manually set mail as your official response, after its been sent

Your project may be configured with specific mail types that end a process. If so, you'll need to respond
with those defined mail types for the mail to be marked as Responded.
In some cases, it's appropriate to manually mark a mail as responded, after a reply was already sent. For
example, you may have accidentally used the incorrect mail type in your reply. This feature allows you to
review the replies to a mail before deciding which one is the official response. Then, mark that mail as your
response to update the status to Responded.

Required User Role Permissions

• Make sent mail your Response
Your Organization Administrator may need to grant these permissions to your user role. Also confirm your
organization sent the mail you are marking as your response.

Mark your response

1. Review the replies in a mail thread to locate your official response.
2. With your response selected, click Actions, then click Make this your Response.
3. You'll see a message to confirm the action.
4. Once confirmed, the mail status will be updated. If there are no other recipients required to
respond, the status will be Responded, otherwise, it will be Partial.
5. A notification will be sent to the recipient(s) of the mail you responded to.

Make mail thread as response

Tip!
Remember, this option is available if:

• Your organization has received mail that has an outstanding or overdue status.
• Your organization has replied to that mail.
• You have permission to mark that mail as your response.

24 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Close-out sent mail
When activity for a mail is complete, you should close it out so you can view and report
on mail which is still active.

Required permissions

Close-out organization's mail in any thread

Close out project mail to get accurate project status reports. You can close out any project mail sent by your
organization, but typically, you'd close out formal communications such as RFIs.

Closing out mail also removes any tasks associated with that communication from the task lists of the mail's
recipients. Before you close out a mail, make sure its associated tasks have been completed.

Tip!
You can only close out mail that was sent by your organization. If you need to close out other organization's
mail, either respond to the mail to clear the task or ask them to close it out.
1. Click the Mail button on the Module Menu, and under Search, click Sent.

2. Run a search to filter and reduce the number of mails in the list.
3. Select the mails you want to close out.
4. Select Tools/Mark as Closed-Out.

25 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan

5. When you do this the mail’s Status is changed to Closed-out.

Closing out mail from the thread view

Mail can also be closed out from the mail thread view, but you must be a user of the sending organization
to see the ‘Mark as Closed-Out’ button.

You can close out an individual mail or the entire thread. The entire thread is closed out automatically
when the parent mail (first mail in the thread) is closed out.

Tip!
Accidentally closed out a mail? You won't be able to undo the action, but as a workaround, you can
forward that mail to the same recipients. The new mail will retain the same reference number, allowing you
to continue the conversation within the thread.

26 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Create a mail template (auto-text)
Use the auto-text feature to easily add standard text that is often used in mail.

Each time you create a mail and select the mail type, your auto-text templates are available to add into your
mail. You can also set the default template (auto-text) for a mail type.
Auto-text can be set at the user, project or organization level. You'll need appropriate permission to set auto-
text at the organization or project level:

• Edit organization information provides access to the organization preferences tab. Typically the
Org Admin role has this permission.
• Edit project settings provides access to the project preferences tab. Typically the Project Admin
role has this permission.
You can:

• create a template for one particular mail type.

• create a template for all mail types.

Tip!
If Mail and Document types for your project are locked, you won't be able to set default auto-text for mail
types. Your Project Admin can temporarily unlock these for you. See How to enable the Edit button.

Who can create an auto-text template?

You can create a template for yourself.

Your Org Admin can create a template that will be available for everyone from your organization in your
organization. They can do this per project, or build one that is available on all your organization’s projects.

Create an auto-text template

1. Choose your project from the Project Selector at the top of the page.
2. Click Setup.
3. Under Configuration, click Preferences.
4. To create a template only for your own use, select the User tab. If you have permission you can
also create templates at the project or organization level.
5. Scroll down to Personal settings, Mail, Configure mail auto text.
6. Click Edit.

27 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
7. Click either:
• New - Plain Text to create text with no formatting.
• New - HTML to apply layout formatting such a tables, as well as setting font and color
and so on.

8. Enter a name in the Auto Text Name field to identify this text. A meaningful name makes it clear
when and how to use the auto text.
9. Complete the Auto Text field. You can type directly into the field, or paste text from Microsoft
Word or another application.

10. If required, make this text available only for selected mail types:
• To add mail types - double-click a mail type in the Available Mail Types list.
• To remove mail types - double-click a mail type in the Selected Mail Types list.

Tip!
Leave the Selected Mail Types list empty to make this template available to all mail types.
11. Click Save.
12. You template will now be available to select from the appropriate mail types.

28 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan

29 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
Set a default template (auto-text) for a mail type
Set up your mail so that each time you create a mail of a certain type, the default auto-
text will be added automatically.

You can use an existing template, or create a new template and set it as your default.
Default auto-text can be set at the user, project or organization level.

• The user level default will override both the project and organization defaults.
• The project level default will override the organization default. Project level auto-text template is
specific to the selected project and your organization. You cannot create or manage auto-text
used by other organizations.
You'll need appropriate permission to set auto-text at the organization or project level.

• Edit organization information provides access to the organization preferences tab. Typically the
Org Admin role has this permission.
• Edit project settings provides access to the project preferences tab. Typically the Project Admin
role has this permission.

Tip!
If Mail and Document types for your project are locked, you won't be able to set default auto-text for mail
types. Your Project Admin can temporarily unlock these for you. See How to enable the Edit button.

Set default auto-text

1. From the main navigation click Setup, and select Preferences.
2. Click either the User, Project or Organization tab, depending on who you want the default
auto-text to appear for.
• User level default auto-text appears only for you on this project.
• Project level default auto-text appears for all users in your organization on this project.
• Organization level auto-text default appears for all users in your organization on all
projects.
1. Scroll down to the Mail preferences.
2. At Select mail types, click the Edit button.

30 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan

Tip!
If the Edit button isn't available, the Mail and Document types for your project are locked. Your Project
Admin can temporarily unlock these for you. See How to enable the Edit button.
5. Click Auto-text next to the mail type you want to set the default auto-text for.

6. If required, change the auto-text available for this mail type:

31 | P a g e
 Mati Ullah Khan
• To add auto-text items, double-click items in the Available Auto-text list. Items in the
Selected Auto-text list appear in the Default Auto-text list.
• To remove auto-text items, double-click items in the Selected Auto-text list
7. Click the the Default Auto-text list and choose the default auto-text you want to use for this
mail type. The options listed here are the ones in the Selected Auto Text field.

8. When you’ve finished, click OK, and then the Save button.

How to enable the edit button

Only the Project Admin from the Aconex project-owning organization can complete these steps.
If the Edit button isn't available, the Mail and Document types for your project are locked. To unlock these
you'll need to disable the following project preferences:
• Enable project wide auto-numbering of documents
• Lock mail and document types across all organizations so only the project owner can
change these settings
• Lock project mail auto-numbering scheme across all organizations so only the project
owner can change these setting
Once these preferences are unticked and saved you need to refresh the page and the Edit button will be
available. Other organizations on the project should now be able to set their required default auto-text.

After the required auto-text defaults have been set, make sure you lock the Mail and Document types again,
to keep the document/mail types standardized for the project.

32 | P a g e