Migration of CalMail system to bMail

Plan and schedule of our move to bMail

Below are dates and specifics about how the migration will affect you, your email access, and our department.

Scheduled move date

Friday, May 17 at 5:00 pm

It will take most of the weekend to move all the department’s mail from CalMail to bMail, but please understand that you will always have access to email. You will be able to send using bMail and receive messages using either CalMail or bMail service throughout the weekend while the migration is underway. It is hard to say when exactly your CalMail account will stop receiving new messages. Based on experience of other departments, the incoming mail switchover may happen sometime on Sunday, May 19. In any case, you won't lose any messages. The migration will be completed by Monday morning, May 20.

Summary of changes

1. Existing CalMail accounts @berkeley.edu will be moved to bMail (hosted by Google). All messages will be copied to Google. Old CalMail messages will be kept in read-only mode for 60 days after the move.
2. People who do not have a CalMail account @berkeley.edu will get bMail one before the move.
3. Existing CalMail (subdomain) accounts @math.berkeley.edu will be merged with the primary ones @berkeley.edu. Both @berkeley.edu and @math.berkeley.edu addresses will stay valid but will point to the same (bMail) mail box. No old mail will be lost except very large attachments (larger than 25 MB).
4. The email server storage quota will increase from 10 to 25 GB.
5. The web interface of bMail will look quite different from CalMail SquirrelMail and RoundCube. However, it is designed for best user experience and is recommended by campus IT team as a preferred email application.
6. The IMAP desktop and mobile access (using Thunderbird, Apple Mail, MS Outlook, alpine, mutt, etc.) to bMail will require a separate password (a.k.a. bConnected login key) that has to be setup at https://idc.berkeley.edu/mmk/bapps. The incoming and outgoing mail servers should be set to imap.gmail.com and smtp.gmail.com, respectively.
7. Some CalMail settings will not be migrated. Most notable setting that will get dropped is CalMail forwarding. You will have to reconfigure the forwarding after the move (see this subsection for details). Other settings that need to be re-established may include filters, vacation message, and authorization (mail delegation).
8. Personal address books will not be migrated to Google contacts as well. This is because a personal address book is not a part of CalMail system, but rather a part of email client software — each application (Thunderbird, SquirrelMail, alpine, etc.) may have its own address book. However, in bMail web interface, typing a name, a portion of name, even a single letter in the address field will bring up a list of bMail addresses. Recently used addresses will be at the top of the list.
9. Existing CalMail (IMAP) folders will be translated to so-called Gmail labels. The main difference between a label and a folder is that a message can be tagged by several labels and, thus, can appear in multiple "folders" (without being duplicated) in contrast to CalMail in which a message may belong to only one folder (though may be copied to others).
10. bMail comes with a couple of predefined labels, namely All Mail and Important, which may confuse a beginner and cause troubles for IMAP users. All Mail is an archive place for all the mail one's ever sent or received, but has not deleted. It is not recommended to "subscribe" to this "folder" from a desktop/mobile IMAP client. The Important label is automatically assigned to incoming messages based on Google importance ranking. Such messages are marked by a small yellow "sticker" in Gmail interface. Of course, not every message marked as "important" is really one, and vice versa.

Action needed!

This is not a transparent change. Depending on your situation (see table below) you have to take action. You may stop receiving email if you don't.

Do you have math.berkeley.edu and/or berkeley.edu CalMail account?	How do you access your UC Berkeley email?	Change required
Yes	I use URL https://calmail.berkeley.edu/ in web browser, then login to either SquirrelMail or RoundCube.	Go to CalMail page and click on the bMail button or simply go to the http://bmail.berkeley.edu page.
Yes	I use either Thunderbird or Apple Mail desktop email application.	Get your bConnected login key and use the configuration instructions below for Thunderbird or Apple Mail.
Yes	I use one of three Unix command line email readers: alpine, mutt, nail.	Get your bConnected login key and use the configuration instructions below for text-based email clients.
Yes, but I am forwarding mail to another account.	I read my UC Berkeley mail using another account.	You have to reestablish the forwarding as explained in the step-by-step instructions below.
I don't know if I have a CalMail account.	I have not read my UC Berkeley mail for long time.	If you have an active CalNet ID, you can check the CalMail RoundCube page and act accordingly.
No, all my mail is redirected to another account.	I read my UC Berkeley mail using another account.	No action needed.

Accessing bMail after migration

Accessing bMail via web interface (recommended)

1. Open your web browser (Safari, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Chrome, etc.) and type in http://bmail.berkeley.edu/ in the address field.
2. You will get redirected to the CalNet authentication page (if not authenticated already).

   Note: You may need to quit the browser and start it again if you get redirected to a generic Gmail login page bypassing the CalNet authentication.

3. Login with your CalNet ID and pass-phrase.
4. Now, you should see the bMail web application interface with the bConnected logo at the top-left and your primary email address at the top-right of the browser tab.

   Note: The bMail user interface may have limited features if you are using an old version of browser. In general, Google supports the current and prior major release of Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer and Safari on a rolling basis. For example, Internet Explorer 8 and Firefox 3.5 are not supported.

5. At this point, you can start using the bMail web application. The web interface is intuitive, but you can always get help from http://learn.googleapps.com/gmail.
6. Your bMail browser session may stay open for several days until you quit the browser.

Customizing bMail web interface (recommended)

There are few default settings that you may want to change if you are new to the Gmail web interface. Every change listed below starts with these two steps:

1. Login to your bMail account using web browser.
2. Click on the gear icon at the top right corner next to your email address and select Settings from the drop-down menu. You should see the bMail settings page.

Making math.berkeley.edu address default

Please note that you cannot make your subdomain email address primary (only a berkeley.edu address can be primary). All you can do is to make your math.berkeley.edu address a default "From" address in outgoing mail. This would make the bMail change easier for your mail recipients. It would also simplify the administration of various mailing lists. For example, if you are a subscriber to the list prof@math.berkeley.edu you could post messages without being moderated. Here are the steps:

1. On the "Settings" page click on the link called "Accounts".
2. In the "Send mail as" section select your subdomain address, e.g. jdoe@math.berkeley.edu and click on the "make default" link to the right of the address.
3. In the "When replying to the message" subsection click on the radio button marked as "Always reply from default address (currently jdoe@math.berkeley.edu)".

Disabling conversation view

The Gmail conversation view is a way to group together mail with the same subject as one thread of incoming/outgoing messages sorted by date in descending order. However, this is often confusing for new (and not so new) users. One can turn the conversation mode off following these steps:

1. On the "Settings" page click on the link called "General".
2. Find the "Conversation View" section and click on the "Conversation view off" radio button.
3. Click on the "Save Changes" button at the bottom of the page.

IMAP and POP settings

Make sure that the IMAP protocol is enabled if you are going to use the IMAP clients:

1. On the "Settings" page click on the link called "Forwarding and POP/IMAP".
2. Find the "POP Download" section and disable POP (you do not really need POP protocol).
3. Find the "IMAP Access" section and enable IMAP.
4. Click on the "Save Changes" button at the bottom of the page.

Important label settings

Some labels (e.g. Spam) are not shown by default on the left-side label list of the bMail web page. At the same time, some labels, e.g. All Mail, are unnecessarily exported to IMAP clients. Here is how to fix this:

1. On the "Settings" page click on the link called "Labels".
2. Go through the "System labels" (Gmail predefined) and select "show" for Sent Mail, Drafts, Spam, and Trash. Also click on the corresponding check boxes "Show in IMAP".
3. Showing or hiding labels Starred, Important, and All Mail is a matter of personal taste, but do not show them in IMAP (it is a waste of bandwidth and storage).
4. The rest of the labels are personal, though some may be redundant, e.g. Deleted Messages. There is already a system label Trash for deleted messages. You may want to remove unused labels and show personal labels only if they applied to unread messages. All personal labels are shown in IMAP by default. That is OK.

Forwarding bMail to another personal account

If you were forwarding CalMail messages to another account, then you have to reestablish the forwarding. Here is how:

1. On the "Settings" page click on the "Forwarding and POP/IMAP" link, then click on the "Add a forwarding address" button.
2. Type in the destination email address and click on the "Next" button.
3. At this point a confirmation request should be sent to the destination address. Click on the "OK" button.
4. Login to your destination account and check the new message from UC Berkeley Team. It should contain the confirmation code and a link to allow the forwarding from your bMail account.
5. You can ether click on the link or copy the confirmation number and paste it into the code verification field in the "Forwarding and POP/IMAP" settings.
6. Now, go back to the bMail "Forwarding and POP/IMAP" settings. You should be able to click on the radio button marked as "Forward a copy of incoming mail to [your destination email]".
7. You may also chose one of the options:
   • keep UC Berkeley Mail's copy in the Inbox (default)
   • mark UC Berkeley Mail's copy as read
   • archive UC Berkeley Mail's copy
   • delete UC Berkeley Mail's copy
8. Click on the "Save Changes" button at the bottom of the page. The forwarding is done.
9. You can always disable forwarding by clicking on the radio button marked as "Disable forwarding", if you wish.

Common configuration for all IMAP clients (Thunderbird, Apple Mail, MS Outlook, alpine, mutt, etc.)

1. Get your bConnected login key if you have not done so already. You can use a pre-generated key or define your own. The key will be used as a password for your bMail (and other bConnected applications) account. Note the key is not set up until you click on the blue button "Set Key" at the bottom of the page.
2. Configure your incoming server as follows:
   • Server name: imap.gmail.com
   • Protocol: IMAP
   • Connection security: SSL/TLS (port 993)
   • Authentication method: normal password
   • User name: jane.doe@berkeley.edu (your full email address)
3. Configure your outgoing server as follows:
   • Server name: smtp.gmail.com
   • Protocol: SMTP
   • Connection security: SSL/TLS (port 465)
   • Authentication method: normal password
   • User name: jane.doe@berkeley.edu (your full email address)

Note: If you used the math.berkeley.edu subdomain address before the migration, then it is recommended to continue using it as a default "From" address after the migration. Your email address in any IMAP client does not have to be the same as the "user name" set for authentication. For example, you may set up your (default) email address as jdoe@math.berkeley.edu while setting your primary email address to jane.doe@berkeley.edu in incoming/outgoing server as shown above.

Configuring bMail account in Thunderbird

Follow the step-by-step instructions below depending on your situation. The instructions apply to Thunderbird version 17 or later on Mac, Windows and Linux platforms.

If you do not have a pre-configured Thunderbird email account yet

1. If you open Thunderbird first time and get a dialog box called "Welcome to Thunderbird", then click on the "Skip this and use my existing email" button. The dialog box "Mail Account Setup" should appear.
2. Type in your first and last name (e.g. Jane Doe), your bMail address (e.g. jane.doe@berkeley.edu), and your bConnected login key as password, then click on the "Continue" button.

   Note: If you have a math subdomain email address (e.g. jdoe@math.berkeley.edu) and want keep it as a default "From" address, then type in the subdomain address here.

3. Click on the "Manual config" button and select following settings, click on the "Re-test" button when done:
   • Incoming: IMAP server imap.gmail.com with SSL/TLS option (port 993) and normal password
   • Outgoing: SMTP server smtp.gmail.com with SSL/TLS option (port 465) and normal password
   • Username: jane.doe@berkeley.edu (your full primary email address)
4. Do not go any further if you see the message "Thunderbird failed to find the setting for your email account". Carefully check the settings and try again. If nothing helps, try accessing your bMail account via web interface (see this section above).
5. Click on the "Done" button to close the account setup dialog.

If you have a pre-configured Thunderbird account already

1. If you have a pre-configured (CalMail) account, e.g. jdoe@math.berkeley.edu, that has been migrated to bMail, then then you better keep the old account as it is and simply add a new bMail account.
2. Start the Thunderbird application and select the "Account Settings" item from the drop-down "Edit" menu at the top of Thunderbird window. The dialog box "Account Settings" should pop up.
3. Select the "Add Mail Account" from the drop-down list "Account Actions" at the left-bottom corner of the "Account Settings" dialog. This would open a new "Mail Account Setup" dialog. Now, go through the steps 1-5 in the above subsection.

Configuring bMail account in Apple Mail

Follow the step-by-step instructions below depending on your situation. The instructions apply to MacOS 10.7 (Lion) or later.

If you do not have a pre-configured Apple Mail account yet

1. If you start the Mail application first time and get a dialog box called "Welcome to Mail", then type in the following fields and click on the "Continue" button:
   • Full Name: Jane Doe (your full name)
   • Email Address: jane.doe@berkeley.edu (your email address)

     Note: If you have a math subdomain email address (e.g. jdoe@math.berkeley.edu) and want keep it as a default "From" address, then type in the subdomain address here.

   • Password: (your bConnected login key)
2. In the next dialog box "Incoming Mail Server", fill in the following fields, then click on the "Continue" button:
   • Account Type: IMAP
   • Description: bMail
   • Incoming Mail Server: imap.gmail.com
   • User Name: jane.doe@berkeley.edu (full primary email address)
   • Password: (same as in the previous step)
3. In the next dialog box "Outgoing Mail Server", fill in the following fields, then click on the "Continue" button:
   • Description: bMail
   • Outgoing Mail Server: smtp.gmail.com
   • User Name: jane.doe@berkeley.edu (full primary email address)
   • Password: (same as in the previous step)
4. In the next dialog called "Account summary" you should see the following settings:
   • Account Description: bMail
   • Full Name: Jane Doe (example)
   • Email Address: jdoe@math.berkeley.edu (example)
   • User Name: jane.doe@berkeley.edu (example)
   • Incoming Mail Server: imap.gmail.com
     • SSL:on
   • Outgoing Mail Server: smtp.gmail.com
     • SSL:on
   • Take account online (checked)
5. Do not go any further if you get any errors. Carefully check the settings and try again. If nothing helps, try accessing your bMail account via web interface (see this section above).
6. Click on the "Create" button. At this point you should be able to connect to your bMail account.

If you have a pre-configured Apple Mail account already

1. If you have a pre-configured (CalMail) account, e.g. jdoe@math.berkeley.edu, that has been migrated to bMail, then you better keep the old account as it is and simply add a new bMail account.
2. Start the Mail application and select "Preferences" from the drop-down "Mail" menu (at the top of the screen). In the preferences dialog box, click on the "Accounts" button.
3. Click on the "+" button in the left-bottom corner. You will get into the "Add Account" dialog. Now, go through steps 1-6 in the above subsection.

Minimal configuration files for text-based email clients (alpine, mutt, nail)

Please note that you will not realize many of bMail features by using text-based email clients. The configuration files below show only settings related to the bMail incoming mail server; the outgoing mail server is the host where the email client is run (this is the case for all Math department Unix servers). Replace the user name "jane.doe" with your primary user name and use your bConnected login key as password.

Alpine (pine) minimal configuration file .pinerc

inbox-path={imap.gmail.com:993/ssl/user=jane.doe@berkeley.edu}inbox
default-fcc=[Gmail]/Sent Mail
folder-collections=Math.Berkeley.EDU {imap.gmail.com:993/ssl/user=jane.doe@berkeley.edu}[]

Note: Please comment out or delete the lines 2-3 above if you are not interested in using IMAP server folders.

Mutt minimal configuration file .muttrc

set spoolfile="imaps://jane.doe@berkeley.edu@imap.gmail.com/"
set folder="imaps://jane.doe@berkeley.edu@imap.gmail.com/"
set record="=[Gmail]/Sent Mail"
set postponed="=[Gmail]/Drafts"

Note: Please comment out or delete the lines 2-4 above if you are not interested in using IMAP server folders.

Nail (Heirloom mailx) configuration file .mailrc

set folder=imaps://jane.doe@berkeley.edu@imap.gmail.com

Frequently asked questions

Will my existing addresses john.doe@berkeley.edu and jdoe@math.berkeley.edu remain valid as they are?

Yes, they will, though the mail boxes will merge into one. The address john.doe@berkeley.edu will become primary in bMail. However, you may make jdoe@math.berkeley.edu your default "From" address.

Why do you call my address john.doe@berkeley.edu primary (in previous answer)?

Because it will show up first if someone looks "John Doe" up in the bConnected directory. Keep in mind that bConnected is a suite of three Google Apps — bMail (email), bCal (calendar), and bDrive (cloud storage). While your subdomain address jdoe@math.berkeley.edu can be used in email, it won't be visible in the calendar and cloud storage applications.

Can I change my email address assigned to me in bMail?

Not now. The deadline for change was Feb 27. Please wait till migration is over.

I use "nail". Will it still work? What about "pine" and "mutt"?

Yes, it will, but only after you set up a bConnected login key and change the IMAP server in "nail" to imap.gmail.com. This applies to "pine" and "mutt" as well.

Mail sent to my address jdoe@math.berkeley.edu is forwarded to my personal address john.doe@gmail.com. When I send mail from Gmail, it appears to come from jdoe@math.berkeley.edu. Will this still work?

Yes, but you will have to re-establish the forwarding in your bMail account (see the above step-by-step instructions).

My bMail account has been activated already and is forwarded to my personal address. What will happen after migration?

If you have a math subdomain account, then it will get merged with your bMail one. The forwarding will stay in place and will apply to both @berkeley.edu and @math.berkeley.edu addresses. Note: Your personal account may be subject to throttling if you have thousands of messages in your CalMail account(s).

Can I forward mail sent to only one of my addresses, e.g. jdoe@math.berkeley.edu and not john.doe@berkeley.edu?

Yes and no. bMail forwarding setting is meant for sending all incoming messages to another account. However, you can also forward only some of your mail by creating a filter!

I am no longer with the department. My mail to jdoe@math.berkeley.edu is forwarded to another account. Will this move affect me and do I need to do something?

No. The address jdoe@math.berkeley.edu is not associated with any account; it is merely a redirect and will stay in place after the move.

I am checking my email over the weekend of migration. When should I do the switch in my IMAP email client?

You should configure the incoming mail server imap.gmail.com when you stop receiving new mail. You may send a test message to your address @math.berkeley.edu from time to time to see if the switchover has happened already. You may configure the outgoing mail server smtp.gmail.com now.

How do I know what my primary @berkeley.edu address is? I have never used it before.

Go to the http://bmail.berkeley.edu page, login with your CalNet ID, then note the email address at the top right corner of bMail web page.

When I try to login to bMail using web browser, I am instantly redirected to a generic Gmail login page. How do I login?

Put your full primary email address (e.g. john.doe@berkeley.edu) into the "Username" field but leave the password field empty; then click on the "Sign in" button. You should either get to your bMail account page or get redirected to the CalNet authentication page. If this does not work, then close your browser and try again.

When I send a message to myself it never shows up in my Inbox. Why?

This is a bMail "feature" inherited from Gmail. Gmail always labels outgoing messages as Sent Mail but skips Inbox if it figures out that you are one of recipients.

When I send a message to a mailing list I am subscribed to, I never get it in my Inbox. Why?

This is a variation of previous question. Your outgoing message is shown up as Sent Mail only. This is a bMail "feature".

Why do I need a moderator approval when I post a message to the faculty list? It worked without moderation before the migration.

This is most likely because of changed "From" address. It is recommended to make your math.berkeley.edu address a default "From" address in outgoing mail. See this subsection if you are using bMail web interface. Otherwise, see the note in this subsection.