The Alibaba Mail Outlook plugin lets you access your organization address book, get contact suggestions while composing email, and keep your contacts and calendar in sync between Outlook and the cloud. Download the plugin.
Tutorials
Installation
Before you install the plugin, confirm the following requirements:
Outlook 2010 or later (32-bit or 64-bit)
Visual Studio Tools for Office (VSTO) runtime
Outlook must be closed during installation
The installer checks for required components automatically. If a component is missing, a prompt appears. Click OK to open the download page for that component.
If the link does not work, download VSTO manually from one of the following sources:
Visual Studio 2010 Tools for Office Runtime (Recommended):
https://www.microsoft.com/zh-cn/download/details.aspx?id=105522
Visual Studio 2022 Community Edition:
The full package is large. The plugin depends on Visual Studio Tools for Office (VSTO). Do not clear the default selections during installation.
https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/zh-hans/downloads/
Download the latest Alibaba Mail plugin installer and follow the on-screen instructions. Close Outlook before starting the installation.
Configure the plugin
Open Outlook after installation. From the top menu bar, select Alimail > Settings.
Enter your mailbox account and click Next. Your browser opens.
-
Enter your logon password and click Log on.
NoteUse your regular mailbox password — the same one you use to log on to webmail. Do not use a third-party client security password.
A CAPTCHA is generated. Click One-click Copy.
Paste the CAPTCHA into the Outlook plugin and click Next.
Click Close after you log on successfully.
Features
Organization address book
When composing an email, click Organization Address Book in the top menu bar.
Your department's address book appears by default. Click the links at the top to switch between departments.
Select email addresses and add them to the To, Cc, or Bcc fields on the right. Click Confirm.
Click Details next to a contact to view their full profile.
Double-click Mail Group next to a department to add its mail group. If Mail Group is not displayed, an administrator must first create a department mail group in the mail management console.
Contact suggestions
When composing a new email, type in a recipient field and the plugin automatically suggests matching email addresses.
Cloud synchronization
The plugin supports two-way cloud synchronization for contacts and calendars. Synchronization runs automatically — no manual steps required. To avoid affecting Outlook performance, the plugin only syncs when Outlook is minimized.
Contact synchronization
After you install and log on, the plugin creates a dedicated contact folder for your account:
Your cloud contacts are downloaded to this folder. Any contacts you add, delete, or modify in this folder are also synced to the cloud.
Synchronization begins after local contacts are initialized. Changes made before initialization is complete are not uploaded to the cloud. A system prompt notifies you when initialization is done.
Calendar synchronization
After you install and log on, the plugin downloads all calendars for the account from the cloud and syncs them with local data. Calendar synchronization uses a separate folder.
Data repair
The plugin uses the Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) to sync emails and email folders. If your local emails or folders are out of sync with the cloud, click Repair. The plugin performs a one-time upload of local data to update the cloud.
FAQ
What versions of Outlook does the plugin support?
The plugin requires Windows Outlook 2010 or later. It supports both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Office.
What languages does the plugin support?
The plugin supports English, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese. It automatically uses the language of your Outlook client at startup.
Why does the plugin fail to install?
The plugin detects whether Office is installed and checks its version. If Office is installed but the plugin cannot detect it, your registry information might be corrupted. Repair your Office installation, then try installing the plugin again.
If an error occurs with the installation package, restart your computer and retry.
If you have installed VSTO 4.0 but are still prompted that it is not installed, the .NET Framework 4.0 on your machine might be a client profile version. Download and install .NET Framework 4.5, then install VSTO 4.0 again.
Official download link for .NET 4.5.
Why is synchronization not working?
Synchronization runs only when the Outlook window is minimized. Minimize Outlook and wait a moment, then check the synchronization status.
Synchronization runs every 30 seconds, alternating between contacts and calendars. Because data is processed in batches, a full sync may take longer than expected.
Synchronization only applies to the designated sync folders. Make sure the data you want to sync is in the correct folder.