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A central distribution list is a group of individuals created within live @ UCL which has been assigned its own @ucl.ac.uk email address to send email to.
Membership and sending restrictions are controlled by the assigned owners of the distribution group by using Outlook Web Access (OWA) or the Outlook software.
When an email is sent to the distribution list, the members can see the display name or email address of the list within the ‘To’ field, instead of each individual’s email address. Distribution lists are usually created for a team of people, project or department. They are useful if several users need to send a message to a group of people regularly, or if you would like to email many recipients without maintaining a local list.
Note: Distribution lists can only contain internal (@ucl.ac.uk) email addresses as members. If you would like to add non-UCL members, consider using Mailman.
What can I use a distribution list for?
You can use distribution lists to send email messages, task requests and meeting requests. You can also add them to the membership of other distribution groups, or use them to allocate permission to other items in Office 365 (such as your calendar, a SharePoint site, etc).
How can I find an existing distribution list?
Within live @ UCL’s Global Address List (GAL), the display name of all distribution groups is prefixed with a plus (+) sign. The naming convention of a distribution group is “+DeptName.DGName” (e.g. +ISD.Example DL). You can also search for distribution groups by entering their assigned @ucl.ac.uk address within the Address Book.
Requesting a new distribution list
To request a central distribution list, complete the Mailing List request form within the ISD IT Services Portal. The request may require approval from your Departmental Computer Representative or Departmental Administrator.
The IT Services will require the following information:
- Department/Institute/Division
- Display name of the list
- Email address (@ucl.ac.uk) of the list
- Owner(s) of the list
- Members of the list
How-To guides for existing distribution lists
Outlook Web Access (OWA)
- Modify central distribution list members in Outlook Web Access (OWA)
- Modify central distribution list owners in Outlook Web Access (OWA)
- Restrict/allow senders to a central distribution list in Outlook Web Access (OWA)
- Set message approval for central distribution list messages in Outlook Web Access (OWA)