FAQs
For general information, see the project resources page as well as Migrating Rice (Cyrus) Webmail to Rice Gmail. Some specific common questions are addressed below.
Why are we migrating to Gmail?
Our legacy Cyrus (webmail) email system has reached end-of-life status and support, posing significant risks to our university's operational efficiency, security, and compliance. Migrating to Google Workspace's Gmail environment offers enhanced security features, including advanced threat protection and data encryption, which are crucial for safeguarding our institutional data. The project scope, target platform (Google Workspace), and deliverables were developed with cross-university input, focusing on accelerating the migration to a cloud-based ecosystem with the least impact on the campus community. Rice Gmail accounts have been assigned to all new employees and students for the past three years. With only ~4,000 individuals remaining on Cyrus (Webmail) and Google Calendar as the campus calendaring platform, the choice was made to migrate those accounts to the Rice Gmail where ~13,000 members of the Rice community have accounts.
What is the recommended email client to use with Gmail?
Google has designed the Gmail interface to take full advantage of all features of the Gmail service. Therefore, Rice OIT highly recommends that users use the Gmail interface as their mail client. This means using https://gmail.com or https://mail.google.com on desktops/laptops, and the Gmail and Google Calendar apps for mobile devices. Google has support information for individuals switching from Outlook to Gmail.
Can I continue to use the Outlook client with Gmail?
Use of a third-party client (such as MS Outlook or Apple Mail) on Gmail is possible, but not recommended. OIT has very limited options to customize or adjust the experience and support of non-Google email clients. General directions on how to add Rice Gmail to third-party clients are available on the Rice Gmail Migration KnowledgeBase article. If you are new to Gmail, Google has support information for switching from Outlook to Gmail.
Why do some of my old migrated emails have a recent timestamp?
Please note that migrated messages might show the migration date and time, rather than the date and time of the original message. This occurs because some emails older than 2017 did not follow a standard date and time format. Gmail attempts to correct this by applying the migration date and time to the message. For more information, see the section, Why do messages show the wrong date?, in the technical document, Data migration service FAQ - Google Workspace Admin Help.