Functionalities of InLoox for Outlook Modern Add-in

The InLoox for Outlook add-in was developed to facilitate project management tasks directly within your Outlook application. It consists of several components that are seamlessly integrated into your email environment.

Content

Set up the InLoox for Outlook add-in

Structure of the InLoox for Outlook add-in

Create, edit and complete tasks

Document management - Save emails and attachments

Time tracking of tasks

Time tracking of Outlook elements (emails & calendar appointments)

Create new project

Module extension - InLoox Web App interface in Outlook

Set up the InLoox for Outlook add-in

There are differen ways to load the add-in into your Outlook. Please refer to the installation guide.  

First steps in the InLoox for Outlook add-in:

1. Click on Open InLoox Add-in in the Outlook menu at the top. The InLoox for Outlook side panel opens.
2. You can pin the side panel so that it is always available.
3. Log in to your InLoox account. Do this as usual, either with the e-mail/password combination or via your Microsoft 365 access, depending on the setting you have chosen.
4. That's it! You can now see your data with your current and upcoming tasks in the side panel.

Structure of the InLoox for Outlook add-in

The InLoox for Outlook add-in equips your Outlook with a side panel.

This side panel serves as your personal workspace, providing you with a comprehensive overview of your current and upcoming tasks. The tasks are sorted according to their due date so that you can easily see which tasks have priority.

At the top, you can also see which e-mail is currently selected and whether you are currently tracking the time for a task using the stopwatch.

You will see two small icons at the top right:

• Globe icon: This opens the InLoox web app in the browser.
• Gear icon: This takes you to your profile, the account settings, you can invite users and switch between accounts if required.

Create, edit and complete tasks

Create new tasks

You have several options for creating tasks:

1. Direct creation of a new task without e-mail reference:

• In the side panel, you will find an empty field directly above the task list. To create a new task without referencing an email, simply type the name of the new task into this field.
• Then click on the blue button with the tick to the right of it to create the task.
• You can now open and edit the new task in the task list.

2. Creation of new task based on a selected email:

• Select the email that is to serve as the basis for the new task. Info This is displayed in the side panel under "Current item".
• To create the task, click on the blue button with the tick directly to the right of the "Current item".
• A task is created with the subject of the email as the task name. The content of the e-mail is automatically transferred to the task description. You can also recognize the connection of the e-mail to a task by the marking of the e-mail with the category "InLoox".

3. Suggestions for tasks by the InLoox AI Assistant:

• The InLoox AI assistant can be used for emails that potentially contain several tasks. To do this, select the relevant email from which you would like to receive task suggestions.
• Click on the button AI Assistant. You will then be given suggestions for possible tasks, including an estimated effort and a recommended due date. To accept a suggestion, click on the OK button next to the suggestion.
• You will now find the task in the task list and can edit it with a click.

Edit tasks

Here you can find out how to edit tasks efficiently:

1. Open a task: Click on the task in the task list that you want to edit. This opens the task detail view.

2. Edit the task: In the opened view, you can edit the task as usual. All functionalities that are also offered in the InLoox Web App are available to you. The editing options include, for example:

• Adjusting the start and end date: Define the time frame of the task by adjusting the start and end date according to your planning.
• Enter an estimated effort: Estimate the effort required to complete the task and enter it.
• Add a description: Provide the task with a detailed description to clearly communicate the context and subtasks.
• Project assignment: Select the project to which the task belongs.
• Comments: Leave comments on the task to share additional information or facilitate communication with the team.

InfoFor detailed information on project-related tasks, we recommend the help article Edit Tasks »

Check off completed tasks

Checking off completed tasks is a central component of task management. It allows you to keep track of completed and outstanding tasks. You have various options for marking tasks as completed:

1. Check off directly in the task detail view:

• Open the task you want to mark as completed by clicking on it.
• Within the task details, you can mark the task as completed as usual by clicking on the white round circle next to the task name.

2. Check off in the task list:

• You can quickly mark a task as completed directly in the task list by clicking on the white round circle to the left of the task name. It is not necessary to open the task beforehand.
• After clicking, the circle is marked with a green tick and the task is completed.

Info Completed tasks are shown crossed out at the end of the task list. This gives you a clear overview of the tasks you have completed on the current day.

Document management

Save emails and attachments in projects

PLEASE NOTE Since InLoox 11.17, you can chose to save emails as .eml-files. This will also save attachments as they are in the .eml-file. 

If you would like to save your emails and/or email attachments in your InLoox projects, proceed as follows:

1. Navigate to the Documents tab in the InLoox for Outlook side panel.
2. Select which documents you would like to save, e.g. the entire email (in PDF format or eml-format) or only individual or all email attachments.
3. Select an existing project in which the documents are to be stored. Alternatively, you can also create a new project.
4. Select the target folder. You can also use the search function or create a new folder.
5. Click on OK. A progress bar is displayed at the bottom of the screen showing the upload status of your documents.

Save email attachments in tasks

You can also store your email attachments directly in a specific task:

1. Open the task in which you want to save the document.
2. Now you can drag and drop the document onto the task. It is then saved there.

Time tracking of tasks

If you want to track the time of tasks, you have various options for doing so:

1. Using the stopwatch in the task overview:

• You do not need to open a task to start the stopwatch. In the side panel, there is a play button next to each task in the task list, which you can use to start and pause the stopwatch at any time.
• Info The top edge of the side panel shows if the time is currently being recorded and for which task.
  

  

• To book the recorded time on a project, open the task and confirm the time recording by clicking on the tick next to the stopwatch.

2. Using the stopwatch within a task:

• You can also use the stopwatch within the task. Open the task and start the time recording by clicking on the play symbol of the stopwatch.
• The stopwatch can be paused and restarted at any time.
• To record the recorded time, confirm the time recording by clicking on the tick next to the stopwatch.

3. Creation of a classical time tracking entry:

• You can also create a time entry manually without a stopwatch. To do this, first open the relevant task by clicking on it.
• Then select the option Track time for this task by clicking on the corresponding blue text.
• A window opens with the newly created time entry, which you can adjust if necessary.

Time tracking of Outlook elements (mails & calendar appointments)

In the InLoox for Outlook Modern Add-in, switch to the Time tab.

There you can:

• A: Track time from mails (New since InLoox 11.18)
• B: Track time from calendar appointments (since InLoox 11.13)

A: Track time from mails

1. In the InLoox for Outlook Modern Add-in, switch to the Time tab.

2. In the side panel, select the project to which you want to track time for an email.

3 .Then, in Outlook, select the email you want to track time for.

4. In the side panel under A: Track time from email, click the button with the blue check mark next to the selected email to create the time entry.

5. The time entry for the email will open, and you can enter the details such as duration, etc.

6. Done! The time has been tracked.

B: Track time from calendar appointments

1. In the InLoox for Outlook Modern Add-in, switch to the Time tab.

2. In the side panel, select the project to which you want to track time for an email.

3. Under B: Track time from appointment you can view your Outlook calendar appointments, navigate up and down in time with the scroll wheel, open the appointment via the details or join directly an online appointments with a meeting link. The prerequisite to see your Outlook calendar appointments is that you grant the "Calendar-Read" permission to view your calendar.

4. Create a time entry from an appointment by clicking on the Track button next to the appointment. If required, you can adjust the details such as the duration of the appointment in order to track the time spent per project precisely.

5. Done! The time has been booked - the calendar entry is therefore marked as Tracked.

Tips:

Private appointments or appointments that are not to be billed can be ignored. To do this, simply click on the Ignore button next to the relevant appointment.

By clicking on the three-dot menu to the right of the project selection, you can make some general settings. 

This includes:

• Show ignored appointments
• Show private appointments
• Include appointment body (this allows you to define whether the entire description of the appointment should be included in the time tracking entry or not)
• Open time entry when tracked

Create new project

If you want to create a new project, you can do this directly from within a task. To do this, proceed as follows:

1. Either create a new task or open an existing task.
Note It is important that the task is not yet assigned to an existing project (or that you remove the project assignment).

2. Open this task and navigate to the Project field. Enter the name of the project that you would like to create. The system compares the name with the existing database - if the name entered is not found, the option Create new project appears. By confirming with Enter, the new project is created under the name entered.

3. To specify further details about the project, please go the the Manage page of the project in InLoox Web App.

Info The original task is automatically transferred to the Kanban board of the newly created project.

Module extension - InLoox Web App interface in Outlook

With the module extension of the Modern Add-in, you can access since version 11.14 all functionalities of the InLoox Web App directly in Outlook.

How to open the module extension:

1. Open Outlook.

2. Click on the bottom icon in the horizontal menu bar on the left, which stands for More apps. Then select InLoox.

3. The “InLoox” tab opens in Outlook. There you have access to the areas Workplace, Projects, Tasks, Time, People, Workload, Dashboards and Reports.

4. Tip Pin the InLoox module extension in the left sidebar by right-clicking and and clicking on Pin in order to open the module extension quickly and conveniently.

For detailed instructions of the functionalities, please read the online help for InLoox Web App.