Knowledge base article 
Version 2.6
Prepared for Add2Exchange Enterprise Edition

Purpose	Create a new templated contacts relationship, attach it to a distribution list in Relationship Group Manager, and grant folder permissions to the members of that list.
Applies to	Add2Exchange Enterprise Edition
Example used	Contacts - Public to Private
Sources used	Uploaded starter document, uploaded CHM guide/manual, and DidItBetter online guide references

 

Purpose

Build one reusable Add2Exchange template, bind it to a mail-enabled distribution list, and make sure the same group receives access to the synchronized contacts folder.

The uploaded guide material indicates that templates and distribution lists do not become a working group relationship until the template is assigned to a distribution list in Relationship Group Manager.

 

Note: The exact screen layout can vary by build. The visuals in this article are annotated workflow figures based on the uploaded material and guide references.

 

Figure 1. End-to-end workflow for creating and activating a template relationship.

Before you begin

• Create or identify the source public contacts folder.
• Create the distribution list that represents the users who should receive the relationship.
• Mail-enable the distribution list and allow directory sync to complete.
• Use the final folder naming standard before attaching the template.

Step 1 - Create and prepare the distribution list

• Create the distribution list in Exchange or Microsoft 365.
• Apply the intended naming convention, including the Z- pattern noted in the starter document when that standard applies.
• Mail-enable the group.
• Run Entra AD sync or wait for normal synchronization before moving forward.

Step 2 - Create the template within Relationship Group Manager

This section extracts the Relationship Group Manager procedure from the uploaded PDF guide and places the text and screenshots directly into this document so they can be edited in Word. The guide sequence uses a calendar example; for a contacts template, choose Contacts wherever the guide example says Calendar.

Overview from the guide

A group relationship consists of a relationship template combined with distribution lists. These steps assume you already have a distribution list defined for the group relationship. If not, use Outlook to create the distribution list. Creating a group relationship from scratch requires two steps: create a relationship template, then attach the template to a distribution list. Attaching the template to a distribution list causes the relationship to be created for each user in the distribution list.

Relationship Group Manager dialog

1) Click New.

Relationship Group Manager dialog

 

Template Relationship Creation Dialog Overview

1) Create a relationship template.
2) Attach the template to a distribution list.

Template Relationship Creation Dialog Wizard

Logged in as the Sync Service account (Zadd2Exchage = default) Open the Add2Exchange Enterprise Edition Console from the desktop shortcut.  Select Relationship Group Manager from the Top drop down Menu of Add2Exchange Enterprise Edition

Complete Step 1:

Select NEW

1. Make sure the This is a Template Relationship checkbox is checked.
2. Select the appropriate message type for the folders in question. In this article, use Contacts.
3. Click Select.
4. Click Next.

Step 1 dialog

Complete Step 2:

• Select the folder locations for the relationship.
• Click Select.
• Click Next.

Step 2 dialog

Be aware: there must be a public and private folder in this example relationship. The public folder is an actual public folder which will be synchronized. The private folder is a template folder which will be replaced with each instance of the private folders in the group or groups that use the template.

For a public-to-private relationship, the source public folder is published to multiple destination folders. The other option, private-to-public, is an aggregation model that combines multiple private folders into a single destination folder.

Template Relationship Creation Dialog - Step 3

4) Complete Step 3:

• Click Select Folder.
• Select the source folder and click OK.
• Click Next.

Step 3 dialog

Public Folder Selection dialog

Template Relationship Creation Dialog - Step 4

5) Complete Step 4:

• Click Select Mailbox.

Step 4 dialog

Private Folder Selection dialog

• Select or create the destination folder in the proper location in the sync service account.  This is the place setter for the folders we sync to or new folder we create, and click OK.
• Click Next.

Destination folder selection

Step 4 dialog

Template Relationship Creation Dialog - Step 5

6) Complete Step 5:

• Choose the settings for the relationship. If this is a private-to-public relationship, you may optionally choose one of the automatic population options based on the source user account information.

Step 5 settings

Step 5 additional settings

• If you do not wish to use one of the predefined automatic population options, you may optionally create a custom population field in the Place the following Text box. In the guide example, custom text is used to mark the subject line.  This is not normally used on Contact Sync.
• Complete the rest of the settings as appropriate. In most cases, the defaults are sufficient.
• Click Next.

Template Relationship Creation Dialog - Step 6

7) Complete Step 6:

• Choose the settings appropriate to your synchronization profile. In the guide example, the default one-way settings are kept.
• Click Next.

 

Step 6 synchronization profile

Note: at this point the relationship is locked one-way. If you want the relationship to be bidirectional, click the lock icon to change it. These are the most common selections.

8) Regarding Step 7: Skip the Advanced options unless you know you need them.

Template Relationship Creation Dialog - Step 8

9) Complete Step 8:

• Select what to do with messages when a user is offboarded.  Usually it is set to remove the destination items and remove any folders created before they are offboarded, deleted, removed the license or hidden from the GAL.  If users are removed from the distribution group we are attached to, the last option is normally selected.  The guide recommends Remove Destination Copies.
• Click Select.
• Click Next.

 

Step 8 dialog

Template Relationship Creation Dialog - Step 9

10) Complete Step 9:

• If you are not syncing by certain Categories, you can press Next to continue.

Step 9 dialog

Template Relationship Creation Dialog - Step 10

9) Complete Step 10:

• Select “Check All” for the fastest sync called Twin Sync.  This will make an exact copy of the source in the destination and is the fastest sync there is.  If you are not syncing all fields, then Select Fastest sync and make sure all the fields you want are selected to sync.
• Click Next.

10) Completing the Wizard with  Step 11:

• If necessary, change the name of the relationship to suit your needs. In most cases the default should be sufficient. It is best not to remove the [%name] reference, because it signifies a template and will substitute the name of the actual account using the template.
• If you want both folder publication and folder aggregation, check Automatically make the reverse of this relationship. This creates a separate reverse template with the same settings and reversed source and destination folders. This is an unusual option to pick unless making a 2 way relationship or full mesh relationship.
• Click Finish.

 

 

Finish screen

Congratulations, you have finished creating the Relationship Template.

 

Step 3 - Attach the template to the distribution list in Relationship Group Manager

1. Open Relationship Group Manager.
2. Load or refresh the target distribution list by using Get Group.
3. Select the correct distribution list.
4. Highlight the template you created.
5. Click Attach Template.
6. Save or confirm the change.
7. Refresh and verify the template now shows as attached for that list.

Step 4 - Give permissions to the members of the distribution list

The preferred permission method from the MFA for Service Account guidance is Option 2 because it lets the admin run the supported desktop permission workflow directly from the replication server while still using the correct Add2Exchange permission paths.

Preferred method - Option 2 with or without MFA on Service Account

8. Log into the replication server.
9. From the desktop of the sync service account, locate Diditbetter Support Menu.ps1.
10. Right-click the script and choose Run as PowerShell.
11. Go to Auto Shell Permissions.
12. Select 1 for Microsoft 365 or 3 for Exchange on-premises.
13. If MFA is still enabled, complete the Modern Auth prompt manually with the appropriate Exchange administrator account.
14. Most environments should use option 4 to give permissions to the members of the distribution list.
15. If option 4 errors in your build, some installations must use option 1 to give permissions to all users.
16. For granular permission actions, use option 12 or 13 to give permissions to all users or to members of the managed distribution lists.
17. After the permissions finish, start the Add2Exchange service and allow the normal propagation delay before validating user access.

Supporting notes from the same service-account guidance

• For full automation, the sync service account cannot use MFA unless your process moves the permission grant outside the product and into a separate manual admin step.
• If you exclude the sync service account from Conditional Access or Security Defaults, do so intentionally and only within the access boundaries required for the replication server.
• In hybrid environments, adding a user to the managed distribution list may require time for on-premises to Microsoft 365 directory synchronization before permissions can be applied successfully.  This can take an hour or longer. 
• After the permission script runs, allow 30 minutes additional permissions propagation time before trying to open the destination folder as the service account and before restarting synchronization tests.

 

Template setting	Recommended value
Relationship type	Contacts
Direction	Public to Private
Source folder	Public Folder -> Contacts -> New Folder, or the exact public contacts folder you created
Destination behavior	Private user contacts folder defined by the template
Ignore Categories	Enable when you do not want category differences to affect processing
Validation	Confirm path, options, and processing interval before saving

Validation checklist

Check	Verify	Expected result
1	Distribution list is mail-enabled and synced	Group resolves in Add2Exchange and permissions tooling
2	Template uses Contacts / Public to Private	Correct source and destination logic
3	Template is attached in Relationship Group Manager	DL shows the template assignment
4	Permissions were applied to the same group	A member can open the target folder
5	Propagation time has elapsed	Access is visible after about 15 minutes
6	Pilot member sees synchronized contacts	Expected folder opens and populates

Common mistakes and fixes

The group does not appear: Confirm the group is mail-enabled and allow Entra AD or directory sync to finish.

Service account cannot open the folder: Make sure the service account is owner of the source folder or has delegation to the source mailbox. Resolution: Wait for permissions propagation delay, re-run permissions, confirm credentials, and verify the same group was used for folder permissions.

No data appears: Check source folder path, relationship direction, destination mapping, interval, and service health.

A single user fails while others succeed: Verify current membership in the distribution list and allow permission propagation.

Summary

Create and mail-enable the distribution list, build the Add2Exchange template, attach it to the list in Relationship Group Manager, then grant permissions to the same group and validate with a pilot member.  Wait 30 minutes for permissions propagation, and close the Console, don’t log off and start the Service.  Monitor the Add2Exchange Event log for results.

References

• Add2Exchange Guide PDF: http://guides.diditbetter.com/Add2Exchange_Guide.pdf
• Group relationships / Relationship Group Manager: https://guides.diditbetter.com/a2e-guide/group_relationships.htm
• Editing distribution list exclusions: https://guides.diditbetter.com/a2e-guide/editing_distribution_list_excl.htm
• MFA for Service Account: https://support.diditbetter.com/mfa-for-service-account.aspx