Shared Folders
Unilag e-mail uses the Cyrus IMAP server which is unique in its capability to make a mailing list available to many users via the IMAP protocol alone. Cyrus accomplishes that feat with shared folders.
Shared folders are ordinary Cyrus mailboxes with ACLs [Access Control Lists] that allow more than one user access to the mailbox. Users other than the mailbox owner access the mailbox with the permissions defined in the mailbox's ACL. When a Cyrus mailbox is referred to as a shared folder, it generally means that it is a mailbox owned by an individual user who wants to allow other users access to the mailbox.
An additional feature of a shared folder is that, other than the "read" flag, it does not retain message state information that is unique per user. Message information like deleted or important is global to all users. That feature could be useful if it is desirable to preserve state information across accesses by different users. If you use a shared folder for a group of users, such as a helpdesk, chances are you will want to preserve the seen and answered states across sessions, to provide a sort of work flow for the helpdesk staff.
Subscribing to Shared Folders
Subscribing to shared folders is the same as ordinary mail folders that you create. You should normally receive a mail when the owner of a mailbox gives you permission to access his mailbox. This e-mail will tell you what kind of access you have. Generally read and post is enough for most users.
In webmail, click the "Folders" icon at the top menu and you will find any available folders for subscription at the bottom.
Select the folder you want you want to subscribe to and click the button. The folder becomes available in the menu on the left and you can access the mails directly without clogging up your personal mailboxes.