How invitations work with people outside Eigen

Eigen can exchange calendar invitations with people who use other calendar apps, such as Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, or Outlook. This works through standard invitation emails: when you invite an external guest, they receive an email they can accept or decline in their own app. When someone outside Eigen invites you, the invitation arrives in Mail and the event is added to your calendar automatically.

How do I invite someone who doesn't use Eigen?

When creating or editing an event, type the person's email address into the Add guests field and press +. You can add any email address, whether or not the person has an Eigen account.

When you save the event, Eigen sends a calendar invitation email to your external guests. The email includes the event details and a standard .ics attachment their calendar app can read. They can accept, decline, or mark themselves as maybe directly from their own calendar app or email client.

If you later update the event, Eigen sends an updated invitation email automatically. If you delete the event, Eigen sends a cancellation email.

What does an external guest see?

External guests receive a plain invitation email with the event title, date and time, location (if any), and description. Their calendar app handles the rest: most will show an Accept / Decline prompt and, if accepted, add the event to their calendar.

Their response comes back to you as a reply email. When that email arrives in Eigen Mail, Eigen reads the reply and updates the attendee's status on your event. If your Eigen doesn't host your email, the reply lands in your usual mailbox instead, and your event doesn't show the answer.

What happens when someone outside Eigen invites me?

When an invitation email arrives in your Eigen mailbox, Mail shows a calendar card inside the message instead of a bare attachment. This needs an Eigen that hosts your email: otherwise the invitation arrives in your usual mail app. The card displays the event title, date and time, location, and the organizer's name. Click View in Calendar to open Calendar on that event.

Eigen adds the event to your default calendar automatically, as long as your server can verify the sender of the email. If it cannot, the card still appears in Mail but nothing is added to your calendar.

How do I respond to an externally-organized event?

Open the event in Calendar. Because you are an attendee and not the organizer, the event shows an RSVP section at the bottom of the event detail. Click Accept, Maybe, or Decline.

Eigen sends a reply email to the organizer so their calendar app can update their attendee list.

Can I edit an event that someone outside Eigen organized?

No. On events organized by someone else, the title, time, location, and description are read-only. To suggest a different time, contact the organizer directly.

What if I receive a cancellation email?

When the organizer cancels the event, a new email arrives in Mail. The calendar card in that email shows "This event has been canceled". Eigen removes the event from your calendar automatically.

Why did my invited guest not receive anything?

Invitation emails are sent through your Eigen server's outbound mail setup. If your server does not have outbound email configured, the invitation will not be delivered. Contact your Eigen administrator if you are unsure whether outbound mail is set up.