There are a variety of situations when you may need to redirect an email message you've received to someone else, at the same time preserving the header information of the original message. (The message header includes information about who sent the message and from where it was sent, along with information useful to a technical support person such as a postmaster. The usual things you see are included, too, such as subject, date, and the reply-to address.)

By preserving the original headers, the person to whom you pass the message can reply directly to the original sender, often the desired outcome. Or, a technical person can investigate where the original came from, as when the message is spam or includes a computer virus.

Different mail programs use different commands to perform the function of passing on a message with the original headers: it could be redirect or resend or bounce. Below is a list of mail programs and the specific instructions for performing this function.

• Netscape Display the message you want to forward. Then choose View >> Headers >> All. Click Forward, enter the address to which you want to forward the message, and click Send. Remember to change this setting back once you no longer want to include full headers in your forwarded mail.
• Outlook Express
  With the message displayed, click on File >> Properties, then go to the Details tab and click on the Message Source button. Click once anywhere in this box, press Ctrl-a to highlight all the text, and press Ctrl-c to copy it. Close the message source window and then the properties window.
  
  Create to open a new message window. Enter the email address of the person to whom you want to forward the message and a subject. Click in the message body area and press Ctrl-v to paste in the previously copied text. Click Send.



• Outlook
  Double-click on the message you want to forward. Select View >> Options. At the bottom of the window you'll see a box labelled Internet headers. Click once anywhere in this box, press Ctrl-a to highlight all the text, and press Ctrl-c to copy it. Close this window and go back to the message window. Click Forward. Enter the address of the person to whom you want to forward the message, click at the top of the message body area, and press Ctrl-v to paste in your previously copied text. Click Send.
• Eudora 5.2
  With the message you want to forward displayed, select Message >> Redirect. Enter the address of the person to whom you want to forward, and click Send.
• Pine
  With the message you want to forward displayed, type b (bounce). Enter the address of the person to whom you want to forward, and press Ctrl-x to send.

• Cubmail
  With the message you want to forward displayed, click Redirect. Enter the address of the person to whom you want to forward, and click Send.
• Apple Mail
  With the message you want to forward displayed, select Message >> Redirect. Enter the address of the person to whom you want to forward, and click Send.