Email help for existing accounts
If you intend to keep things simple and use your existing email address on your website then you will not need these instructions. However you might like to read the section on email security.
If you have ordered a new email account based on your domain name, see the appropriate section below.
If you want to use WebMail to handle your website emails while on-line - go to section 1
If you want to use Outlook Express to handle your website emails - go to section 2
If you want to use Windows Mail to handle your website emails - go to section 3
If you want to use Outlook to handle your website emails - go to section 4
If you want to use other email programs to handle your website emails - go to section 5
Please contact me if you have any problems. I will need to know what email system you are using, what ISP you use and any error messages that you may be getting. Because of the many different set-ups and different rules imposed by ISPs I cannot guarantee that you will be able to use the email system on your computer to handle your emails. Webmail will always be available.
If you want to know about the Virus Scanning of emails. - go to section 6
If you want to know about Spam. - go to section 7
If you want to know about Email Security. - go to section 8
Section 1 - Webmail
How to use WebMail to handle your website emails while on-line.
You will need to know:
Your Domain name.
Your Email Address.
Your Email Password.
These are given to you when you order an email address.
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Enter webmail.**** in the address box of your browser, (not the Google box).
**** This will be your domain name, for example, if your domain name is yourwebsite.co.uk enter webmail.yourwebsite.co.uk -
When the login window appears, enter your Email Address and Email Password.
Whwn you first log in you will receive a welcome message from the Open-Xchange Server mail system. Click on Start.
Enter a first and last name. Click on Next
Unless you want a Google email account, click on Next.
At the Finish page click on Close.
Your Webmail Home Page will be displayed.
Click on the open letter icon (top left) to go to your mailbox.
Webmail includes a Calendar and a Task Manger. Use the Help Menu (? icon) to find out how to use these if required. - From your mailbox you will be able to read, write, send, receive and organise your website emails on-line from any computer, for example, at home, at work or at an Internet Cafe.
- SECURITY - If you are not using your own computer DO NOT allow any option to save your password as you log in and be sure to use the Log Out option before you leave the computer unattended.
- Webmail will be deleted after a certain length of time (details at login) so if you need to keep emails you will need to use an email program such as Outlook Express or Windows Mail on your computer. See below.
Section 2 - Outlook Express
This is the procedure to set up an email account that will download your website emails onto your computer. It will allow you to handle your website emails on-line or off-line.
You will need to know:
Your Domain name.
Your Email Address.
Your Email Username.
Your Email Password.
These are given to you when you order an email address.
- Open the Outlook Express.
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Click on Tools. Then Accounts. Then Add. Then Mail.
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The Connection Wizard will open.
Insert a name for your new Email Account.
What you enter here will be used in the emails that you send from this account.
For example, if you enter "YourName" then the email receiver will see "From: YourName" when they receive your email.
Then click on Next. - When the "Internet E-mail address" window opens insert your new Email Address. Then click on Next.
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When the "E-mail Server Names" window opens enter the following:
Ensure that the "Incoming Mail Server" is set to POP3 server.
For "Incoming Mail Server Name" enter pop.****
For "Outgoing Mail Server Name" enter smtp.****
**** This will be your domain name, for example, if your domain name is yourwebsite.co.uk enter pop.yourwebsite.co.uk and smtp.yourwebsite.co.uk
Then click on Next. -
When the "Internet Mail Logon" window opens insert your new Email Username and Email Password.
Then click on Next. - Then at the next window click on Finish.
- You have now set up a new Email Account on your email program BUT you have a couple of changes to make yet while you are STILL IN the main window.
- Click on Tools. Then Accounts and ensure that the Mail tab has been selected.
- Highlight your new Email Account with ONE click and then click on Properties.
- Rename the Mail Account name at the top to something that will help you to recognise it, for example Website Mail or something similar. Then click on the Servers tab.
- Put a tick in the box marked My server requires authentication.
- Then click on Settings and make sure that the "Use same settings as my Incoming mail server" is ticked.
- Then click on OK and on the next OK.
- You can now close the "Internet Accounts" window and return to the main window.
It may be that you will be able to receive emails for your new address but not send them. This is probably due to constraints imposed by your existing ISP. In such cases you will need to find out the name of the OUTGOING MAIL SERVER for your ISP and change it from that shown above. To find it, examine the settings of one of your existing email accounts. You will also need set My server requires authentication to NO.
To make changes or check settings to the account:
Click on Tools then Accounts.
Highlight the correct account and then click on Properties. You will find all the settings unter the various tabs.
Section 3 - Windows Mail
This is the procedure to set up an email account that will download your website emails onto your computer. It will allow you to handle your website emails on-line or off-line.
You will need to know:
Your Domain name.
Your Email Address.
Your Email Username.
Your Email Password.
These are given to you when you order an email address.
- Open Windows Mail. Click on Tools. Then Accounts. Then Add.
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In the next window click on E-mail Account then Next.
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The Add an E-maill Account window will open.
Insert the email address supplied.
Insert the password supplied.
In the 'Display Name' box insert a name for your new Email Account.
What you enter here will be used in the emails that you send from this account.
For example, if you enter "YourName" then the email receiver will see "From: YourName" when they receive your email.
Tick the 'Manually configure server settings for e-mail account' box. Then click on Next. -
In the next window ensure that the "Incoming Mail Server" is set to POP3 server.
In the 'Incoming Server' box enter pop.****
**** This will be your domain name, for example, if your domain name is yourwebsite.co.uk enter pop.yourwebsite.co.uk
In the 'Login ID' box enter your Email Username
In the 'Outgoing Server' box enter smtp.****
**** This will be your domain name, for example, if your domain name is yourwebsite.co.uk enter smtp.yourwebsite.co.uk
Tick the box for 'My server requires authentication'.
Then click on Next. - In the next window click on Finish.
It may be that you will be able to receive emails for your new address but not send them. This is probably due to constraints imposed by your existing ISP. In such cases you will need to find out the name of the OUTGOING MAIL SERVER for your ISP and change it from that shown above. To find it, examine the settings of one of your existing email accounts. You will also need set My server requires authentication to NO.
To make changes or check settings to the account:
Click on Tools then Accounts.
Highlight the correct account and then click on Properties. You will find all the settings under the various tabs.
Section 4 - Outlook
This is the procedure to set up an email account on Outlook to download your website emails onto your computer. It will allow you to handle your website emails on-line or off-line. This is a typical procedure for Outlook although some may be slightly different. There should also be a 'Wizard' to help you through the procedure. If you use it you should check afterwards that all settings are as per the manual configuration procedure shown below.
You will need to know:
Your Domain name.
Your Email Address.
Your Email Username.
Your Email Password.
These are given to you when you order an email address.
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Open Outlook. Click on Tools and select Accounts Settings.
Make sure that the "E-mail" tab is selected. Then click on New. -
Make sure that the "Microsoft Exchange,POP3,..." option is selected.
Then click on Next -
When the "Auto Account Setup" window opens:
Tick the box: "Manually configure server settings or additional server types".
Then click on Next. -
When the "Choose E-mail Service window" opens:
Make sure that "Internet E-mail" is selected.
Then click on Next. -
When the "In the Internet E-mail settings" window opens:
Enter the name that you want the receivers of your emails to see.
Enter the email address that you want the receivers of your emails to reply to.
Ensure that the "Account type" is set to POP3.
For "Incoming Mail Server" enter pop.*****
For "Outgoing Mail Server" enter smtp.*****
***** Enter your domain name, e.g. yourwebsite.co.uk
For "User Name" enter the user name supplied.
For "Password" enter the password supplied.
Then click on More settings. - In the "General" tab you can rename the email account name if you wish. This name is only used to identify the account when you use Outlook.
- Select the Outgoing Server tab.
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Tick "My outgoing server requires authentication".
Then click on Settings and make sure that the "Use same settings as my Incoming mail server" is ticked. -
Then click on OK until you are Back at the "Internet E-mail settings" window.
Then click on Next. - Then click on Finish.
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Back at the "E-mail Accounts window".
Click on Close
It may be that after all of this you will be able to receive emails for your new address but not send them. This is probably due to constraints imposed by your existing ISP. In such cases you will need to find out the name of the OUTGOING MAIL SERVER for your ISP and change it from that shown above. To find it, examine the settings of one of your existing email accounts. You will also need to untick "My outgoing server requires authentication".
Section 5 - Other email programs
Outlook Express, Windows Mail and Outlook are the most used email programs. There are too many other email programs to provide the different procedures for adding an email account for each one. Some of them have a 'Wizard' to help you through the procedure. If not you will need to use the 'Help' facility or read the instructions provided. Even if you do use the 'Wizard' you will need to manually check the settings are as below.
The most important settings are :
The Incoming Mail Server Type: POP3
The Incoming Mail Server Name: pop.****
The Outgoing Mail Server Name: smtp.****
**** This will be your domain name, for example, if your domain name is yourwebsite.co.uk enter pop.yourwebsite.co.uk and smtp.yourwebsite.co.uk
Your Email Address, Username and Password must be entered exactly as supplied.
You must set "Outgoing Mail Server Authentication" to Yes.
Your Outgoing Mail Server (in Settings) should be set to use the same username and password as the Incoming Mail server.
It may be that after all of this you will be able to receive emails for your new address but not send them. This is probably due to constraints imposed by your existing ISP. In such cases you will need to find out the name of the OUTGOING MAIL SERVER for your ISP and change it from that shown above. To find it, examine the settings of one of your existing email accounts. You will also need to untick "My outgoing server requires authentication".
Section 6 - The Virus Scanning of Emails
Email virus scanning runs automatically on all website based email addresses to protect you from receiving viruses. Should a virus be detected in an email bound for you, the email will be blocked and an email will be sent to the sender notifying them of the detection of a virus.
Virus definitions are checked regularly and are updated automatically to protect you against new threats. The virus scanner is capable of detecting all known virus types.
If you also receive emails via other email providers that are not virus checked or you view or download items from the internet you should have a virus guard installed and running on your computer, preferably one that includes an email virus scanner.
Section 7 - Spam
If you are unlucky enough to become targeted by a spammer you will start to receive unwanted emails. A spammer searching for email addresses on the web may have collected your email address or you may have given your email address to a seemingly reputable company and they have started to spam you or they have sold their address list to a spammer. Never reply to spam, even if only to say that you don't want to receive any emails from them, as this lets them know for certain that your address is active. Spammers often sell lists of email addresses to other spammers, so once you are on one list, you may end up on several. However it happened, if you start to get a lot of spam you may want to do something about it.
If you use your existing email address instead of a website based email address you will be able to use any spam prevention that your ISP or your Email Service provides.
If you have a website based email address and you use an email program to download your emails onto your computer, for example Outlook Express, you should run an anti-spam program of some sort on your computer to help you to eliminate the spam. Check to see if your virus-guard or Internet Security software has an anti-spam option.
If you have several website based email addresses you might want to have your emails checked by my Spam Bouncer system. This system will intercept spam emails before they are downloaded to your computer or before they can reach your Webmail mailbox. The spam will be bounced back to the original sender with a delivery failure message. The Spam Bouncer system has an annual charge but the service will deal with all of the email addresses belonging to your website.
Section 8 - Email Security
These are security issues that you should be aware of no matter who supplies your email service.
Virus protection will only work on viruses. It will not protect you from receiving malicious or unwanted programs. For safety, you should never open an email that you are unsure of or are not expecting, especially from a sender that you do not know. If you do open such an email it may contain an attachment that can cause instant damage to your computer, or run hidden processes on your computer, or allow a hacker to gain access to your computer. It could even lie in wait to cause such problems at a future date. It is also possible that a sender that you know may unwittingly send you such a program in a seemingly innocent email attachment. Perhaps in a funny animation. If in doubt, do not open the attachment.
Tip. If you use Outlook Express, it is not a good idea to have the Message Preview Pane active as this will automatically open an email to preview it. It is better to disable this option. To do this go to 'View' then 'Layout' and uncheck the 'Show Preview Pane' option then click on 'OK'.
Microsoft say that there is no problem with leaving the Preview Pane open when using Outlook. But if you want to remove it go to 'View' then 'Reading Pane' then choose 'Off' then click on 'OK'.
If you open an email that contains a link to a website that is unknown to you, you should be aware that by clicking on the link you could be sent to a malicious website where the security of your computer could be compromised.
There is a criminal activity that you need to be aware of called Phishing. This is where you receive an email that seems to have come from your bank or other organisation that you have an account with. The email may tell you that there is a problem with your account or that they want to check your details. The email will then ask you to click on a link within the email to go to their website. Do not click on that link. It will send you to a genuine looking website where you will be requested to log in. But this will be a fake website with a fake log in that will give them your username and password. They could then have enough information to start using YOUR account at the real website. The site may even ask you to provide credit card or bank account details. Never do this. Genuine organisations will never email you with a request to follow such a link. You must ALWAYS go to banking websites and other secure websites via your browser using a website address that you know is genuine.