Using Your POP E-Mail from Multiple Computers

Due to the quota for Northwestern e-mail, most faculty and staff use Post Office Protocol, or POP, for their e-mail. This means that e-mail is downloaded to the computer desktop - no backups remain on the Northwestern servers. If you are using multiple computers to access a single POP e-mail account, it’s important to know:

• Once delivered, e-mail messages are stored on your local computer.  They are deleted from the mail server unless the e-mail client has been set to leave messages on the server. See recommendations below for primary and secondary computer settings.

• Unless you send yourself a copy of every message, sent messages are only viewable from the originating computer.

A POP account should be set so that only one computer, the primary one, removes messages from the e-mail server. Your primary computer for e-mail is the one from which you send most of your e-mail and the one on which you organize your e-mail. All secondary computers should be set to leave messages on the e-mail server. See client-specific instructions below:

• Outlook

• Thunderbird for Windows

• Thunderbird for OS X

• Eudora for Windows

• Eudora for OS X

• Entourage

• Apple Mail

Outlook for Windows

1. Open Outlook on your primary computer.
2. Choose Tools/Options/Mail Setup/Email Accounts.
3. Select the e-mail account you want to edit, and click Change.  Choose More Settings and then select the Advanced tab.
4. Be sure that the box labeled Leave a copy of the messages on the server is checked. Check the box below and set it for 18 days; also check the box labeled Remove from server when deleted from ‘Deleted Items’:

5. Open Outlook on your secondary computer – repeat the following steps for each secondary computer you use for e-mail.
6. Choose Tools/Options/Mail Setup/Email Accounts.
7. Select the e-mail account you want to edit, and click Change.  Choose More Settings and then select the Advanced tab.
8. Be sure that the box labeled Leave a copy of the messages on the server is checked and uncheck the two boxes below:

Thunderbird for Windows

1. Open Thunderbird on your primary computer.

2. Choose Tools/Account Settings/Server Settings.

3. Be sure that the box labeled Leave messages on server is checked. Check the box below and set it to 18 days; also check the box labeled Until I delete them:

4. Open Thunderbird on your secondary computer – repeat the following steps for each secondary computer you use for e-mail.

5. Choose Tools/Account Settings/Sever Settings.

6. Be sure that the box labeled Leave messages on server is checked and uncheck the two boxes below:

Thunderbird for OS X

1. Open Thunderbird on your primary computer.

2. Choose Tools/Account Settings/Server Settings.

3. Be sure that the box labeled Leave messages on server is checked. Check the box below and set it to 18 days; also check the box labeled Until I delete them:

4. Open Thunderbird on your secondary computer – repeat the following steps for each secondary computer you use for e-mail.

5. Choose Tools/Account Settings/Sever Settings.

6. Be sure that the box labeled Leave messages on server is checked and uncheck the two boxes below:

Eudora for Windows

1. Open Eudora on your primary computer.

2. Choose Tools/Options/Incoming Mail.

3. Be sure that the box labeled Leave mail on server is checked.  Check the box labeled Delete from server after and set it to 18 days; also check the box labled Delete from server when emptied from Trash:

4. Open Eudora on your secondary computer – repeat the following steps for each secondary computer you use for e-mail.

5. Choose Tools/Options/Incoming Mail.

6. Be sure that the box labeled Leave mail on server is checked and uncheck the two boxes below:

Eudora for OS X

1. Open Eudora on your primary computer.

2. Choose Tools/Options/Incoming Mail.

3. Be sure that the box labeled Leave mail on server is checked and set to 18 days. Also check the box labeled Delete from server when emptied from trash:

4. Open Eudora on your secondary computer – repeat the following steps for each secondary computer you use for e-mail.
5. Choose Tools/Options/Incoming Mail.
6. Be sure that the box labeled Leave on server is checked and leave the number of days blank.  Uncheck the box labeled Delete from server when emptied from trash:

Entourage for OS X

1. Open Entourage on your primary computer.

2. Choose Tools/Accounts.  Select the e-mail account you want to edit, and choose Edit and then click on the Options tab.

3. Be sure that the box labeled Leave a copy of each message on the server is checked. Check the box labeled Delete messages from server after and set it to 18 days; also check the box labled Delete messages from server after they are deleted from this computer :

4. Open Entourage on your secondary computer – repeat the following steps for each secondary computer you use for e-mail.

5. Choose Tools/Accounts.  Select the e-mail account you want to edit, and choose Edit and then click on the Options tab.

6. Be sure that the box labeled Leave a copy of each message on the server is checked and uncheck the two boxes below:

Apple Mail for OS X

1. Open Apple Mail on your primary computer.

2. Choose Accounts/Advanced.

3. Be sure that the box labeled Remove copy from server after retrieving a message is checked and choose After one month.

4. Open Apple Mail on your secondary computer – repeat the following steps for each secondary computer you use for e-mail.

5. Choose Accounts/Advanced.

6. Be sure that the box labeled Remove copy from server after retrieving a message is not checked:

For further information or assistance, please enter a WeinbergIT Service Request. A WeinbergIT technical support consultant will be happy to help you by phone or in person.