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mail disconnecting from gmail

Since upgrading to Mojave, the Mac Mail app has been repeatedly disconnecting my gmail accounts. I have used these accounts with Mail for years without issue prior to this. My credentials with the gmail accounts are valid, and typically just clicking repeatedly on the tilde icon next to the disabled account eventually gets it working again, without me having to enter any new credentials - evidence that the credentials are fine.

Are others having this issue recently?

What can I do about this nuisance? Unless I notice the tilde symbol, I fail to get alerts that I have email pending on gmail.

iMac 21.5", macOS 10.14

Posted on Apr 13, 2019 2:35 PM

Reply
25 replies

Apr 15, 2019 10:39 AM in response to rose_10

I appreciate the effort, but the response is not helpful. As noted in my question "typically just clicking repeatedly on the tilde icon next to the disabled account eventually gets it working again". The instructions in the response simply tell me to do that.


The problem is not that I cannot restore access with this intervention, but that the problems recurs regularly (multiple times a day), and while it is present I do not receive notification of mail from those accounts.


This behavior is new, and a nuisance. Threads elsewhere suggest that this may derive from changes in how Google and Apple are dealing with certification of each other's services. While each's concern with security is warranted and welcome, one wonders whether there is foot dragging by each in support of the other.


In any case, I would still appreciate some guidance on how to avoid this behavior, as opposed to correcting it when it occurs.

Apr 17, 2019 7:38 AM in response to jkr98116

I saw a discussion that mentioned the same issue a day or two after the 10.14.4 update, it was hidden by other problems talking about authentication loops and smtp failures if I remember correctly.


I believe the op thought it had something to do with the Mail app being in the background while he worked on others, so he ended up putting Mail on a separate desktop, it’s own Spaces, that way he could continue working but also have Mail believe it was the only app open.


He only suggested it as a possible work around until Apple got it sorted, but he appeared happy Mail was now continuing to receive messages automatically again.


Not sure if any of this helps you.

May 3, 2019 10:34 AM in response to SiHancox

I'm extremely frustrated with the exact problem above. Seems every time I go to this forum I see the same problems that I am having and the a long thread that seems to conclude that there is no solution. Not sure I understand how this is supposed to work. If the answer is that the Mojave update is screwing things up why doesn't Apple simply say there is a patch coming and in the meanwhile bear with us. It would save a lot of time messing around trying to fix something that can't be fixed by a hack like me. I love all my Apple systems and think they are the best without question but the smily face "here's a piece of useless information" response is really getting to me. By chance has anyone heard of progress on this issue? Wondering if re-installing Mojave might be the answer since I've heard from other users that they are not experiencing the same problem.

May 5, 2019 12:54 PM in response to MidwestFogy

I run AOL and Gmail so I'd say problem is almost certainly Apple. I've also noticed that simply clicking the "lost connection" notice in the top of the mail page (not the tool bar) usually simply reconnects to the mailboxes and updates mail. Seems like it should be a very simple fix but..... Have reinstalled mailboxes and others say reinstalling OS does not work either so I'll wait for Apple to come up with a solution. very disappointing though.

May 5, 2019 4:39 PM in response to MidwestFogy

I think you misunderstood. The mailbox problems including repeatedly asking for passwords started with AOL and my gmail was fine. Over several months both mailboxes started acting up . That would indicate to me that the problem lies with Apple. Have heard for a long time that Apple and AOl don't play nice. Now it seems Apple and others don't play so nice either. Also several of these types of glitches have been immediately or almost immediately after updating OS. Put that together in Latin or even Greek and I'd say the logic trail indicates .....

May 8, 2019 12:41 PM in response to IMMEDIATETAKEOFF

The odd thing is that the grey bar at the top of the mailbox which contains "Mailboxes", "Inbox", "VIP", "Sent" and "Drafts" continually sends a message with a small exclamation point inside a triangle and says Login Failed. When I highlight and click on it it almost always reconnects the mailboxes fairly quickly but here is the strange part... sometimes it contains the message even while new mail is loading so obviously the mailbox IS connected already. Strange behaviour indeed. I may eventually do the one-hour, three person escalation conversation with Apple. Maybe get lucky and find a senior tech that has seen and knows the problem.....

May 8, 2019 12:56 PM in response to Larry1753

Larry1753,

I did go to AppleCare on Sunday. Disgust at repeatedly trying, failing, to fix; seeing long threads on both Google & Apple community boards; I was unwilling to go further. i.e. ready to quit Google altogether, find different search engine, tell everyone on 2 gmail accounts that I'd switched addresses.


Both the 1st line tech & the senior advisor were surprised to hear about my/our-all issue. Are problem message boards just whistling in the wind? One would think that such large volume would somehow slop over into Apple/Google consciousness.


Bottom line: the engineers are now working on it. I've decided to wait a while (SrAdv off till Thur) & then check in to see what the engineers have accomplished in the meanwhile. Just hold on for now, I guess.

Cheers.

May 8, 2019 1:45 PM in response to MidwestFogy

Larry1753,

Thanks for putting in the effort. I'm kind of pulling up stakes at Google anyway. I've switched to DuckDuckGo for search, and am happy with it, and have set up forwarding from my GMail accounts, which gets their mail into Mail without this issue.

I'll look forward to progress. While I'm feeling squeamish about Google, I do like using different accounts for different purposes (friends vs marketers, for instance). Unfortunately, Apple's mail lumps my @icloud, @me and @mac addresses together indiscriminately, so I do like GMail for that purpose.

May 8, 2019 2:45 PM in response to jkr98116

jkr98116,

Who's your ISP? It probably offers mail accounts (that's my main account, where would have switched both gmail accounts, & still may). I'm also unhappy AppleMail doesn't have multi-accounts, but I have to accept that's not their within their realm--unlike Google, which seems trying to become überEntity, with more areas from which to derive identifiers for salable portfolio.

May 9, 2019 3:26 PM in response to jkr98116

For those of you blaming Apple because of the update to Mojave, here's what was on the Google community forum about this same issue [emphasis added]:

User A "I am having the same problem. When I login to apple Mail which attached to my Google Gmail account for feeds to and from Google, I get the message "login failed". When I go into Internet Accounts to attach my apple mail to google gmail, get the error "Authentication Failed". When go through manually in Safari, I can login without a problem to my Email account.This just started happening on 4-19-2019. I believe Google made some kind of change. I started getting emails recently saying that I wasn't using Google Mail through their app and asking for me to start doing it."


User B "Everyone's errors seemed to start around the same time. One commenter mention getting emails from Google suggesting that he use Google's Mail app -- I have seen similar notes. I'm willing to bet that this is a Google issue. They want us to use their app, not Apple Mail, and they have tweaked their system in some that "encourages" us to move to their app. Am I paranoid? Only if I'm wrong about Google. :)"

mail disconnecting from gmail

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