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The mail app will open all by its self. After checking mail and then minimizing the app, it will suddenly just pop open again. There is no new mail in the inbox when this happens.
iMac with Retina 5K display, macOS 10.14
To be clear, it's running, but with NO windows actually open. It will then seemingly randomly open the application window by itself.
As a follow up, I would like to consolidate my findings in hopes of expediting a solution.
EXACT Same Issue:
Possibly Related:
I was hoping that with Catalina the problem would be solved, instead here I am.
Looking for a solution I tried to activate the logging of the connection status (from Mail menu: Windows -> Connection Status).
Examining the log when the Mail app is popping up, I found out these error messages at the exactly same time and on every occurrence of the problem (when the app doesn't pop up the error messages don't show up):
READ Oct 10 20:41:21.323 [kCFStreamSocketSecurityLevelTLSv1_2] -- host:imap.gmail.com -- port:993 -- socket:0x6000003b7de0 -- thread:0x60000322d080
5.659 NO [AUTHENTICATIONFAILED] Invalid credentials (Failure)
--
READ Oct 10 20:41:21.427 [kCFStreamSocketSecurityLevelTLSv1_2] -- host:imap.gmail.com -- port:993 -- socket:0x6000003b7de0 -- thread:0x60000322d080
6.659 BAD Invalid SASL argument. z66mb54202756wmc
--
READ Oct 10 20:41:21.732 [kCFStreamSocketSecurityLevelTLSv1_2] -- host:imap.gmail.com -- port:993 -- socket:0x6000003b7de0 -- thread:0x60000322d080
7.659 NO [AUTHENTICATIONFAILED] Invalid credentials (Failure)
(Just posting the lines containing the errors)
The error messages are present only on the log file of my Gmail account, every other mail account doesn't show any error message.
So as many of you, I also think that the problem is due to the Gmail accounts.
Hope this can help to solve the problem in any meaningful way.
I swear to Christ I'm permanently switching to Outlook if this doesn't get fixed. The app is just sitting in my launchpad. This bug is serious, it has been around for at least a year, and it widely affects users. WTF?
I had this issue for over a year with 2 macbooks. Might have found a solution though. I believe that the issue, at least for me, comes from using 2-factor authentication on my google account.
So, the issue that mail opens by itself was for me only happening when the application was running while not having the main mail window open anywhere. If the application was not open (had been quit) or if the main window was open in the background somewhere, it did not open by itself. It only opened when I had my gmail account active, so deactivating it also stopped it from not opening by itself, but that is not really a solution. But I think I have found something that works.
I, just a few days ago, deactivated my gmail account in the mail application and activated it again, but not using the easy google "preset". Instead, under "Preferences..." in mail and then in the "Accounts" tab, I clicked the plus symbol in the lower left corner to add a new account and selected "Other Mail Account...". Then entered my google account name and gmail address, went to my google account in a web browser ("account.google.com") and under "Security" generated a new "App password" and used that to login to my gmail account in the mail application.
The mail window has not opened by itself yet, so it has so far been a success for me. Hope this helps someone else with the same or similar issue :)
Yes, you are right, the problem is present since I've upgraded to two phase auth.
And your solution is brilliant!
For sure the bug is still there, but in this way it is hidden, because we bypass 2phase auth.
Thanks!
Update - CalDAV settings for those that want to try to setup a separate IMAP and CalDAV.
New CalDAV, Advanced Setup:
Username: username@gmail.com
password: your_password@gmail.com
Server Address: www.google.com
Path: /calendar/dav/**username**@gmail.com/user/
Port: 443
Leave SSL Checked
Uncheck Kerbos v5
Worked for me for the last 4 hours. I suppose I can only speak for myself. I’ve been kindly putting up with it for months. Seems like a likely culprit especially since Mail Drop appears to be an abandoned feature. I’m a software engineer if that lends any weight to your decision to give it a shot.
I'm also a software engineer. After a full year of dealing with this, I almost can't believe it could be something so simple. Going to give it a shot once I get home and let you know.
IF this works.... (speechless).
Well then maybe I should elaborate haha. Try disabling Mail Drop on any non-iCloud accounts. I only have gmail and iCloud and now I'm thinking it's probably any 3rd party who doesn't support the Mail Drop API... if there is such a thing...
I'm aware of that particular workaround, and reticent to call it a "solution" as it does not address the actual problem. The issue being that a macOS feature - the ability to add your Google account within System Preferences - results in Mail consistently opening itself in order to perform what appears to be some kind of authentication "handshake" with Gmail servers.
This seems like a problem for someone with feable ammounts of RAM. My new Macbook pro with a whopping 64GB of RAM does not see this as an issue.
On the other hand, Getting 64GB of RAM gave apple the right to use 30GB at all times, specially when booting up. Imagine what will happen when i fire up Photoshop to edit my 300x300 image.
This new version 2 of the Mac OS did not cure the problem for me. BUT I have had success with a very simple workaround, which is that when I close Apple Mail, I use the yellow center button in the line of red, yellow and green buttons in the upper left. This command minimizes the application window , which does not then seemingly randomly pop up again until I deliberately reopen Mail. This has worked for me. If I close Mail by clicking on the red button, then it is subject to being reopened by some flaw in the application or the OS. But if you click the yellow button and minimize it, then I think that the application still thinks of itself as remaining open, so it remains minimized and off the screen.
The problem that I had was that when I was watching some video using the full screen, Apple Mail would, seemingly randomly, open next to it, taking up half the screen. I would close Mail, only to have it reopen later, by itself, again taking half the space of the screen. But if I minimize Mail rather than closing it, I don't have this problem. I had hope that Apple would solve this in their next revision of the OS, but it has not. I think that it is outrageous that they do not even acknowledge this problem. But the workaround still works.
I've avoided the app password thing for gmail. However, Google is going to force everyone to use it next year going forward. They sent admins a email yesterday. Starting February 15, 2021, G Suite accounts will only allow access to apps using OAuth. Password-based access will no longer be supported.
They recommend OAuth. App password is prob better, just more of a PITA for users.
D
Its just "SILLY" that this issue is still occurring. Like many fo you I alway report this as a bug and the workaround of adding "Other Apps" solves it but its not as clean of a solution as the account just working.
Hopefully soon!.
May just switch to Airmail.
Look at the solution proposed by FanatiQS ( Link to this Post ) it partially solve the problem. I did it and now it is accettable.
Mail App Opens Randomly Mojave 10.14.5
