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mail stuck in outbox, general mail problems

I have multiple problems with Apple Mail.


1. Messages don't leave the outbox, or don't leave very quickly if they decide to leave at all. Connection doctor shows green lights all the way. I've waited 24 hours, and they are still stuck. I've waited 36 hours for messages to go, and while ocassionally they do, most of the time they don't.

2. In regards to above, there is no "outbox" that I can find - to make sure that I didn't mistype an email address or there isn't some other obvious problem with the message.

3. On rare ocassions, force quitting mail and starting it again will cause the messge to go. But this isn't something I can count on happening. I've quit and restarted mail 5 times, and less than 1 out of 5 times it just happened to go.

4. Mail quits randomly.


If anyone has any ideas on this, I would appreciate it.

mail.app-OTHER, Mac OS X (10.7)

Posted on Aug 1, 2011 6:54 AM

Reply
52 replies

Aug 17, 2011 11:24 AM in response to rrrrosi

There were some fixes posted before Lion that called for going to Library>mail>mailboxes>outbox.mbox file. Delete the mboxfile and that would work. Unfortunately the is no LIBRARY in the home folder to open so I have no idea what to do to fix the problem on a local level. We need some advice or a fix from Apple. They have always been very good about fixes and I'm sure someone is already working on it.😀

Aug 18, 2011 1:20 AM in response to 4MACS-Will

i found this solution to my 'i cant find my outbox' on an old forum at macroums and it worked for me

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=148975#3


1. Close Mail Completely, right click Mail then Quit

2. go to ~/Library/Preferences,

if you cant find you Library directory under your user, open up Finder, then click 'Go' then 'Go To Folder' and put the folder in there and that wil take you straight there


3. open com.apple.mail.pllist with xcode or something similar


4. find this section:

<string>~/Library/Mail/Mailboxes/Outbox.mbox</string>

<key>OutboxViewerAttributes</key>

<dict>

<key>DisplayInThreadedMode</key>

<string>no</string>

<key>SortOrder</key>

<string>subject</string>

<key>SortedDescending</key>

<string>YES</string>

</dict>


5.Change DisplayInThreadedMode from NO to YES

6. save and reopen Mail


hope this works ok 🙂

Aug 18, 2011 7:59 AM in response to 4MACS-Will

Update on my issue. Somewhere between when I reported this and now, the Outbox appeared. I didn't have to do the edits described above. I cannot explain why one day it wasn't there and the next it was.


I used Thomas Suttles1 suggestion to remove the Outbox.mbox, but that lasted for 2 messages, and now the "new" Outbox shows messages waiting to be sent, but nothing is in there.


I did discover that messages now, though, ARE being sent. They are also being placed in the Sent folder, but the interface does not reflect those results - the barber pole "sending" indicator is still stuck in sending mode.


Issues discovered since last time: Deleted messages never get removed from the Inbox. If I delete a message, it disappears temporarily, but when I quit mail (usually force quit, because quitting hangs the app, even after waiting 24 hours) and launch mail again, the removed messages re-appear.


The app is generally sluggesh throughout the day as well.


But I can say that wiht 10.7.1, Safari is remarkably faster.

Aug 23, 2011 12:23 PM in response to 4MACS-Will

OK, so I was having the same problem and called Apple. They walked me through it and this is what you need to do.


The issue seems to be from IMAP accounts (mobile me, etc)


First delete or drag to Draft Folder all the messages stuck in your outbox, close mail.


Go to FINDER

Application folder

OPEN Text Edit

Go to File (next to Apple logo)

Click SAVE

Save As Dialog box opens, click on the triangle to display full FINDER options

CLICK AND HOLD COMMAND, SHIFT AND . (PERIOD) KEYS

While still in Text Edit with the FINDER SAVE AS window open, go to your user (little house with your name)

LIBRARY

MAIL

V2 (folder)

Then select your IMAP folder

Within that Folder you will have a sub folder that says CACHE (NOT .mbox.cache.plist)

Select that folder and drag to trash


Reopen MAIL and it should be fixed. It worked for me.

Aug 24, 2011 5:15 AM in response to jonathanfromnew york

Jonathan, while I appreciate your response, your post doesn't make sense. Why do you open TextEdit to move something in the library to the trash? I tried to follow the steps, but 1) they don't work, so please check your work to see if you wrote them down correctly, (you can't drag something to the trash from a save dialog box) and 2) even if I manually go to the ~?=/Library/Mail/V2/my IMAP folder, I don't have a folder called CACHE. Even if I go there in Terminal (so I can see hidden files), there is nothing there called CACHE.

Aug 24, 2011 1:39 PM in response to si458

Oh dear. I tried this and it doesn't work with Mail 5.0 (1244.2/1244.3) -- particularly annoying since, while I'd quite like to have a permanently visible Outbox (reassurance, paranoia, whatever), it's actually become important. When messages fail to go (usually an SMTP authentication issue of some kind, which I often get on public wifis), Mail is no longer displaying the Outbox :-(


I know the mail hasn't gone, because I get one or two error messages and, when I do get it working again (usually be re-authenticating with a test message), I can see that the 'stuck' message is going too... but still no sign of the Outbox. Hopefully a fix... or even (finally) a Preferences option to just show the **** thing, will appear soon...?


(MBA, 10.7.1)

Aug 24, 2011 1:51 PM in response to 4MACS-Will

I was thinking the same thing while the Apple Tech was walking me through it but it was the only way for me to get it fixed. The file (folder) says something like OFFLINE CACHE.


I tried to do it again and it shows me the files (though not the file Offlinecache that I deleted). Did you make sure to press and hold command+shift+PERIOD(.) keys? If you did press those keys together in the save as dialog box, you would see a file called .mboxCache.plist (not the file to delete and it's grayed out). You should see a blow folder icon containing Offline and Cache in its name. To Delete it, OPEN THE TRASH CAN and then drag that file to the trash. This fixed it for me.


This will not work from FINDER. It was done via Text Edit (following the steps).

Aug 24, 2011 2:05 PM in response to 4MACS-Will

hi,


ive done a few of these suggestions and only a few worked, but the minute i restarted my laptop the folder disapeared...


one way i found to get it working (for me anyways...)


1. change ya smtp settings so the message defo wont send!

2. send a test email to anyone

3. it will attempt to send but oversiously fail...

4. hopefully the outbox should be listed with 1 message waiting to go out...

5. if not, try going into the Activity Window and canceling the send command, that should show it up...

6. click the Outbox and the will be one message listed...

7. goto View -> then Show Favourites Bar

8. you should see a favourites bar appear...

9. simply drop and drag the Outbox into your favourites bar...

10. if you restart ur laptop or close mail and then the Outbox has disappeard, simply click the Outbox in you favourites tab and woop woop it should appear in the Side Bar


HOPE THIS HELPS EVERYONE!!!

mail stuck in outbox, general mail problems

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