You can make a difference in the Apple Support Community!

When you sign up with your Apple Account, you can provide valuable feedback to other community members by upvoting helpful replies and User Tips.

Looks like no one’s replied in a while. To start the conversation again, simply ask a new question.

Outgoing mail server gone under El Capitan

Immediately after installing El Capitan, I am unable to send emails. However, I'm still receiving them. Note the following oddity ... although I once had an email address "drastal@comcast.net" it has been inactive for years. Nonetheless, it appears when I view the "Internet Accounts" tab under "System Preferences". I've asked staff at the Apple Store to resolve this twice before, and no one seems to understand why it's shown there. Yet my drastal@icloud.com account has worked perfectly, until I installed El Cap.


The contents of my Mail Preferences are shown below. Thanks in advance ...


User uploaded file

iMac (27-inch Mid 2010), OS X El Capitan (10.11)

Posted on Oct 1, 2015 4:02 PM

Reply
92 replies

Oct 2, 2015 2:21 PM in response to Larry Sochrin1

Larry,


I will try to restate the solution given by OR_CD in a different way that may be clearer for you.


First, go to System Preferences, and select the iCloud icon. A window will appear showing a list of applications, e.g., Photos, Mail, Contacts, Calendars, etc. There should be a check mark next to "Mail". Un-check it, wait a few seconds, then check it again.


Now, go to your Mail program / application. Under the bold "Mail" heading, bring the pulldown list including "Preferences". Click on Preferences. Click on the top icon "Accounts". On the window that appears, you should see a heading "Outgoing Mail Server (SMTP)". Next to that heading there is a pull-down list, and when you open it (hopefully) you will now see "iCloud". Click on that and be sure when the pull-down list goes away that you still see "iCloud" next to the heading "Outgoing Mail Server (SMTP)".


This should solve the outgoing mail problem. If you tried to send emails and they did not go out before, they may still be sitting in an outgoing mailbox. If they are not picked up and sent automatically, then select each one and send each one again by clicking on the "paper airplane" button. If that causes an error message to pop up saying that you don't have an outgoing mail server, within that error window you will have the option of selecting iCloud. Do that, and click on the button that says "Always use this server".


Now, if everything has gone out properly, the outgoing mailbox should be empty and (if you've configured your Mail program this way) there will be a copy saved in the Sent mailbox.

Oct 2, 2015 2:50 PM in response to Drasticbunny

Thanks. But that led to a different problem.


I have about 6 different email accounts. I had account by account fixed them all, so each had its own active smtp server showing. After I did what you guys suggested re iCloud, when I opened my Mail app, it showed a list of email accounts, each with its own Outgoing Mail Server item. I went to the one of those that showed my iCloud email account (the whole email address, not just iCloud) and changed the Outgoing Mail Server on the pull down menu to the one that showed my iCloud email name. So far, so good. But all my other email accounts now are back to showing for its Outgoing Mail Server name as (Offline). That's what I'd fixed when each account source told me the correct port number to put in, earlier today.


So I'm still stuck. I want each account to show that it came from that account.

Oct 2, 2015 3:12 PM in response to jewels7

Because of the problem I mentioned that occurred after I handled the iCloud issue, I just went back in and unenabled the iCloud email in System Preferences, and reset the port numbers in the other accounts. Suddenly, they are now showing the Outgoing Mail Server name without the "Offline" at the end, and they all are working fine.


So my guess is that an enabled iCloud mail in El Capitan causes any other mail accounts to take their SMTP servers offline, although I don't understand why. That certainly didn't happen prior to El Capitan.


I'll keep checking to see if anything changes.


And if any of you have any other explanation or think I should be doing something differently, please let me know! Thanks again.

Oct 4, 2015 11:37 AM in response to Walenut

Walenut - You are correct, but after many, many years of helping friends with every type of Windows system up through the last one (I haven't played with Windows 10 yet), I'd still always recommend a Mac over Windows to people who aren't technically sophisticated, which is what I assume you are saying about your elderly father. But you are right, when something goes wrong on any computer, it can be beyond the ability of some elderly (not all) to deal with. That's why I'd suggest something portable like an iPad or a Mac laptop to someone elderly, since worst case, they can bring it into their local Apple store's Genius Bar to get fixed. I'd also suggest to anyone like that to not update to a new operating system on the day it is released, since there are always issues that get uncovered within the first month of a totally new op system being released. El Capitan was released 4 days ago, whereas Windows 10 was released 2 months ago. I doubt that your elderly father would have even known about a new operating system being released that quickly.

Oct 4, 2015 1:32 PM in response to Larry Sochrin1

Thanks Walenut. Sure re not everyone having a local Apple Store, but if I understood your message being that your elderly father might have been better off with Windows, the huge numbers of Windows support staff at businesses throughout the country raises the other option, namely that not everyone has a Windows support staff available to them either. And I absolutely agree with you that email is often the mission critical application we all need. Then again, my friends with iPads, who recently upgraded their op systems to iOS9 have had no problems with email or with anything else, for that matter. As for me, as painful as this upgrade's email issues were, I was always able to use email for my business needs from my iPhone until I figured out how to get it working better, though not yet perfectly, on my Mac.


Bottom line, it sounds as if you are a knowledgeable Windows guy, and if so, sure have your Dad use a Windows system. But I'd still argue that despite all these things we are pointing out re our El Capitan installations, you'll need significantly fewer tech support people around in the long run if you are using Macs than Windows for business purposes, And if your Dad needs Mac support and doesn't live near an Apple Store, he can always call Apple Support at 1-800-275-2273. Depending on the issue, they may want him to be a subscriber to Apple Care, but that costs peanuts relative to what a Windows support person would charge. OR if this is still too complex for him, have him go to a local Senior Center, many of which have computer knowledgeable people.

Outgoing mail server gone under El Capitan

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.