Mail is automatically archiving every gmail email

ElenaInez wrote:

There is an archive function in Apple viewing preferences. But even though it is not checked, every one of my gmails is going into the archive box so I now have 8000+ emails in there.

That is a function of gmail, as has already been stated.

You need to go to the settings for gmail on mail.google.com and go to the "Forwarding and POP/IMAP" tab.

Then you need to turn Auto-Expunge OFF.

When you do that, the option to move messages to the trash or delete them immediately when they are flagged as deleted will become available.

The problem is not the mail app on your Mac, iOS device, or even a PC. It's Google's non-standard implementation of IMAP.

The 'archive' folder is simply the gmail "all mail" folder. Once messages are read, that's where they go by default.

If I had to guess, I'd say you have at least one of your email clients set up to access gmail using POP3. When a POP3 client downloads a message, the server flags it as having been read and gmail will remove the inbox tag. POP3 is not designed for use with multiple mail clients. Make sure all of your mail clients are set up to use IMAP to avoid this behavior. IMAP synchronizes all clients and the server.

There is an archive function in Apple viewing preferences. But even though it is not checked, every one of my gmails is going into the archive box so I now have 8000+ emails in there. I don't know if I dare do a wholesale delete of all archived emails because I'm afraid that it will delete them from my inbox as well. This "archive" box only recently appeared and I'm fed up trying to get rid of it.

As stated in this thread "The problem is not the mail app on your Mac, iOS device, or even a PC. It's Google's non-standard implementation of IMAP".

Maybe this can help, it is a workaround solution to overcome the Google's non-standard implementation of IMAP.

I found this and it works!

You should be able to do this by doing two things in your Gmail settings:

1. Uncheck "Show in IMAP" next to "All mail"

   Open Gmail>>Settings>>Labels>>Find "All mail">>Deselect "Show in IMAP"

2. Limit your IMAP folder size.

   Gmail>>Settings>>Forwarding and POP/IMAP>>Scroll down to IMAP access>>Click Limit IMAP folders>>Choose an amount>>Save your changes.

Hope this solves the problem for everyone!

I'm having the same problem using Gmail with Apple mail. Turning off All Mail in labels, as chunnel suggests, makes all of my mail disappear in Apple Mail. Nothing seems to work. I hate the archive function. Give me trash!

I'm not stupid. I turned off the archive in gmail in both of my accounts. Months ago. It is Apple Mail that keeps putting everything in my archive folder. When I unblock "all mail" in labels, I get no gmail in my Apple Mail.

I have question...iOS 10 Gmail App, iPhone SE.

Before I change option to delete instead archive mail I archived 2 mails.

Now I'm not sure did I delete them, I want to delete both of them.

In All Mails have nothing. Maybe they are on some other place or that's place for archived mails, promotions, etc..???

And where is the switch to turn Archiving on or off in Gmail? I even searched Gmail Help and couldn't find it. If you're talking about having Auto-Expunge on or off, that's in IMAP access. Gmail defaults to "Auto-expunge on" when in turn automatically archives all mail. If you select "Auto-epxunge--off" you can chose to move mail to Trash. However, I still cannot FIND the 90,000+ archived emails in my Gmail account. And when I delete them from AppleMail, they just reload immediately.

Thanks, Eric. Unfortunately I've already been to Gmail site, as I mentioned in the post: Gmail defaults to "Auto-expunge on" which in turn automatically archives all mail. If you select "Auto-epxunge--off" you can chose to move mail to Trash, or immediately delete it (permanently). Is this what you're referring to as the archiving function? If not, do you know specifically where that archiving function is in Gmail bc I sure can't find anything other than this auto-expunge on/off feature. More so, I cannot FIND the 90,000+ archived emails in my Gmail account. And when I delete them from AppleMail, they just reload immediately.

Gmail has a switch to turn Archiving on or off, turn yours off. (it's in Gmails settings on the website)

Gmail allows you to turn off the archive function, why don't you?

I should also mention that it isn't happening on my iPhone. Just on my iMac. I fixed it on my phone.

No, it is not Mail, there is no archive function in Mail at all. It is Gmail's function whether you believe me or not.