Since I upgraded to the latest ios on my Mac (High Sierra 10.13.6) Mac Mail shows the message "unable to verify account name or password" for my gmail account. The password is correct, there is no two-step verification, and the account is active. Suggestions online said to delete any duplicate entries for mac mail in my keychain - but I can't figure out which is the mac mail entry! Any ideas how to fix this? Thanks!
iMac, macOS High Sierra (10.13.5)
I don't use imap - I use pop. I have over a dozen mailbox folders so I'm not deleting my pop account and starting over. This is a known problem with High Sierra - lots of complaints and "solutions" online - none worked for me. Any keychain or other suggestions?
From what system did you upgrade to HS from?
A while back I had similar issues and had to go to the Google Mail site, enter my account and select an option to use a more insecure mail setup. It's been awhile since that and that's all I remember. I know it's vague but any port in a storm, etc.....
I even rolled back my system to before the upgrade and it's still not working.
You said you rolled back so I don't see it as a HS problem.
Connection Doctor is showing red. Open the dialog box>Show logs for more info.
delete any duplicate entries for mac mail in my keychain - but I can't figure out which is the mac mail entry!
psswd and username would be under gmail, there is no Mac Mail entry in Keychain. Type gmail in the keychain search bar if in doubt.
The remedy could be as simple as deleting the account and then add it back in. I have not used POP for a decade— it seems you can move all those emails to "on my Mac" and you lose nothing. Mailboxes created in On My Mac are local.
This should not be a problem. If you have a current backup plan in place there is no need for panic or concern, If you have no back up plan then that is the first thing I would recommend before proceeding.
ref: How to create a boot clone You can google "3-2-1 backup strategy" for more info.
Gorilla'sMom wrote:
Mac Mail shows the message "unable to verify account name or password" for my gmail account
Seriously? First thing I tried. I even rolled back my system to before the upgrade and it's still not working. I'm not an idiot!
What does the Connection Doctor say?
Mail>Window> Connection Doctor
You can always delete the gmail account, than add it back in. Mail>Preferences>Accounts
All IMAP mail is preservered on the server.
I rolled back a day to an earlier version of HS (10.13.5) - it wasn't happening until after the upgrade to .6
I found a bunch of keychain entries for my gmail accounts - all the passwords are accurate.
"it seems you can move all those emails to "on my Mac" and you lose nothing. Mailboxes created in On My Mac are local."
All the folders and emails are under "on my Mac" - so, any emails I've moved to those folders shouldn't be affected? They won't all disappear?..... That's the only thing holding me back from deleting the account.
I found a thread on a similar question where someone posted that there is problem between gmail and apple mail since the latest HS update - he stated:
" Google deemed Apple's Mail client in (High) Sierra as "unsafe". If you have "restrict access by less safe applications" switched on in your GMail account, Apple Mail will not be able to login. The error as described in the question above will then appear.
The solution is to either 1) use a different mail client or 2) enable access in your Gmail account. Here's how:
- open https://myaccount.google.com/lesssecureapps in Safari and logon if requested
- flick the switch to the "on" position
- start Apple Mail and try to sync your GMail account (this should now work)"
Although I had checked into this before, because I have 2-step verification enabled, it said this wouldn't work. This time I tried it - requested an app-specific password. After some trial and error (couldn't get Mail to set up a pop account again- it would only do imap), I finally got everything set up properly. Whew! Such an easy solution - 2 days and countless pointless changes to my os.....
Thank you for your all your help.
macOS High Sierra 10.13.6
Mail>Preferences>Accounts
Seriously? First thing I tried. I even rolled back my system to before the upgrade and it's still not working. I'm not an idiot!
I'll try that, thank you
Mac Mail not recognizing password
