Basics: Adding email accounts to Outlook desktop for Windows

The basic instructions on how to add an email account are included in; Add an email account to Outlook - Microsoft Support

Purpose of this article is to cover a variety pf things that get overlooked (are not obvious)

1. When you add an account by just entering the email address / password for the account it will be configured as an IMAP account by default using the <auto-discover> process unless the account is hosted on an Exchange server (which includes Outlook.com)
   
   *** this is important to keep in mind if you are moving Outlook from another machine especially if it was configured as a POP account on the old machine and you want to keep it as a POP account
   

2. A POP account must be explicitly configured manually as a POP account. This is done by
   
   a) click on <Advanced Options under the email address box when adding the account
   b) check the box for “Let me set up my account manually”
   c) click on <Connect>
   d) select POP and proceed accordingly
   
   If you are movng Outlook from another machne, be sure to copy the PST file from the old machine to the new machine and configure the POP account to use the existing PST file.
   
   If for any reason, the option does not appear to select an existing PST file, continue with the process and change the PST file when it is all done as described under “Changing PST files”

   
   
   

   

   Unless you explicitly set Outlook to use an existing PST file when you initially configure a new POP account, it will automatically create a new PST file and email will be delivered to it.

   Two of the most common scenarios where you want to set Outlook to use an existing PST file are when you are moving from another machine or configuring multiple POP accounts in the same profile.

   In the case where you are configuring multiple accounts in the same Outlook profile for the first time and want all accounts to use the same PST file, what you need to do is

   1. Configure the first account normally letting Outlook create a new PST file instead of selecting an existing PST file

   2. When done, from within Outlook, go to
      
      <File> --> <Account Settings> --> <Account Settings> --> <Email> tab
      
      a) select the POP account

      b) take note of the full folder path and file name beside the <Change Folder> button

       

   3. Continue configuring the rest of the POP account and be sure to use the existing PST file for the subsequent accounts

      
      If for any reason the option to select an existing PST file does not appear in the dialog you are presented with, continue configuring the account letting Outlook create a new PST file and then follow the instructions to change the delivery PST file as described in the following article under the sectio
      
      Basics: When to use the Control Panel Mail app for Outlook - Microsoft Community
      
      *** while the same steps can be followed from within Outlook by going to
      <File> --> <Account Settings> --> <Account Settings> --> <Data Files> tab
      would suggest doing this with Outlook closed to avoid potential issues

       

    

   Changing the account type after it has been added

   There are times when an account was configured using the wrong protocol and you want to “fix” it or you just want to change the protocol to take advantage of some particular features.

   In short, there is no way to “change” the protocol for an existing account. The account must first be removed and then re-added using the correct protocol. Starting with Outlook ‘2013, it is not possible to add the same email account using different protocols to exist in the profile at the-same time.

   The only way to “change” the protocol for an account is to remove it and then re-add it with the desired protocol. Important things to keep in mind before you do that are:

   1. When removing a POP account, the PST file associated with that account is not removed. It will remain in the Outlook Nav Pane (folder list) since the PST fie does not get removed from the Outlook profile

   2. If you remove an IMAP account that has “This Computer Only” folders (i.e. contact / calendar) with data that you do not want to lose be sure to export those folders to a PST file
      
      Export emails, contacts, and calendar items to Outlook using a .pst file - Microsoft Support

       

   SMTP (outgoing) server log in credentials are different from the <inbound> (POP or IMAP) server
   

   There are accounts where the log in credentials are different for the inbound (POP or IMAP) server then the outbound (SMTP) server. These account cannot be configured from within Outlook. They must be added to the Outlook profile using the Control Panel Mail app. It is not something that can be done when adding an account via Outlook (version ‘2013 or later)

   For detailed info on the Control Panel Mail app see:
   Basics: When to use the Control Panel Mail app for Outlook - Microsoft Community

   
   Creating an Outlook profile without an email account
   

   Starting with Outlook ‘2016, Outlook requires at least one email account to be configured before it will create an Outlook profle. To get around this, start Outlook using the following command as described in
   
   Use Outlook without an email account - Microsoft Support
   

   For related articles in the Basics series

   Basics - Series Overview - Microsoft Community
   

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