email will not send or receive

[KKRJ]

I've just upgraded to El Capitan (10.11.12) from Snow Leopard (10.6.8). Upgrade seemed to go well until I opened email. email now does not accept my password and shows inactivity due to a port time out issue. IT contact says Macs now do not like pop email accounts, which is what I have. Suggested I close out existing account and switch to imap. My concern is losing old emails in this transition as I refer to them for past business history. Will I lose these emails? If so, is there a way to save these emails and transfer them to the new account?

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello and welcome.

It may just be that it lost the password. Check in  > System Preferences... > Internet Accounts and click on the account in question. Does it show dots ••••••• representing the password in the Password: field?

C

 

[KKRJ]

Cory,

Thank you for your reply. It does not show dots in the password field. It asks me for the password and when I fill it in, it does not accept it.

 

[Cory Cooper]

Macs are just fine with POP and IMAP accounts, as well as Exchange and other types. I run all three on my Macs running El Capitan without any issues.

There shouldn't be any reason to switch from POP to IMAP, unless your email provider ends POP support, or you want the change for another reason. Your issue sounds more like a preferences issue with saving your password.

-Is this email account from your work account?
-Do you have a current Time Machine backup of your data?
-Are the emails stored in your inbox, or in folders on your Mac in the Mail app?

C