Lost email Mailbox/Send/Receive in Mail

[Poppi]

I recently lost the ability to send with my default email account, (I have two email addresses), in Mail, then a few days later the ability to receive also was gone. The send capability is still available in other apps, example send an iPhoto, or a .pdf document.
I have tried to create this account in Mail and I cannot as it indicates this account already exists.
This occurred only on my 27" Mac, (mid 2011, OS 10:13.6, 3.1 i5 proc), all other MacBook Airs, iPhones etc continue to have the missing email account with full functions.
I would appreciate any guidance in recovering this email ability short of deleting and recreating this account.

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello,

A few questions to help troubleshoot:
-Do you have a current Time Machine or other backup of your data?
-Do you have a lot of email stored in folders on your Mac?
-Who is the email provider of the account that isn't working?
-Is the other account working normally?
-Can you login to the account that isn't working via a web interface, if they provide one?
-Have you tried re-entering the password for that account in System Preferences... > Internet Accounts?

Depending on the issue, you may need to delete the account from the iMac, and re-add it. If you try to add it without deleting it, you will get the error message that it already exists.

C

 

[Poppi]

Hello,

A few questions to help troubleshoot:
-Do you have a current Time Machine or other backup of your data?
-Do you have a lot of email stored in folders on your Mac?
-Who is the email provider of the account that isn't working?
-Is the other account working normally?
-Can you login to the account that isn't working via a web interface, if they provide one?
-Have you tried re-entering the password for that account in System Preferences... > Internet Accounts?

Depending on the issue, you may need to delete the account from the iMac, and re-add it. If you try to add it without deleting it, you will get the error message that it already exists.

C

Cory
No current back-up ...my bad !
Not a huge amount of stored mail however some has incident critical info.
Cogeco.ca is the provider
The other account works properly on the 27", as does the missing account on all other machines
I can and have recently been logging in to the web mail interface successfully
The Cogeco account does not appear in the Sys Pref/Int Accts list, only iCloud and my other mail account.

I have considered a delete /re-install but am concerned this action may cause me to lose data in calendar and contacts, I currently have access to all the info in my other folders, (Question #2), in mail.
I appreciate your input
J

 

[Cory Cooper]

OK, thanks.

If you can see the stored mail/mailboxes on all devices and the web interface, then they are located on the Cogeco server. You can safely delete and re-add the account on the iMac.

As for any calendars and contacts, same thing goes - if you can see them on the other devices and web interface, they won't be affected.

If you are really concerned, create a Time Machine or other backup before proceeding.

C

 

[Poppi]

OK, thanks.

If you can see the stored mail/mailboxes on all devices and the web interface, then they are located on the Cogeco server. You can safely delete and re-add the account on the iMac.

As for any calendars and contacts, same thing goes - if you can see them on the other devices and web interface, they won't be affected.

If you are really concerned, create a Time Machine or other backup before proceeding.

C

C
Thanks for that information
I shall work through a delete/reinstall
All the best for 2019
J

 

[honestone]

No matter what you do, it is imperative to start doing backups. There are a number of threads here that discuss backups, including using either Time Machine, or a third party program like SuperDuper! or Carbon Copy Cloner.

 

[Poppi]

Lately I have been remiss regarding backups. I do have a small concern however-
If a created backup is used to populate say, a new Mac, wouldn't the same situation, (lost email etc), be replicated on the new machine? It is likely I will use SuperDuper or Carbon Copy Cloner in creating backups.
I DO appreciate the reminder re backups, ...time to get back into a routine.
Thx
J

 

[honestone]

Yes, that is valid. However, that is why you need to make a concerted effort to keep your machine "lean, mean, and clean". Part one of that is to perform disk cleanup/maintenance/repairs on a frequent basis. You actually can do quite a lot of disk cleanup on your own. Also, there are a number of excellent programs available that can help you with those tasks.

 

[Poppi]

Thanks again for the backup and maintenance advice. Much appreciated.
J