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Problem/Summary
I can`t download my email using either POP3 or IMAP.

Resolution
First ensure that your address"s and settings are as follows:

SMTP: smtp.[domain]
POP3: pop.[domain]
IMAP: imap.[domain]
User name: full email address (john@yourdomain.co.za)
(Replace [domain] with your domain, eg: smtp.webafrica.co.za

Check the following:

1) Are able to resolve the address you are connecting to?

Open a command prompt by clicking Start (bottom left) > run > cmd > press enter

In the command prompt type "ping [address]", eg: "ping pop.webafrica.co.za"

It should return a set of four numbers, either 196.31.65.42 -or- 70.84.239.44, something along the lines of:

If it does not return the above the possible causes are:

There is something wrong with your DNS servers - contact your ISP

Domain is still very new and busy propogating - give it more time (usually 24 after registration)

Ensure that your connection is functioning correctly and you are able to see most websites and they are not slow, check cnn.com / microsoft.com / google.com - contact your ISP if most websites are slow

If the response times are very poor, 1000+ (check the time=XX section, see above image) it is a cause for concern and means that you are receiving slow speeds to our mail server. If the rest of the internet appears to be functioning correctly you should contact us and let us know of the issue, please provide a traceroute to our server (start > run > cmd > "tracert [address]", eg: "tracert 196.7.18.82")

Our DNS service may be down (least likely and in any case should never be down for more than a few minutes).

NB: You can fix this temporarily by entering the IP address directly as your pop3 address, it is not recommended to leave it as the IP
Your mail servers IP address can be obtained by performing the simple procedure below.

Click start & run, type in "cmd" hit the enter key.
Type "nslookup" and hit the enter key.
Type in the name of your mail server, eg: mail.yourdomain.co.za, you will receive a non-authoritative answer with an IP address; this is the IP address of your mail server.

4) Can you connect to the mail service"s ports?

Open your command prompt (Start > run > cmd > press enter)

Type "telnet [address] [port]" eg: "telnet pop.webafrica.co.za 110" (Note: 110 for POP3, 143 for IMAP).

If it is connecting you should see something along the lines of "+OK Welcome to MailEnable POP3 Server" for POP3 and "* OK IMAP4rev1 server ready at 03/14/05 06:12:56" for IMAP and you should be able to type into the prompt.

If you receive "cant connect" this means you cannot connect to our server on that port, reasons include:

Your pc"s or router"s connection is being blocked or firewalled on that port, try disabling any firewall / anti virus software that you may be running.

Our Mail service may be down (least likely and in any case should never be down for more than a few minutes).

If you still encounter problems we suggest contacting us so a technician may investigate the issue for you - please be as descriptive as possible. Alternatively for any on-site assistance with your network or pc systems we recommend Nerds on Site.

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Additional Info

General
Article Number:	85
Views:	4931
Created By:	Rupert Bryant
Date Created:	10/03/2005
Last reviewed by:	Aziz Arnold
Last updated:	04/12/2008

Comments
Michael Van Zijl Posted on 5/29/2005 3:10:50 PM	This is a brilliant resolution to the problem, A little tip to start it all off with though might be to check that your : - pop3 setting is actualy "pop.yourdomain.net" instead of "pop3.yourdomain.net" as I and probably alot of other people are used to. A silly mistake I know. Thanks guys

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