How to change an account from POP to IMAP in Thunderbird

POP3 (Post Office Protocol 3) and IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) are the two main protocols used by applications to send and receive email. HostPapa’s email services support both types of connection. You can find out the differences between the two and which is best for your needs in this knowledge base article: What are the differences between POP3 and IMAP?

Should you decide you wish to change your email account from using a POP3 connection to an IMAP connection in Thunderbird, you can do so in a few simple steps.

1. Disable your POP email account

Select Tools > Account Settings from the top menu. Choose Server Settings from the sidebar and uncheck both Check for new messages at startup and Check for new messages every XX minutes.

Server settings

2. Set up your IMAP account on your computer

The next step is to create a new email account on your computer using your IMAP server details. In the menu bar at the top of the screen, select File > New > Existing Mail account. 

The Mail Account Setup assistant opens. Enter your name, email address and password, then select Continue.

Mail account setup

Thunderbird will attempt to retrieve your IMAP server details. Click Done to complete the setup.

Setup complete

If your server details are not automatically retrieved, or you wish to edit the settings, select Manual config.

Locate your IMAP account details from your HostPapa Dashboard and enter them as follows:

  1. Your name: Your name.
  2. Email Address: Your full email address.
  3. Password: Your email account password.
  4. Incoming: Use the dropdown menu to select IMAP.
  5. Incoming Server hostname: For HostPapa Basic and Advanced IMAP accounts, use mail.papamail.net. For domain hosted services, check your email server details listed in your HostPapa Dashboard at cPanel > Email Accounts.
  6. Outgoing Server hostname: For HostPapa Basic and Advanced IMAP accounts, use mail.papamail.net. For domain hosted services, check your email server details listed in your HostPapa Dashboard at cPanel > Email Accounts.
  7. Incoming Port: 993
  8. Outgoing Port: 465
  9. SSL: Ensure SSL/TLS is selected for both Incoming and Outgoing servers.
  10. Authentication: Select Normal password for both Incoming and Outgoing servers.
  11. Username: Enter your email account username for both Incoming and Outgoing servers (this should be the same for both).

Once the details have been entered, click Re-test and then Done.

Server configuration

3. Delete your POP account

Once your IMAP account has been set up, you can proceed to delete your POP account. Select your POP account in the sidebar and choose View settings for this account.

View settings

At the bottom of the panel, use the Account Actions dropdown to select Remove Account.

Remove Account

You’ll be asked to confirm the account removal, which you can do by clicking Remove.

If you notice any problems or if you need any help, please open a new support ticket from your HostPapa Dashboard. More details on how to open a support ticket can be found here.

 

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