Getting mailbox full errors? Here are your Outlook 2010 and 2013 solutions!
Thursday, December 17th, 2015
How can I avoid Microsoft Outlook 2010 and Microsoft Outlook 2013 leaving copies of my emails on the server?
With Microsoft Outlook 2010 and Microsoft Outlook 2013, it’s possible to leave a copy of each message on your mail server after you have read it, and you’ll want to do this if you read your e-mail on multiple devices. However, there is a drawback to this and that is if you are on a cheaper hosting package, your disk space will be used up quickly leading to an array of the much dreaded full mailbox issues.
If you want to avoid getting these issues, we recommend limiting the number of days you leave your mail on your web server, which gives you the option of still accessing the mail from other devices, as well as removing your mail from your server after a set amount of days to avoid a buildup of old emails, ultimately filling up your sever. We have laid out a few simple steps below for you to follow and gain some piece of mind.
(If you have already received this error and are looking for ways to fix it, take a look at our removing emails directly from webmail article)
1. Start the Microsoft Outlook program.
Once you’ve opened the Outlook program, click the File tab and select the account for your e-mail address, if it’s not already chosen, as seen below. (Outlook 2010 and 2013 have a different colour scheme but the method is near identical)
2. Click Account Settings.
After selecting the correct e-mail address, click the Account Settings button to open the settings window, seen below.
3. Choose the account and click Change.
Make sure your e-mail address is selected, then click Change, as seen below.
4. The Change Account window opens.
Click the More Settings button, shown below.
5. The Internet E-mail Settings window appears.
Choose the Advanced tab and in that check if the “Leave a copy of messages on the server” is checked and below that the “Remove from server after ‘x’ days” is checked too. Then you must change the ‘14’ to the number of days you want to leave messages on the servers, as shown below. We suggest you use ‘8 days’ to leave the messages on the server. (If you have already received any mailbox full errors, we recommend disabling this option (Un-ticking “Leave a copy of messages on the server”) altogether for a day and then re-enabling it to make sure it cleans out your mailbox.)
6. Click OK to close the window and test the settings.
After you close the Internet E-mail Settings window, the Change Account screen will still be visible. Click Next and Outlook will test the settings before telling you that All tests completed successfully, seen below.
Click Finish and your Outlook setup is complete. Now, any mail that arrives should stay on the server and you should be able to see it in your other mail program.