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POP vs. IMAP
Summary
There are many third-party E-mail programs that can be used to connect to your E-mail accounts from remote computers. The most common E-mail programs, called Clients, are Outlook Mail, and Mozilla Thunderbird. We have provided guides to help setup these programs to read your E-mail messages.
These programs can use either POP3 or IMAP connections to download your mail. We will take a moment to explain the differences between these two.
What is POP3
POP, also known as POP3, is an E-mail protocol that is used when people wish to have a copy of their E-mail messages, along with any attachments, to be downloaded to their computer for viewing. Depending on program configuration, these messages may be automatically deleted from the server once it is received, or at some future time. Messages sent, moved, or deleted from a computer using POP can only be viewed on that individual computer's folders. They cannot be viewed on other computers connecting to that E-mail account, including Webmail. This option is most recommended for users who like to keep a backup of all their messages.
What is IMAP
IMAP is an E-mail protocol that is used when people wish to always have their messages, including sent messages and message folders, saved on the server. Depending on program configuration, these messages may be temporarily saved on the computer for offline viewing. All messages and folders can be viewed from any computer connecting via IMAP, including Webmail. This option is most recommended for users who connect to E-mail accounts from many computers.
Setup Your Email Client
For help setting up your email application please choose one of these articles.
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tags: computer computers email imap messages
(updated 573 days ago)
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