Setting Up Mail on OS X
This page will guide you through setting up Apple Mail on OS X 10.4 "Tiger", OS X 10.3 "Panther", and earlier versions. Apple Mail is only available on OS X. If you are looking for help with using Apple Mail, you may be more interested in our guide to using Apple Mail.
Differences between 10.4 and 10.3 or less
Apple changed several interface displays in its updated version of Mail for OS 10.4 "Tiger". To make things as simple as possible, this guide will offer sections specific to each version of Mail. To find out what version of OS X you are running, go to the Apple menu at the top left of the screen and select About This Mac.
- Setup
Setting Up Mail in OS X 10.4 "Tiger"
Those who have one or more accounts already set up in Mail will find the section for setting up a new account on Mail for OS X 10.4 "Tiger" more useful.
-
To begin, launch
Mail by clicking its icon (see icon to the right), found either in the Dock, or in your
Applications folder. - If you are launching
Mail for the first time, you should be presented with a window resembling the one shown below. For this walkthrough, we will use the pseudonym "John Doe".
Note that by the naming convention of the Reed network, his username is doej. In order to continue with the setup, you will need to know your network username and password. If you are uncertain of either, please feel free to
e-mail CUS or call us at x7525.
Click Continue when you are ready.
- The new window will allow you to choose what kind of e-mail account you wish to set up. For Reed accounts, select
IMAP from the
Account Type dialogue. You can change the account description according to personal preferences, but by default, "IMAP Account" will be filled in for you. If you plan on having multiple accounts, it is advisable to keep your account descriptions unique for each account. Enter your full name as you want it displayed in your e-mail, and also enter your e-mail address (network username@reed.edu).
- The next window will prompt you for your incoming mail server information. Enter
imap.reed.edu as well as your network username and password.
- The next screen requests incoming mail security information. Check the
Use Secure Socket Layer (SSL) box. Select
Password from the
Authenticate dropdown menu.
- After clicking
Continue, you will be taken to the
Outgoing Mail Server window. Enter
smtp.reed.edu as the
Outgoing Mail Server. Check the
Use Authentication box and enter your network username and password. An error may occur: "The SMTP server 'smtp.reed.edu' is not responding". At this point, you may ignore the error and continue.
Click Continue to proceed.
- The next dialogue should be the
Outgoing Mail Security page. Check
Use Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and select
Password from the dropdown menu.
- Upon clicking Continue, you will be presented with a Conclusion page. From here, you may add additional accounts. To make things simple, just hit Continue.
- Finally, you will be presented with a summary window showing your current configuration. Clicking
Continue will finish setup and take you out of the wizard.
- In the
Mail menu, select
Preferences. You will see the following window. Click on the
Accounts tab.
- The panel should show the information that you entered in
Step 1. Click
Server Settings.
Check the Server Port in the field above the SSL check box. Set it to 587 if it isn't already. Click OK to store the settings.
- Next, select the
Composing tab. If prompted, save your changes. Make sure that the box next to
"Automatically complete addresses" is checked, and then click
Configure LDAP....
- Click the button marked with a
+ symbol:
. - In the window titled
Server Info, enter the following information as shown, without extra spaces.
- Name: Reed LDAP Server
- Server: ldap.reed.edu
- Search Base: ou=people,dc=reed,dc=edu
- Port: 389
Click Save. Then click Done and close the Composing window. You have just successfully set up Mail for use with Reed's IMAP system. For more information on using Mail, see our guide to using Apple Mail.
Setting Up New Accounts on Mail in OS X 10.4 Tiger
This section is intended to assist in setting up a new account on Mail in Tiger. If you have not set up Mail yet, follow the instructions above for Setting Up Mail in Tiger
- Launch Mail and open the Mail menu. Select Preferences.
- Select the
Accounts tab. Then click on the button with the
+ symbol:
. This will open the
New Account Wizard.
- Follow the instructions beginning with Step 3 to set up a new account for the Reed network.
Setting Up Mail for the First Time on OS X 10.3 or Earlier
This section is intended to guide the setup of Mail for the first time in OS X (10.3 or 10.2). To set up a new account in Mail, see the following section on Setting Up a New Account on Mail in OS X 10.3 or less
- To begin, launch
Mail by clicking on the blue postage stamp icon, either located in your dock or in your
Applications folder.
- You will see a window resembling the one below. Input your information into the appropriate fields and click OK. Note that the name of the user in this example is
Captain Amazing, with a network username of amazingc. Typically your network name is the first seven letters of your last name, and the first letter of your first name.
- Mail will ask if you want to import mailboxes. Click No. Note: You may get errors about how "Connection to mail server failed", or "Enter password for account". It is safe to ignore these errors and continue with the setup.
- In
Mail, open the
Mail menu. Select
Preferences. You will see the following window. Click on the
Accounts tab.
- You should see the information that you entered in
Step 1. Click
Server Settings.
- Check the box marked
Use Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and click
OK. Also select
Password from the
Authentication menu and fill in your network username and password.
- Click the
Advanced tab and check the box marked
Use SSL and then click
OK. Then select the
Composing tab. If asked,
Save your changes. Make sure that the box marked
Automatically complete addresses is checked. Click the button that says
Configure LDAP.
- Click the button marked with a
+ symbol:
.
- In the window titled
Server Info, enter the following information as shown, without extra spaces.
- Name: Reed LDAP Server
- Server: ldap.reed.edu
- Search Base: ou=people,dc=reed,dc=edu
- Port: 389
Click Save. Then click Done and close the Composing window. You have just successfully set up Mail for use with Reed's IMAP system. For more information on using Mail, see the Using Mail section on this page.
Creating a New Account on OS X 10.3 or Less
- Launch Mail and open the Mail icon. Select Preferences
- Select the
Accounts tab and click on the
+ button:
. A new account will appear. Enter the following information.
- Account Type: IMAP
- Description: Reed IMAP
- Enter your username and e-mail address
- Incoming E-mail Server: imap.reed.edu
- Username: Your network username.
-
Password: Your network password.
- Select
Add Server from the menu marked
Outgoing Mail Server. Check the box marked
Use Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and click
OK. Select
Password from the
Authentication menu, and fill in your username and password.
- Select the Composing tab. From here, you may follow Step 7 in the instructions above to complete the setup of your new account.
Now that you've finished setting up Apple Mail, you may be more interested in our guide to using Apple Mail.