New Sky Email Tips & Solutions - so far...

[the_sky_goat]

Below is a collection of tips and solutions that have been posted about the new Sky/Google email system (or Skoogle as we like to call it). I've tried to make it as clear as possible, but it's quite a big subject! Please note that this is not a step by step guide to setting up your email, it's highlighting some of the common problems. This post assumes you have already read the PDF guide sent by Sky to your inbox before the switchover - see the attachment on this post if you didn't.

First of all, some important links:


==Webmail Log-in Page==
The direct link to the Webmail Homepage is http://mail.tools.sky.com this bypasses the main sky homepage and gets straight to action. This has also been shown to avoid some of the username/password errors for some users (thanks youravinalarrrf!).


==Google Help Pages==
At the moment these are much better than the Sky help pages, and have specific help and troubleshooting pages for many different email clients and specific error codes. They can be found here: https://mail.google.com/support/?ctx=%67mail&hl=en_GB Specific help for POP clients such as Outlook can be found here: https://mail.google.com/support/bin/topic.py?topic=1555

I strongly urge anyone who is having a problem with their Sky email to take a look there first. They are clear and to the point and 90% of problems that have been reported on this site over the last few days can be fixed by following the advice on these pages.

The only important point is that wherever they mention username@gmail.com you must use username@sky.com


==Account Unlock Page==
There is an account unlock page which may help you if you are getting repeated requests from your email client for your username and password. If you are sure your username and password are correct, and you still get repeated requests for your details then go to this page to reset your access. You must close your email client before you enter the page: https://www.google.com/a/sky.com/UnlockCaptcha - be aware that on this page your username does not need "@sky.com" at the end.

Please note, this does not delete email or contacts it simply unlocks to your POP account access. If your username and password combination does not work here then your account is likely corrupted, bent, busted, or battered - you will probably have to wait for sky to fix it, or worse still phone them up! Save yourself a lot of hassle and go have a cold beer/hot cuppa now - there is no point reading further (yet).

For everyone else...

Some basics:

The main thrust of users problems is accessing their email in a familiar email program such as Outlook Express. These are also known as POP Clients


==Username==
Your email username is now in the format username@sky.com You must include @sky.com or it will not work - no ifs or buts! However, POP Client setup is the only place where you need to add @sky.com to the end of your username, all other areas of the Sky website remain as they were before.


==Mail Servers and Ports==
The mail servers have changed. They are now pop.tools.sky.com and smtp.tools.sky.com The ports that these servers listen on are 995 for POP and 465 or 587 for SMTP. These ports require Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) to be ticked in whatever email client you choose to use.

Handily, the Sky servers are interchangeable with the google servers, so you can also use pop.googlemail.com and smtp.googlemail.com or pop.gmail.com and smtp.gmail.com on the same ports. This can come in handy if you are following instructions from the gmail help pages.

---UPDATE---
29th January 2007

Please refer to the Sky Tools page for further instructions, whilst we update our guides, as Sky have now / about to turn off the old pop.sky.com / smtp.sky.com server

---UPDATE---

No other ports or server names are valid anymore so don't bother, you'll just confuse yourself or your computer!


==Be Up-to-date==
Make sure you are running the very latest updates or service packs for your POP Client. This is particularly important for Outlook and Outlook Express. You can normally find the auto-update link under the Help menu in your client.


==Creating Additional Email Accounts==
Additional users are still created in the same way as before:

1. Go to Sky.com - Home and log in using you main username and password.
2. Click on 'My Sky'.
3. Choose 'Manage My Additional Users'.
4. Create your new user.

Once you have created your new user you still have one more step to perform before you can add it to a POP Client such as Outlook Express or Thunderbird - see below for the next step...


==Adding Existing Additional Accounts to POP Clients==
Just as with your main account, before you can add your additional users to your email client you must switch on POP access .

To switch on POP access for your Additional email account go to: http://mail.tools.sky.com and log in with the username of your additional email account. This takes you to the Inbox of your additional account, you can then click on Mail Settings, and turn on POP access as you did for your main account.

==Mail Settings==
Under Mail Settings there is an option called 'Accounts'. This is not the place to add additional users! This option is used if you want to collect email from another account (any email account) and have it delivered to your sky inbox.


==Emailing Yourself==
You can't email yourself under the new system - so if you send a test message to yourself it will be delivered to your webmail inbox, but will never download to your POP Client. If you need to test if your email is receiving mail properly you'll have to either use another email account or ask a friend to send you a message.


==Secure Password Authentication==
Do not tick this option when setting up your POP client. It is not the same thing as SSL (which is required) and will stop you from getting your mail.


==Using POP on mobile or multiple devices==

By default, when you check your messages with a POP client, the webmail service marks that it has been downloaded via POP, and instructs the message not to download again to any other POP client. If you need to check your mail on more than one device - say a computer and a mobile phone - then you need to use RECENT mode.

If you are accessing your Sky Mail using POP from multiple clients, Sky Mail's recent mode makes sure that all messages are made available to each client, rather than only to the first client to access new mail.
Initially Recent mode fetches the last 30 days of mail, regardless of whether it has been sent to another POP client already. Subsequent downloads just get the latest unread emails.

On your POP client, replace you account username: 'username@sky.com' in your POP client settings with 'recent:username@sky.com'

Please be aware that the first time you use RECENT mode it will re-download all your messages from the last 30 days even if you have already received them.

Please also note that if you have set Sky mail to delete messages once downloaded (under Forwarding & POP in the Mail Settings) then this will probably not work.

Once you enable recent mode, please be sure to configure your POP client to leave messages on the server according to the instructions below:


In Outlook, on the Advanced tab, check the box next to Leave a copy of messages on the server.


In Outlook Express, on the Advanced tab, check the box next to Leave a copy of messages on server.


In Apple Mail, on the Advanced tab, remove the check next to Remove copy from server after retrieving a message.


In Thunderbird, on the Server Settings tab, check the box next to Leave messages on server

[IWasNotTheEnemy]

sticky me thinks...

Sky.com - Customer Support>Broadband>Email

^ Sky's page regarding the google help - but with correct examples (***@sky.com) - the 2 sections relevent are 'Using POP' and the one under it to configure your email client

[RYTON]

Tried the solution for adding additional users - added a new one - this went ok but when clicking on the link
http://mail.tools.sky.com/

Went to a Google page with the message - Google Apps - Invalid Email

Any ideas anybody.

[the_sky_goat]

It works for me on 3 browsers and 2 different computers.

I wonder whether you have got some cached data somewhere which is confusing it.

Try clearing your browser cache and trying again

[RYTON]

Tried using IE (been using Opera ) clicked on the link again (http://mail.tools.sky.com) went this time to the MYSKY Login page - I then put in the additional user username + password (same password as the primary email account) and once again went to the page

Google Apps - Invalid email

Tried it a second time - went straight to the invalid email page.

I cannot believe something like this coud be so difficult.

[the_sky_goat]

Oh I see - so it went to the right page, but then when you typed in your email details it came up with the error.

If you have tried the account unlock page (see my signature if you haven't) and that didn't work then it sounds like that particular address is one of the ones still trapped in the ether at Sky.

[RYTON]

Tried the account unlock page (this all seems very devious) came up with the error message - Username and password do not match - does this mean I'm still waiting for this account to be transferred ?(seems strange as my Primary account has already been done)

[the_sky_goat]

Tried the account unlock page (this all seems very devious) came up with the error message - Username and password do not match - does this mean I'm still waiting for this account to be transferred ?(seems strange as my Primary account has already been done)

I don't think it's waiting to be done, I think it is in some way corrupted. Sadly, I think that you will just have to hang on for a day or two.

I would keep trying the Unlock page and the main email log-in page every now and then but it's in the hands of Sky tech - there is nothing you personally can do at the moment (apart form find another email provider!)

[4square]

I have been having the same problem with one of my additional usernames. I have tried all the mentioned solutions, confirming the username, changing the password and the UnlockCaptcha. I think it may be because I have a "-" in it. GoogleMail will not accept usernames with "-" in them.

[bramshott]

The UnlockCaptcha option works for me. I don't know if anyone else has experienced this issue but I have to use it every time I use Outlook if I have turned my PC off previously?