This site will have limited functionality while we undergo maintenance to improve your experience. If an article doesn't solve your issue and you want to ask a question, we have our support community waiting to help you at @FirefoxSupport on Twitter and/r/firefox on Reddit.

Search Support

Avoid support scams. We will never ask you to call or text a phone number or share personal information. Please report suspicious activity using the “Report Abuse” option.

Learn More

Cannot access Existing Accoun Wizard Settings to change to IMAP?

more options

I cleared the check boxes - Check for new messages at start up

                                                 Download messages every x minutes

I clicked on FILE - NEW - EXISTING MAIL ACCOUNT -

but it just opened the Wizard called 'Mail Account set up'

When alternatively I open the Server Settings, that allows me to change Server Name, User Name and port but not Server Type.

I presume hat I am either miss reading the instructions or missing a step, or have already got another setting wrong - Help please?

I cleared the check boxes - Check for new messages at start up Download messages every x minutes I clicked on FILE - NEW - EXISTING MAIL ACCOUNT - but it just opened the Wizard called 'Mail Account set up' When alternatively I open the Server Settings, that allows me to change Server Name, User Name and port but not Server Type. I presume hat I am either miss reading the instructions or missing a step, or have already got another setting wrong - Help please?

Chosen solution

You don't change an account from POP to IMAP (or vice versa) in Thunderbird (nor any email client, in my experience); you set up a new instance of the account.

If you set up accounts in Thunderbird using POP and IMAP and study their settings pages, you'll see various differences which make them non interchangeable. The message stores are quite different too, but that's not quite so obvious.

Read this answer in context 👍 1

All Replies (2)

more options

Chosen Solution

You don't change an account from POP to IMAP (or vice versa) in Thunderbird (nor any email client, in my experience); you set up a new instance of the account.

If you set up accounts in Thunderbird using POP and IMAP and study their settings pages, you'll see various differences which make them non interchangeable. The message stores are quite different too, but that's not quite so obvious.

Modified by Zenos

more options

Thank you.

the Instructions from my ISP did not make that clear - I have managed it now and am effectively now presented with a new email account in Thunderbird with the same address as before.