topic Re: How to stop emails to one machine in Tech Help - Software/Hardware etc

How to stop emails to one machine

Yassou — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 16:23:50 GMT

I set up an email accouint for my wife on my desktop, and she has now bought an iPad. How do I stop her emails coming to my machine without deleting emails off her iPad?

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

jab1 — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 16:28:53 GMT

@Yassou I don't know the answer to your question directly, but you could have set up an Applemail account directly on the iPad - this would have given your wife a unique address which she would only access on the iPad.

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

Yassou — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 16:38:06 GMT

Unfortunately I set up a Plusnet account on the iPad. I am running Microsoft 365 on my desktop and Plusnet support couldn't tell me if I deleted the account off my machine whether she would lose all her emails. I have deleted some from my machine and it has taken them from her iPad! Surely there must be a way I can just disable her inbox on my machine, so she only gets them on the iPad?

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

jab1 — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 16:43:03 GMT

As I said, I don't know the direct answer to that, but if you don't want your wife's emails on your machine, a simple solution is to create an iCloud address on her machine, and advise all those currently using her PN address of the new iCloud one - the one she has on PN can them die a natural death due to non-use.

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

Yassou — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 16:55:50 GMT

Many thank,m John. The problem is she has loads of people using her PN account as it is for work as well as social. It is a nightmare getting organisations to change their databases!!

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

jab1 — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 17:00:52 GMT

Understood - I am going to have that nightmare next year when I switch my contacts to my current ISP, but that is the only solution I have at the moment.

I will tag someone who probably knows more than me with regards to this situation, but don't know when he might pick it up.

@Townman - any ideas?

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

Townman — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 18:20:59 GMT

Deleting the account on your PC will have no effect on what’s on the server.

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

Yassou — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 18:47:36 GMT

But when I deleted emails on my desktop, it deleted them from her iPad!!!

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

Yassou — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 19:15:49 GMT

I forgot to say it is a Pop/SMTP account according to webmail

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

jab1 — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 19:21:27 GMT

That explains it - it should have been set up as IMAP - and then you wouldn't have had this issue.

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

MisterW — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 20:02:50 GMT

I forgot to say it is a Pop/SMTP account according to webmail

webmail is imap

But when I deleted emails on my desktop,

yes, but you should not be deleting the email , you should be REMOVING the account from your desktop

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

jab1 — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 20:16:07 GMT

Agreed, @MisterW , but if the account was set up as POP3, deleting messages via a client, would remove them from the server?

Having said that, I thought accounts set upon an iPad were IMAP by default - don't know as I haven't set any up on there, since an upgrade to the iPad trashed the one i originally.

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

Townman — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 20:42:13 GMT

Rewind ....

Is wife@youraccount.plus.com a separate mailbox or are you depending on catchall placing them in the default mailbox?

Do not confuse deleting mail items in your outlook365 setup with deleting the mail account from your outlook365 configuration.. I am surprised that deleting mail items in one POP3 SETUP deletes them in another. The whole (messy) point of POP3 is each device has its own muddled view of the mailbox. If you need multi device access to a mail box use IMAP only.If

EDIT: A while drafting this (interruptions) - deleting on POP3 should deleting from the server illustrates well the begger's muddled operation associated with POP3. POP3 should always remove mail items from the server. Leaving them there and allowing another device to also access using POP3 causes utter confusion. Unless there is an intent to access a mail box with only one client, POP3 should be avoided!!

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

Yassou — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 21:31:54 GMT

Many thanks, all of you. I don't suppose I can change her Plusnet account to IMAP from POP before I delete the emails or account on my desktop?

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

Mustrum — Sat, 10 Dec 2022 21:43:22 GMT

No need, just delete the account, not the messages. All you are doing is removing the ability for 365 to have access to her account.

Re: How to stop emails to one machine

Townman — Sun, 11 Dec 2022 07:10:34 GMT

You need to tread cautiously delegating POP3 accounts as they are (probably) the sole repository of historic emails. Unless one really knows what one is doing POP3 configurations should be avoided.

Is there email history on your PC of your wife’s email which is not on her device? It is highly likely that there are emails on your PC which are not on the server … if they are to be retained … you need to act very carefully - with clear knowledge.