FAQs: Downloading E-Mail from Connected Accounts
Applies to: Office 365 for professionals and small businesses, Office 365 for enterprises, Microsoft Exchange, Live@edu
Here's what users are asking about downloading e-mail from connected accounts.
Questions
- Why don't I see Connected Accounts in Options?
- I set up a connection for a non-Hotmail account, but Outlook Web App connected to a Hotmail account instead.
- How can I bring contacts from other e-mail accounts such as Yahoo! into my account in Outlook Web App?
- Can I apply rules on mail I download from my connected accounts to sort it into subfolders?
- If I reply to a message that was downloaded from another account, for example my Yahoo! account, can I reply with my Yahoo! e-mail address?
- How is spam and junk mail from my other accounts filtered?
- How often is my mail downloaded from my connected account's mailbox to Outlook Web App?
- When I connect to my Gmail account, do I get all my e-mail messages in a single download?
- Why hasn't the status for my connected account changed since I fixed the connection issue?
- What can I do if my connected account isn't downloading e-mail?
- What does the status for my connected account mean?
- When I make copies or move mail items in the mailbox of my connected account, are these changes downloaded to Outlook Web App?
- What if my password for the connected account has changed?
- What's my size limit for messages and attachments when I send e-mail using my other accounts that are connected to my account in Outlook Live?
- What types of accounts can I connect to?
- Are my Hotmail contacts downloaded with my mail when I connect to my Hotmail account?
- How many accounts can I connect to at a time?
- What does it mean when I get a message that says I should contact Hotmail support about "sync relationships?"
Answers
Why don't I see Connected Accounts in Options?
Not all features are available to all mailboxes. The features that are available to you are determined by the service contract for your account or the settings made by your administrator.
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I set up a connection for a non-Hotmail account, but Outlook Web App connected to a Hotmail account instead.
You may have set up a Windows Live ID account using an e-mail address from another service, such as Gmail or Yahoo, and used the same password for both accounts. When you sign up for a Windows Live ID account, a Hotmail account is created automatically. If you use the address of a mailbox provided by another service to set up a Windows Live ID account and use the same password for both accounts, Outlook Web App will connect to the Hotmail account that was created when you set up your Windows Live ID account. Instead of receiving the messages from the account whose address you entered, you'll receive the contents of the Hotmail account.
To connect to your non-Windows Live ID account, change the password for either your Windows Live ID account or the account you tried to create a connection for, so that the two accounts have different passwords. After you've changed one of the passwords, go back to Connected Accounts in Outlook Web App and delete the connection you just created. Create a new connection to your other account (Gmail, Yahoo or other service) using the password that's unique to that account.
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How can I bring contacts from other e-mail accounts such as Yahoo! into my account in Outlook Web App?
You can use the Import Contacts wizard to import contacts from other accounts.
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Can I apply rules on mail I download from my connected accounts to sort it into subfolders?
Yes. Inbox rules work on mail downloaded from your connected accounts. You can use the Inbox rule It was sent or received through this account and specify the e-mail address of your connected account to move messages from that account to the folder you specify in your mailbox. If you're having trouble, see Learn About Inbox Rules.
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If I reply to a message that was downloaded from another account, for example my Yahoo! account, can I reply with my Yahoo! e-mail address?
Yes. Messages you send from your Yahoo! address in Outlook Web App will show as having been sent on behalf of your Yahoo! address. If you've verified the e-mail address of the connected account in the verification e-mail sent to your other account, you'll be able to send on behalf of that address in Outlook Web App.
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How is spam and junk mail from my other accounts filtered?
Spam filtering isn't run on e-mail downloaded from your other accounts. Usually, spam filtering has already been done when e-mail arrives in your other account.
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How often is my mail downloaded from my connected account's mailbox to Outlook Web App?
E-mail is downloaded from your connected accounts every hour when you’re not signed in to Outlook Web App. When you are signed in to Outlook Web App, e-mail is downloaded more frequently. To download e-mail from your connected accounts at any time, click the Check Messages button at the top of the message list view.
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When I connect to my Gmail account, do I get all my e-mail messages in a single download?
When you download your messages from your Gmail account to your account in Outlook Web App, you'll receive messages at intervals. You can expect to download about 400 messages every hour. The number of messages you can download at a time is limited by Gmail.
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Why hasn't the status for my connected account changed since I fixed the connection issue?
When you save changes to your other account's connection, your Outlook Web App account will try to download mail from that other account. Click the refresh button under Options > Account > Connected Accounts to make sure you're seeing the latest status of the connection to your account. If the connection status still doesn't change, click Details for the account and then check that you've made any fixes suggested in the Current Status section.
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What can I do if my connected account isn't downloading e-mail?
In Outlook Web App, go to Options > Account > Connected Accounts. Select the connected account that's not downloading e-mail and then click Details. Check the Current Status section of the account to see why you couldn't download e-mail for the account. The Current Status section will tell you what you can do to fix the problem with your account connection. After you make the changes recommended in the Current Status section, click Save. Outlook Web App will try to reconnect to the account. We recommend that you resolve the problem with your connected account as indicated in the Current Status section for the account instead of deleting the account connection. If you delete and re-create a connection, messages you downloaded before will be downloaded again.
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What does the status for my connected account mean?
Check the Current Status section for the account by clicking Options > Account > Connected Accounts > Details. The Current Status section will tell you more about your account's connection status.
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When I make copies or move mail items in the mailbox of my connected account, are these changes downloaded to Outlook Web App?
No. After you download mail items for the first time in Outlook Web App, message copies, moved messages, deleted messages, or folder moves aren't downloaded to Outlook Web App. If there are multiple copies of a message in your connected account's mailbox, only one instance of the message is downloaded.
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What if my password for the connected account has changed?
Click Options > Account > Connected Accounts, select the account you want to update the password for, and then click Details and update your password information. Click Save changes to synchronize again to the connected account.
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What's my size limit for messages and attachments when I send e-mail using my other accounts that are connected to my account in Outlook Live?
It's the same limit that applies to all other e-mail you send. See FAQs: Miscellaneous Issues.
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What types of accounts can I connect to?
You can connect to any account that allows POP or IMAP access or is a Hotmail account.
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Are my Hotmail contacts downloaded with my mail when I connect to my Hotmail account?
Hotmail contacts aren't downloaded.
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How many accounts can I connect to at a time?
You can have up to five account connections at a time.
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What does it mean when I get a message that says I should contact Hotmail support about "sync relationships?"
This issue can occur, for example, when a connection to a Hotmail account is created and removed repeatedly. When you get this message, see Hotmail Help Center. Otherwise, wait 30 days for the connection to the Hotmail account to be reset.
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What if I want to know more?
If you still have questions, check out these links.