This tutorial shows you how to set up Microsoft Outlook 2003 to work with your e-mail account. This tutorial focuses on setting up Microsoft Outlook 2003, but these settings are similar in other versions of Microsoft Outlook. You can set up previous versions of Microsoft Outlook by using the settings in this tutorial.

Please ensure that you know the following information before you start this process:

• Your email address, user name (this is usually the full email address) and email password.
• The details of your incoming mail server (POP3) or (IMAP) mail server. POP3 example: pop.example.co.uk or (IMAP) example: imap.example.co.uk.
• Your SMTP details (outgoing mail server - connection to the actual internet). Address example: smtp.fasthosts.co.uk, password and username provided to you by your ISP (Internet Service Provider or Communique if requested).

If you just installed Outlook, or have never setup an email account in it before, Outlook will offer you to setup an email account as soon as it opens. If nothing happens, or if you already have email accounts setup in Outlook, simply initiate the email account setup process by:

Step 1: Going to Tools > E-mail Accounts, and the new email account wizard will pop up.

Step 2: On the E-mail Accounts wizard window, select Add a new e-mail account, and then click Next.

Step 3: In the Server Type step of Outlook's Startup wizard, you are given the choice between five different types of email accounts. You'll probably choose (POP3) or (IMAP).

Explanations to each:

• Microsoft Exchange Server - Exchange is Microsoft's mail server software. If you are using Outlook 2003 on a corporate network, check with your System Administrator / IT Department - Outlook may or not use Exchange.
• POP3 - POP3 is an email protocol, the most widely used for Internet mail. Your email provider most probably uses POP3. In doubt, check with your email provider or Internet Service Provider (ISP), or try setting up Outlook 2003 with POP3.
• IMAP - Like POP3, IMAP is an Internet mail protocol. Most email providers do not support IMAP, some only offer it. Please check with your email provider.
• HTTP - In our case Outlook 2003 means Hotmail or MSN by "HTTP"; if you are not trying to setup an email account with an Hotmail or MSN email address, you should probably use POP3. Hotmail and MSN are Microsoft's webmail (Internet mail) services, which are meant to integrate with Outlook 2003 or earlier, and Outlook Express.
• Additional Server Types - Additional Server Types allow you to pick a custom mail server, (like a groupware server or even to send faxes from Outlook 2003).

In our case, we will setup a POP3 email account in Outlook, using the most common configuration settings.

(The procedure to setup an IMAP email account in Outlook 2003 is basically the same, and Microsoft Outlook support both email account types. Use the information provided by your email host.)

Select POP3; click Next to continue the email account setup.

Step 4: This screen is the most important in the email account setup: in the Outlook wizard's Internet E-mail Settings screen, you will enter all the information Outlook needs to interact (or "talk") with the mail server.

On the Internet E-mail Settings (POP3/IMAP) window, enter your information as follows:

• Your Name: Your first and last name.
• E-mail Address: Your email address.
• User Name: Usually your email address, again.
• Password: Your email account password.
• Incoming mail server (POP3) Example: pop.example.co.uk or (IMAP), imap.example.co.uk.
• Outgoing mail server (SMTP) Example: smtp.fasthosts.co.uk.

Next click More Settings...

IMPORTANT NOTE: smtp.fasthosts.co.uk is the smtp address Communique can setup as part of our hosting package, which allows you to connect and receive emails no matter where you are, as long as you have an internet connection. If you are interested in this service please call or email us for details. If you don't have a hosting package from ourselves, or you use a different Internet Service Provider (ISP) to connect to the Internet, then your outgoing mail server (SMTP) will have been provided by them, it will usually start with "smtp.". Contact your Internet Service Provider to get these settings if you don't already know them.

Step 5: On the Internet E-mail Settings window, go to the Outgoing Server tab.

Select My outgoing server (SMTP) requires authentication.

Then select Log on using and enter your SMTP User Name and Password, then click OK. (These are the SMTP details that will have been provided to you by your ISP or Communique.)

If you haven't already click OK.

Step 6: You will return back to the previous screen. Now you can just run a quick test of your new settings.

After you have entered all your email account's information, Outlook can let you test the validity of these settings with the Test Account Settings button. Clicking it generate a test email from yourself to yourself; if successful, the test confirms this visually on screen.

If it highlights an error, click the Error tab to troubleshoot email account setup problems. Check those particular detail to make sure you have input them correctly before any other form of action. Oh, and the obvious one... are you actually connected to the internet? Just checking.

If all is well, then click Next.

Final Step 7: You have completed your setup. Click Finish.

NOTE: As a courtesy, we provide information about how to use certain third-party products, but we do not endorse or directly support third-party products and we are not responsible for the functions or reliability of such products.