How To Change Email Type From Pop To Imap

Convert from a POP3 account to IMAP

I'thou currently using a POP3 account but want to switch that to an IMAP business relationship. Looking at my business relationship settings, POP3 is grayed out so I can't simply change that to IMAP.

How do I change from POP3 to IMAP without losing my current emails?

You cannot "convert" an existing POP3 account directly to an IMAP account. In short, there are iii steps to this process;

Remove your current POP3 business relationship.
Add your IMAP account.
Transfer your mail folders (if infinite on the server permits information technology).

In improver, yous might need to practice some configuring to have your Sent Items being saved to the Sent Items folder of the IMAP business relationship but in most cases Outlook will do this automatically.

Also note that you cannot remove the existing set of folders (pst-file) which you used for your POP3 account since an IMAP account but supports email folders. The additional pst-file is therefor required to go on to store your contacts, calendar, tasks, notes and journal items.

In Outlook 2013 and Outlook 2016, you do no longer explicitly need an boosted pst-file but it is nonetheless recommended to do so. For more than background details on this run into: Don't take a chance losing your Contacts and Calendar when using IMAP in Outlook 2013 or Outlook 2016.

POP3 is greyed out for an already configured account.
Re-configuring information technology as an IMAP account anyhow, isn't very circuitous though.

Step ane: Remove your current POP3 account

We start by removing the current POP3 account to foreclose transferred items being downloaded and removed from the server over again and causing duplicates.

Removing your POP3 business relationship volition not delete any already downloaded emails, contacts, calendar item or any other data but it of course never hurts to start with making a proper backup of your current pst-file. This is also handy in case something goes incorrect with the information transfer afterwards on.

Removing your POP3 account can be done via the Account Settings dialog;

Outlook 2007
Tools-> Account Settings…-> select your POP3 business relationship-> press Remove
Outlook 2010, Outlook 2013 and Outlook 2016
File-> section Info-> Account Settings-> Account Settings…-> select your POP3 account-> press Remove

Step ii: Add your IMAP account

The next footstep is to add your mailbox as an IMAP business relationship. You tin can do this in the same dialog that you lot opened in the step in a higher place.

You lot can apply the "Auto Account Setup" wizard where you only need to fill out your name, electronic mail address and password and Outlook will try to find the settings needed for your account. If this fails or if it finds the POP3 settings, yous tin can use the choice "Manually configure server settings or boosted server types".

When yous manually prepare the IMAP, make sure you have the server configuration details at hand. Yous can ask your email provider for the needed settings if you don't take these.

The server settings for the major free e-mail providers can be constitute in the guide; Configure Outlook with an Outlook.com (Hotmail), Gmail, Part 365, Yahoo, AOL or iCloud account.

Setting up an account manually makes sure you'll configure it as an IMAP instead of a POP3 account.
Setting upwards an business relationship manually makes sure you lot'll
configure it as an IMAP instead of a POP3 business relationship.

Step 3: Transfer your mail folders

After you have added your IMAP business relationship and if your mailbox infinite permits it, y'all could optionally transfer your current emails, which you downloaded via POP3, and folder construction to your IMAP business relationship.

To transfer your data, simply select the messages or folders that you want to have back onto the IMAP server and initiate a copy or move command or utilize the drag & drop method. If y'all drag & drop mails or folders via your correct mouse button, you'll get an option to either move or copy the selected items.

Note: Y'all cannot move or copy the Inbox or Sent Items folders since these are special folders. To move across these items, you'll have to select the messages instead of the binder.

Correct button drag & drop menu.

If you had your POP3 account configured to go out a copy on the server and sorted your mail into folders, you'll probably showtime have to empty your IMAP inbox to forestall duplicates.

Every bit an IMAP account does a consummate sync between your mail client (Outlook) and the server, your emails will also exist bachelor again in the web interface of your mailbox and the binder structure will be identical. This also allows you lot to access all your mail via some other device such as a laptop, tablet, netbook or smartphone and any sent items and read/unread status volition automatically be updated to any device.

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