Testing incoming mail (POP3) settings via telnet

To test the connection to a specific mailbox through POP3 using TELNET, open a CMD (Command Prompt) or a Terminal window, depending on your computer's OS. To learn how to open a Command Prompt (respectively Terminal), please scroll down.

Once you have opened the CMD/Terminal, type:

telnet mail.my-mail-server.com 110

If POP3 is accepting connections you should get:

+OK Hello there.

Then type:

user email@my-best-domain.com

Of course, email@my-best-domain.com should be replaced with your actual e-mail address. If the mailbox exists the server reply should be:

+OK Password required.

If you receive a different result, please make sure that you have entered the name of your mailbox correctly - verify that the mailbox is present in the E-mail Manager section of your Web Hosting Control Panel (E-Mail Options > E-Mail Manager). If the result is as described above, continue by typing:

pass my-password

If the password is accepted the server reply should be:

+OK logged in.

Now you are logged in to the particular mailbox. This means that you have the correct POP3 settings and it is just a matter of setting up your e-mail properly to be able to receive e-mails. Further information about setting up your e-mail account in Outlook, Thunderbird and other popular e-mail clients could be found in these articles:

IMPORTANT: If the login via telnet fails at the last step when you enter the password you should try re-setting the password via the E-Mail Manager section of your Web Hosting Control Panel and try again. Make sure that you wait approx. 10 minutes after changing the password as the change does not take effect immediately. Should you still fail to log in via telnet, please open a support ticket.

Starting a Command Prompt / Terminal

Windows Vista / Windows7

In the Start menu, type CMD in the search field and then press Enter. If telnet is not available, go to Start > Control Panel > Programs and Features > Turn Windows features on or off. Then check Telnet Client and click OK. Wait until the application is installed and go back to the Command Prompt.

Windows XP and older Windows versions

From the Start menu, select Run...
In the Open: box type cmd (Windows NT, 2000, and XP) or command (Windows 95, 98, and Me), and then press Enter.

Mac OS

The "Terminal" application can be found in the Utilities folder under Applications.