Set up Earthlink email in Outlook Express

Earthlink internet plans generally come with eight email addresses. Though these accounts can be accessed via a web browser, a better way is to set up the Earthlink email in Outlook Express which is a popular email program for XP and some older versions of the Windows operating system. Here are the instructions along with screenshots.

Earthlink in Outlook Express – set up and configuration

At the time of writing, Earthlink email can be set up on Outlook Express through the POP email protocol only. Though, by default, POP will download email and delete them from the Earthlink server, you can change the account settings in the email program to leave a copy of the message on the remote system. These would then be available from any computer via the Earthlink webmail interface.

1. Open Outlook Express and select “Accounts” from the “Tools” menu – [Slide 1].
2. In the Internet Accounts pop-up, click the “Add” button and choose “Mail” – [Slide 2].
3. Put a display name in the blank field. This can be anything you want but I recommend using your actual name or that of your business because this is how the recipients will recognize messages from you – [Slide 3].
4. Type in the full Earthlink email address – [Slide 4].
5. Making sure POP3 is select in the “My incoming mail server is a” drop down, provide the Earthlink mail settings – incoming and outgoing server – [Slide 5].
   Incoming: pop.earthlink.net
   Outgoing: smtpauth.earthlink.net
6. For the “Account name” put the full email address and then the account password – [Slide 6]. Ensure that “Remember password” is checked else you will be prompted to provide the login information each time the program connects to the Earthlink server.
7. Click “Finish” to go back to the Internet Accounts pop-up – [Slide 7].
8. It’s now time to configure the newly set up Earthlink account in Outlook Express. Select it and hit the “Properties” button – [Slide 8].
9. Move to the “Servers” tab, put a tick in front of “My server requires authentication” and click the “Settings” button – refer Slide 9.
10. Select “Log on using” option [Slide 10] and enter the full Earthlink email address in the “Account name” field and then the password. Check “Remember password” – [Slide 11].
11. Under the “Advanced” tab, put 587 as the “Outgoing mail (SMTP)” port – [Slide 12].
12. Click “Apply” and then “OK” and close the Internet Accounts pop-up. Start receiving and sending messages because your Earthlink email account has successfully been set up in Outlook Express.

Though only POP can be used to set up Earthlink email on Outlook Express, there is also a way to get the messages using IMAP. The trick is to forward messages to another service that has this option and then add that account in the email program. Read how to access Earthlink using IMAP for more information.