IMAP accounts
If you have set up any of your email accounts as IMAP, you will need to periodically remove files from the IMAP account. Files can be moved or copied to a new local folder. Check that emails are accessible from the new folder, then you can safely delete them from IMAP folders. Any files/emails/drafts/archives etc in an IMAP folder remain on the server. Once moved from the IMAP folder they will be removed automatically from the server.
Creating a Local Folder
First check that your Email may already have a “Local Folders” folder (you should see it at the bottom of your email accounts/folders list on the left, when viewing your email). You can add a sub folder to Local Folders, and it will also be a “local folder”.
Instructions for Microsoft Outlook to create a new local folder – follow the same principle in other software, but the navigation items will not be the same.
- Open Microsoft Outlook to access your email account.
- Select Home > New Items > More Items > Outlook Data File.
- Select Outlook Data File (.pst) and select OK.
- Type in a name for your Local Folder, choose its location, and hit OK.
- Type in a descriptive name for your Local Folder. This is the name that will appear in your Outlook screen. Select OK.
- Your Local Folder should now appear in the side of your Outlook window.
- You can now move emails from the IMAP folder to this local folder. Try a couple first to check they are still readable, then you can move large numbers of old emails. You can also check mail on the server via your cpanel to check that it has left the IMAP folder.
Hint for setting up a new email account (POP or IMAP)
It’s often helpful to view the Properties of an existing working Email account before adding a new account. Take note of the existing incoming and outgoing mail servers, but do not change anything in the existing Email account. You can have several accounts, all sending and receiving from the one computer. Once the new Email address has been tested and working, you can set your new Email address as the “Default” Email address, so that all outgoing Emails will be sent from that Email address in future.