Support Start > Email > Setting Up An Email Program > Generic Email Settings

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If the email program you use isn't listed on the Setting Up An Email Program page, the information below will help you configure it.

Be sure that you've created the email mailbox before configuring your email program.

On this page:

• Incoming IMAP email settings
• Incoming POP3 email settings
• Outgoing SMTP email settings
• Can I send outgoing mail without using server authentication?
• Do you allow "POP before SMTP"?
• My mail program won't allow me to put an "@" in the username
• Summary of mail ports

Incoming IMAP email settings

We recommend IMAP for incoming connections on modern mail programs. You can use these settings to receive email using IMAP:

• Server name: mail.tigertech.net
• E-mail address: address@example.com
• Username or login name: address@example.com (all lowercase)
• Password: your email password (which may be different from your master account password)

It's correct for the username and the email address to be the same. The username must be all lowercase.

Optionally, your mail program may support SSL/TLS security encryption for incoming mail. If so, you can turn on that option. The “port number” to use depends on whether you’re using SSL or TLS:

• IMAP with no encryption, or with TLS (“STARTTLS”) encryption: port 143
• IMAP with old-style SSL encryption: port 993

If your mail program has an option to use something called "Secure Password Authentication", be sure not to use it. It would enable a setting that works only with certain brands of mail servers, but breaks compatibility with other mail servers, including the ones we use. It is not required for security.

Incoming POP3 email settings

We don’t usually recommend POP3 for incoming mail; IMAP is a better choice. However, you can use these settings to receive email using POP3 if you need to:

• Server name: mail.tigertech.net
• E-mail address: address@example.com
• Username or login name: address@example.com (all lowercase)
• Password: your email password (which may be different from your master account password)

It's correct for the username and the email address to be the same. The username must be all lowercase.

Optionally, your mail program may support SSL/TLS security encryption for incoming mail. If so, you can turn on that option. The “port number” to use depends on whether you’re using SSL or TLS:

• POP3 with no encryption, or with TLS (“STARTTLS”) encryption: port 110
• POP3 with old-style SSL encryption: port 995

If your mail program has an option to use something called "Secure Password Authentication", be sure not to use it. It would enable a setting that works only with certain brands of mail servers, but breaks compatibility with other mail servers, including the ones we use. It is not required for security.

Outgoing SMTP email settings

Use these settings to send email:

• Server name: mail.tigertech.net
• Turn on the "server requires authentication" option (sometimes called "SMTP AUTH" or "SASL AUTH").
• Username or login name: address@example.com (all lowercase)
• Password: your email password (which may be different from your master account password)

Optionally, your mail program may support SSL/TLS security encryption for outgoing mail. If so, you can turn on that option. The “port number” to use depends on whether you're using SSL or TLS:

• Outgoing SMTP with no encryption, or with TLS (“STARTTLS”) encryption: port 587
• Outgoing SMTP with old-style SSL encryption: port 465

Can I send outgoing mail without using server authentication?

Our servers only accept outgoing mail from programs that send your email password for authentication. This stops spammers from sending mail using your account. All popular mail programs support server authentication.

We occasionally hear about devices such as an "all-in-one" copier (fax / scanner / printer) that acts like a mail program, but has no authentication option. Those devices are flawed and won't work with modern mail servers, including ours and Gmail, Yahoo mail, and so on.

In some cases, the free email address provided to you as part of your DSL, cable or dialup service may allow mail to be sent without authentication. You should contact your ISP to find out about that (and what settings to use).

Do you allow "POP before SMTP"?

We don't allow POP before SMTP. We used to allow it more than a decade ago, but it was unreliable and had security problems. We never officially recommended or supported it, and like most companies, we no longer offer it.

You should always use outgoing mail server authentication instead.

My mail program won't allow me to put an "@" in the username

Some very old email programs don't accept usernames with @ signs in them.

If you do this, be sure that you use "example.com-address" only for the incoming and outgoing username, and not for the email address. Your email address is always "address@example.com".

Summary of mail ports

Here is a summary of the mail ports available on our servers, which may be useful for technically advanced users: