Manual macOS Configuration Guide

Set up Small Business Email in Apple Mail on Mac

Add your Small Business Email mailbox to Apple Mail on macOS using IMAP and SSL/TLS. Menu labels may vary between macOS versions.

Please note

For Apple devices, we highly recommend using Apple connection profiles. They allow for easy syncing of Email, Contacts, and Calendars and the setup process is much easier.

See here for more details: https://www.smallbusiness.host/clients/knowledgebase/30/Easy-Setup-Guides 

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Example domain only:

Wherever you see clientdomain.co.uk, type the domain after the @ in your own email address.

Your Small Business Email package includes a custom mail hostname and webmail URL. In this guide we will use mail.clientdomain.co.uk as a placeholder.

For example, if your email address is joebloggs@clientdomain.co.uk, your server would be mail.clientdomain.co.uk. 

Before you begin

Have your full email address and mailbox password ready. Use an app password instead if your account requires one for email apps. Your Mac login and Client Management Portal passwords may be different. Do not add a second copy if a configuration profile already manages this mailbox.

Add your mailbox

1. Open Mail and choose Mail > Add Account.
2. Select Other Mail Account and click Continue.
3. Enter your display name, full email address and mailbox or app password. Click Sign In.
4. If server details are requested, select IMAP and enter your full email address as the username.
5. Enter your custom mail hostname (e.g. mail.clientdomain.co.uk) for both Incoming Mail Server and Outgoing Mail Server. Click Sign In. Do not bypass certificate warnings or accept an unencrypted connection.
6. Select Mail and click Done if asked which apps to use.

Set SSL/TLS and ports

1. Choose Mail > Settings > Accounts. Older versions use Mail > Preferences > Accounts.
2. Select your account and open Server Settings.
3. Under Incoming Mail Server (IMAP), turn off Automatically manage connection settings to expose the manual options. Set the port to 993, enable Use TLS/SSL and select Password authentication.
4. Check the incoming hostname, full email address as the username, and password.
5. Under Outgoing Mail Server (SMTP), turn off Automatically manage connection settings. Set the port to 465, enable Use TLS/SSL and select Password authentication.
6. Check the outgoing hostname, full email address and password, then click Save. If outgoing settings are in a separate window, choose Edit SMTP Server List from the SMTP account menu and edit the matching server.

Both connections must use SSL/TLS. If the account cannot be added securely or the settings cannot be edited, contact support rather than turning off encryption.

Test and troubleshoot

Allow the folders to synchronise, send a message to another address you can access and reply to it. IMAP synchronises email folders; these steps do not configure server calendars or contacts.

If sending stops working, check that automatic connection management has not changed the outgoing settings. Confirm incoming port 993, outgoing port 465 and password authentication for both. Back up messages stored only on your Mac before removing an existing account.

Contact us through the Client Management Portal with your macOS version and error message. Never send your password.