Making space for email

When someone sends you an email, the message is stored on your web server disk space waiting for you to collect it.

Usually, when you check your email it will remove any messages once you've collected them and this keeps your mailbox size small.

Email on your phone

However, your email programme may be set to leave a copy of the message on the server.

This is useful when you want to check email on your iPhone while you're out of the office, so that it also downloads the email when you get back to your desk.

However you shouldn't leave all your email on the server or you'll exceed the amount of space that you're allocated, and then you won't be able to receive any more emails.

Changing the settings

We'll try to warn you before this happens, but you'll need to make a change to your email programme to remove emails from the server when using your office computer.

Depending on the email programme, this setting may be in a different place. We've listed the most common email programmes below.

Outlook 2010, Outlook 2013, Outlook 2016

1. Click the File tab and choose Account settings
2. Highlight your email account and click Change
3. Choose More settings and click on Advanced
4. You should see a check box titled: Leave a copy of messages on the server
5. Untick the checkbox next to that setting, then click OK
6. Click OK to exit all the pop up windows that you've opened

Outlook 2007

1. On the Tools menu click E-mail Accounts
2. Click View or change existing e-mail accounts, and then click Next
3. Highlight your email account then click Change
4. Click More Settings
5. Click the Advanced tab, and under Delivery, untick the Leave a copy of messages on the server check box
6. Click OK, and then click Finish

Windows Mail

1. On the Tools menu, click Accounts
2. Highlight the e-mail account you wish to change and then click Properties
3. Click the Advanced tab, then untick the Leave a copy of messages on server checkbox
4. Click OK to close the Properties window, then click Close to close the Internet Accounts window

Mac Mail

1. Open Apple Mail, then click Mail from the menu and choose Preferences
2. Click the Accounts option
3. Select the account you wish to change
4. Click Advanced
5. Tick the Remove copy from server after retrieving a message is option
6. You can remove messages currently on the server by clicking Remove now
7. Click Save to close the Preferences window.

Thunderbird

1. On the Tools menu click Account Settings.
2. Click Server Settings listed below the account you want to edit.
3. Untick the  Leave messages on server option.
4. Click OK.