KB / Email / Client-Specific Setup / Mac OS / Mac OS X
From DreamHost
Here, you'll find setup instructions for popular Mac OS and Mac OS X email clients.
All screenshots were made under Mac OS X, but in most cases the interface under earlier Mac OS revisions should be nearly identical.
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Mozilla Thunderbird
From the creators of the popular Firefox web browser, Thunderbird is a popular cross-platform email client. Best of all, not only is Thunderbird a powerful tool for online communication, it's also absolutely free (you may obtain a copy here).
Setting Thunderbird up to work with your DreamHost account is fairly simple. Simply launch the Thunderbird application and follow the directions below.
- When you first open Thunderbird, you may be presented with a dialog asking you if you wish to import existing email from elsewhere. For the purposes of this documentation we won't be doing so, so you should click on 'Cancel' (you can import later, if you'd like - please consult the Thunderbird documentation for more information on this).
- You will be presented with a dialog sheet asking you what type of account you would like to set up. Select "Email account" and click the "Next" button.
- In the dialog that follows, you are asked to provide your name and your primary email address (which you will be checking using Thunderbird). Enter these pieces of information and click the "Next" button.
- The next dialog that appears asks you for some information about your mail server. Select the "IMAP" radio button, and then type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name) for both the Incoming and Outgoing mail server settings. When finished, click the "Next" button.
- The next dialog asks you for your mail account username. Use the full email address (e.g. you@yourdomain.com .. the whole thing!). Enter this piece of information into the "Incoming User Name" field and click the "Next" button.
- During the next step, you are presented with a dialog asking you to name your account. This can be pretty much anything you'd like, though we recommend making it somewhat descriptive (this is especially important if you have more than one email account set up under Thunderbird, so that you can tell them apart). When finished with this, click the "Next" button.
- The final step is just a confirmation of the settings you've entered. If you are satisfied with these settings, click on the "Finish" button to begin using Thunderbird. Otherwise, click on the "Back" button to change any previously entered settings.
- The first time you attempt to download or send email, you will be prompted to type in your email account password. At this time you can, if you wish, choose to save your email password so that it does not need to be entered each time you check your email.
Your email account should now be configured correctly, and you should be able to check your email using Thunderbird. If you run into any problems, have any questions, or can't get it to work please don't hesitate to contact DreamHost customer support.
Bare Bones Mailsmith
Mailsmith is a popular Mac-only email program by the makers of the BBEdit text editor, and - in the humble opinion of this KBase article writer - offers the best editing interface of any email client.
Setting up Mailsmith to work with your DreamHost is fairly simple. Simply launch the Mailsmith application and follow the directions below.
- With Mailsmith running, select "Email Accounts" from the Window menu.
- A window should appear with the currently defined email accounts set up to work with Mailsmith. Click on the "New..." button on the top-left corner of the window, and you will be prompted to name your email profile.
- Type anything you want in the text field. We recommend something short, easy to remember, and easily distinguishable from any other email accounts you may have. Once you are finished, click the "Create" button.
- Click on the "Checking" tab, if it is not selected already. Here, you will define your incoming email settings.
- In the POP Server Name field, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name).
- Use your full email address (e.g. you@yourdomain.com .. the whole thing!) in the User ID field.
- Type your email password into the Password field. Make sure to type it exactly as it is defined (ie. upper-case letters must actually be capitalized).
- Click on the "Sending" tab, if it is not selected already. Here, you will define your outgoing email settings.
- Type in your name under Sender's Name. Technically, this can be anything that you want.
- Type your full email address into the Reply Address field. This is the address people will reply to when they respond to a message from you.
- In the SMTP Server Name field, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name).
- Select the "Use SMTP Authentication" checkbox.
- Type your full email address (e.g. you@yourdomain.com .. the whole thing!) in the SMTP User ID field.
- Type your email password into the SMTP Password field, if it is not there already. As you did when you typed it in the Checking section, make sure to type it exactly as it is defined (ie. upper-case letters must actually be capitalized).
- Click on the "Save" button at the bottom-right corner of the window, and close the window.
Your email account should now be configured correctly, and you should be able to check your email using Mailsmith. If you run into any problems, have any questions, or can't get it to work please don't hesitate to contact DreamHost customer support.
Qualcomm Eudora
Eudora is a commonly used email program that has been around for a very long time, and has a loyal following.
Setting up Eudora to work with your DreamHost account is fairly simple. Simply launch the Eudora application and follow the directions below.
- With Eudora running, select "Preferences..." from the Application menu.
- A window should appear with the currently defined Eudora settings. If it is not already selected, click on the "Getting Started" icon on the left side of the window.
- Type your full email address (e.g. you@yourdomain.com .. the whole thing!) in the Username field.
- In the Mail Server field under Checking Mail, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name).
- Type in your name under Real Name. Technically, this can be anything that you want.
- In the SMTP Server field under Sending Mail, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name).
- Type your full email address into the Return Address field. This is the address people will reply to when they respond to a message from you.
- Click on the "Checking Mail" icon on the left side of the window.
- Select the "IMAP" radio button under Mail Protocol.
- Check the "Save password" option. When you first check your email, you will be prompted for your password.
- Close the Settings window. Your changes will be saved.
Your email account should now be configured correctly, and you should be able to check your email using Eudora. If you run into any problems, have any questions, or can't get it to work please don't hesitate to contact DreamHost customer support.
Mozilla Mail
The Mozilla project's web browser application has a fairly popular email client built into it.
You can set Mozilla up to work with your DreamHost account by launching the Mozilla application and following the following directions (note: due to the rapidly changing nature of Mozilla, email setup may differ somewhat from version to version - these instructions were written for Mozilla v1.4).
- With Mozilla running, select "Mail & Newsgroups" from the Window menu.
- Once the Mail & Newsgroups window appears, select "Mail & Newsgroups Account Settings..." from the Edit menu.
- A sheet will appear from the top of the window, prompting you to define the outgoing email server you use with your account. If the Outgoing Server (SMTP) Settings editor doesn't appear, select "Outgoing Server (SMTP)" from the list to the left.
- In the Server Name field, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name).
- Check the "Use name and password" checkbox.
- Type your full email address (e.g. you@yourdomain.com .. the whole thing!) into the User Name field.
- You will now need to add your incoming email account. To do this, click on the "Add Account..." button on the left side of the sheet. A new sheet will appear from the top of the window. This is the New Account Setup wizard.
- If it is not already, make sure that the "Email account" radio button is selected. Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the wizard, taking you to the next step.
- Type in your name under Your Name. Technically, this can be anything that you want.
- Type your full email address into the Email Address field. This is the address people will reply to when they respond to a message from you. Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the wizard, taking you to the next step.
- Select the "IMAP" radio button.
- In the IMAP server field, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name). Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the wizard, taking you to the next step.
- Type your full email address (e.g. you@yourdomain.com .. the whole thing!) into the User Name field. Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the wizard, taking you to the next step.
- Type anything you want under Account name. We recommend something short, easy to remember, and easily distinguishable from any other email accounts you may have. Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the wizard, taking you to the confirmation page.
- Click on the Finish button at the bottom of the wizard.
Your email account should now be configured correctly, and you should be able to check your email using Mozilla Mail. If you run into any problems, have any questions, or can't get it to work please don't hesitate to contact DreamHost customer support.
Netscape Mail
Netscape's web browser application has a fairly popular email client built into it.
You can set Netscape up to work with your DreamHost account by launching the Netscape application and following the following directions.
- With Netscape running, select "Mail & Newsgroups" from the Window menu.
- Once the Mail & Newsgroups window appears, select "Mail & Newsgroups Account Settings..." from the Edit menu.
- A sheet will appear from the top of the window, prompting you to define the outgoing email server you use with your account. If the Outgoing Server (SMTP) Settings editor doesn't appear, select "Outgoing Server (SMTP)" from the list to the left.
- In the Server Name field, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name).
- Check the "Use name and password" checkbox.
- Type your full email address (e.g. you@yourdomain.com .. the whole thing!) into the User Name field.
- You will now need to add your incoming email account. To do this, click on the "Add Account..." button on the left side of the sheet. A new sheet will appear from the top of the window. This is the New Account Setup wizard.
- If it is not already, make sure that the "Email account" radio button is selected. Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the wizard, taking you to the next step.
- Type in your name under Your Name. Technically, this can be anything that you want.
- Type your full email address into the Email Address field. This is the address people will reply to when they respond to a message from you. Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the wizard, taking you to the next step.
- Select the "IMAP" radio button.
- In the IMAP server field, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name). Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the wizard, taking you to the next step.
- Type your full email address (e.g. you@yourdomain.com .. the whole thing!) into the User Name field. Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the wizard, taking you to the next step.
- Type anything you want under Account name. We recommend something short, easy to remember, and easily distinguishable from any other email accounts you may have. Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the wizard, taking you to the confirmation page.
- Click on the Finish button at the bottom of the wizard.
Your email account should now be configured correctly, and you should be able to check your email using Netscape Mail. If you run into any problems, have any questions, or can't get it to work please don't hesitate to contact DreamHost customer support.
Apple Mail (aka. "Mail or Mail.app")
NB: User contributed guides for recent Mac OS X versions are listed at Mac OS X Mail
Mail is the email client included with Mac OS X, Apple's powerful Unix-based operating system.
Setting up Apple Mail to work with your DreamHost is fairly simple. Simply launch the Mail application and follow the directions below. Please note that this document was written for Mail running on Mac OS X 10.2.8 - later versions may look slightly different, though the same settings should be used.
- With Apple Mail running, select "Preferences..." from the Application menu.
- A window should appear with the currently defined email accounts set up to work with Mail. If this is not the case, click on the "Accounts" icon at the top of the window.
- Click on the "Add Account" button. A sheet with the heading "General Information" will appear from the top of the menu. This is where you will enter the main settings for your email account.
- Select "IMAP" from the Account Type select menu.
- Type anything you want under Description. We recommend something short, easy to remember, and easily distinguishable from any other email accounts you may have.
- Type your full email address into the Email Address field. This is the address people will reply to when they respond to a message from you.
- Type in your name under Full Name. Technically, this can be anything that you want.
- Press the "Continue" button in the lower right hand corner of the window.
- This will take you to the next sheet with the heading of "Incoming Mail Server." In the Incoming Mail Server field, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name).
- Type your email password into the Password field. Make sure to type it exactly as it is defined (ie. upper-case letters must actually be capitalized).
- Click on the "Continue" button in the lower right corner of the window.
- This will bring you to the next sheet with the heading, "Outgoing Mail Server." In the Outgoing Mail Server field, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name).
- Make sure the checkbox for "Use Authentication" is checked.
- Type your full email address (e.g. you@yourdomain.com .. the whole thing!) in the User Name field.
- Type your email password into the Password field. Make sure to type it exactly as it is defined (ie. upper-case letters must actually be capitalized).
- Click the "Continue" button. The next sheet will appear with the heading of "Account Summary." If all the information is correct, hit "Continue.".
- You will go to the last sheet with the heading of "Conclusion" It should inform you that a new account has been created. You have the option here of hitting "Done" or "Create Another Account." If you opt for a new account you will start the process anew for a new account. When you hit "Done," You will be back on the Accounts page in your email preferences. You may close the preferences if you are done.
Your email account should now be configured correctly, and you should be able to check your email using Mail. If you run into any problems, have any questions, or can't get it to work please don't hesitate to contact DreamHost customer support.
Microsoft Entourage
Entourage is Microsoft's premier Mac email client, and is included with their Microsoft Office for Macintosh product.
You can set Entourage up to work with your DreamHost account by launching the Microsoft Entourage application and following the following directions.
- With Entourage running, select "Accounts" from the Tools menu.
- A window should appear with the currently defined email accounts set up to work with Entourage (if there are any).
- Click on the "New" button. A small window such as the one shown below should appear. If not, click on the "Configure account manually" button.
- Select "IMAP" from the Account type select menu, then click on the "OK" button. An account editing page should appear.
- Type anything you want under Account name. We recommend something short, easy to remember, and easily distinguishable from any other email accounts you may have.
- Type in your name under Name. Technically, this can be anything that you want.
- Type your full email address into the E-mail address field. This is the address people will reply to when they respond to a message from you.
- Type your full email address (e.g. you@yourdomain.com .. the whole thing!) into the Account ID field.
- In the IMAP server field, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name).
- Type your email password into the Password field. Make sure to type it exactly as it is defined (ie. upper-case letters must actually be capitalized).
- In the SMTP server field, type "mail.mydomain.com" (replacing mydomain.com with your actual domain name).
- Click on the "Click here for advanced server options" button. The following dialog box will appear:
- Check the "SMTP server requires authentication" checkbox.
- Close the dialog box by clicking on its close button, then click the "OK" button. Finally, close the Accounts window.
Your email account should now be configured correctly, and you should be able to check your email using Microsoft Entourage. If you run into any problems, have any questions, or can't get it to work please don't hesitate to contact DreamHost customer support.
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