I'm having a frustrating issue with a Comcast/Xfinity email account on a MacBook. The user can send and receive emails just fine on her iPhone and iPad, and she can also access webmail without any problems. However, on her MacBook, she's only able to receive emails but can't send them at all while using Outlook as her mail client. I even tried adding her account to Apple Mail, but the same issue persists. When attempting to send an email, it bounces back with an error message indicating a problem with the SMTP server and an authentication failure. I've checked to make sure the settings match those on her other devices, so I'm stumped. Any insights on what might be causing this issue would be greatly appreciated!
2 Answers
It sounds like the SMTP server is rejecting the login. The error message you're seeing, 535 5.7.0, typically means there's an issue with authentication. Make sure that in both Outlook and Apple Mail, the outgoing server is set to smtp.comcast.net using port 587 or 465 with SSL. Also, check to see if the 'Use same username and password for outgoing server' option is enabled. If she has two-step verification, an app-specific password might be necessary. Sometimes, even a small typo in the password can cause this error, so it's worth double-checking that too!
Just to add on, follow these recommended settings for both incoming and outgoing servers to ensure everything is correct:
**Incoming Mail Server (IMAP)**:
- Server: imap.comcast.net
- Port: 993
- Security: SSL/TLS
- Username: Full Comcast email address
- Password: Xfinity password
**Outgoing Mail Server (SMTP)**:
- Server: smtp.comcast.net
- Port: 587 or 465
- Security: SSL/TLS required
- Authentication: Yes
- Username: Full email address
- Password: Xfinity password
Also, ensure that 'Third-Party Access Security' is enabled in the Xfinity settings before trying to set up Outlook or Apple Mail. It can make a difference!
You mentioned you've checked all those settings, but try toggling the third-party access off and back on again just in case; sometimes that helps reset things!