Note: These instructions follow the version of the software noted above. For other versions, there may be some variation, but the information below should serve as a guide to get you started. To identify the version of your software, look for the About link in the software's main menu or Help menu.

1. Open Mozilla Thunderbird. The New Account Setup window will open. Verify that Email account is selected, and click Continue. The Identity window will open.
   Note: If you have configured Mozilla Thunderbird on this computer before, you need to add another account to access UMail. Go to Tools > Account Settings, and click Add Account (lower left). After the New Account Setup window opens, you can use the following instructions to configure your UMail account.
2. In the Identity window:
   • In the Your Name field, enter your name.
     Note: This will appear in the From field of your outgoing messages.
   • In the Email Address field, enter your UMail address (e.g., xxyy@student.umass.edu).
   • Click Continue. The Server Information window will open.
3. In the Server Information window:
   • Select IMAP as the type of incoming server.
   • In the Incoming Server field, enter mail-?.oit.umass.edu where ? is the first letter of your OIT Account NetID.
   • In the Outgoing Server field, enter mail-auth.oit.umass.edu.
     Note: If you have previously configured Mozilla Thunderbird on this computer, you will not be prompted for an outgoing mail server. After configuring this account, you can go to Tools > Account Settings to configure the UMail outgoing server.
   • Click Continue. The User Names window will open.
4. In the User Names window, enter your NetID in both the Incoming User Name and the Outgoing User Name fields. Click Continue. The Account Name window will open.
5. In the Account Name window, name your account (e.g., UMass email), and then click Continue.
6. Verify your information, then click Done. You will receive an error message stating that Thunderbird could not connect to your mail server. Before Thunderbird can download your email messages, you have a few remaining steps to complete. Click OK.
7. In Thunderbird, go to Tools > Account Settings...
8. In the Account Settings window, at left, under your new account, click Server Settings.
9. In the Server Settings display, under Security Settings > Use secure connection (SSL), select SSL. The Port number above will change to 993.
10. Still in the Account Settings window, in the panel at left, click Outgoing Server (SMTP).
11. In the Outgoing Server (SMTP) Settings display, select your outgoing server name and click Edit....
12. In the Settings display, under Security and Authentication > Use secure connection, select SSL. The Port number above will change to 465. Click OK.
13. In the Account Settings display, click OK.
14. To view your email messages, click Get Mail (upper left corner in the Mozilla Thunderbird main window). You will be prompted for your OIT Account password.
    
15. To check that your outgoing mail settings are correct, use Mozilla Thunderbird to send a message to your UMail address. You will need to enter your OIT Account password to send the message. The message should appear momentarily in your Mozilla Thunderbird Inbox.

Congratulations! Mozilla Thunderbird is now configured to send and receive messages for your UMail account.

Now that you've finished setting up your mail to access UMail, we suggest that you configure your software to look up UMass Amherst email addresses. To learn how, follow the link under Related Pages, below.

Related Pages

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