When I send an email message using Outlook, the recipient receives multiple copies! How can I fix this?

If you are having problems with emails getting stuck in your Outlook Outbox and sending multiple times, follow these instructions.

This tutorial was created for Outlook 2007, but the 2007 and 2003 versions are very similar, so Outlook 2003 users should still find this tutorial helpful.

First, attempt to clear your inbox.

  1. Highlight your Outbox in the left pane of the Outlook application. If you do not see the Outbox in the list, click the small + symbol next to “Personal Folders” in the left pane, and the Outbox should appear.
  2. When you highlight the Outbox, a list of one or more emails should appear. If you see old emails you know have been sent, those are the emails that are stuck in your Outbox.
  3. Try to remove the stuck emails by right-clicking on the email and selecting “delete” from the menu that pops up. If this works, great! If there is an error, don’t worry. Regardless of the results, move on to step 4.

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Second, change your outgoing mail server.

  1. Click the “Tools” menu at the top of the application window, then click “Account Settings” from the drop-down menu.

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This is where Outlook 2007 and 2003 might look a little bit different, but the actions are basically the same.

  1. A new window should pop up that shows the names of any email accounts you have configured to work with Outlook. Highlight the name of your eecs email account and double-click it, OR once it’s highlighted, look for a button that allows you to edit/change the account.

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  1. Look for the text “Outgoing mail server (SMTP)” and the text input box associated with it. The text box should read “smtp.eecs.umich.edu” OR “mail.eecs.umich.edu” OR “newman.eecs.umich.edu.” Now change the entry in this text box as follows:
    1. IF your current SMTP server is set to smtp.eecs.umich.edu or newman.eecs.umich.edu, change it to mail.eecs.umich.edu.
    2. IF your current SMTP server is set to mail.eecs.umich.edu, change it to newman.eecs.umich.edu

http://www.eecs.umich.edu/dco/files/images/clear_outbox_4.jpg

  1. Finally, click “Next,” or “OK” to save the new settings. Restart your Outlook client once your account settings have been changed. Check to confirm that the stuck messages are no longer in your Outbox. If you are still experiencing problems after you make the changes or are having problems changing your SMTP server settings, feel free to contact us at help@eecs.umich.edu.