iCloud Address Disappeared From Apple Mail List of Inboxes

[PGB1]

I am really sorry for another new Mac question, but I could not find the answer anywhere-
In the Apple Mail app, on the left is a list of Accounts. One e-mail account (an iCloud address) often disappears from the list. I have to go to Mail - Settings and re-check "Enable this account".

Does anyone know why it keeps getting un-checked?
Thanks For Helping,
Paul

PS; I really do apologize for so many questions lately. MacOS is quite new to me, having come from OS X 10.11.6. On line searches usually give solutions that don't work (or sell a program to clean the Mac).

 

[ferrarr]

Apple Mail works with many email providers, as long as they are properly set up. Is the email account in question an iCloud email account? If not, then it will not receive mail, until you properly add that Email account to Apple Mail. For instance, I have an Apple/iCloud/iTunes ID that is my hotmail email address. I can have my Apple/iCloud/iTunes ID account in Mac Mail, but it is just an internet account allowing syncing all my data. Now, because there is not an email address for iCloud, I also have to have my Hotmail email account added to get my email in Mac Mail.

 

[Jimmysb]

I started with my own email address as my Apple ID, and when I was a windows user and this was just for iTunes it was fine. However when you start using Apple devices, and more specifically iCloud then it can be complicated. Solution was to get an Apple email address, then change my ID to this address, however you have to wait a month after creating the email before you can change to it.

 

[Rod]

Back before Apple had email addresses I used my Gmail address to register with Apple. I still have that Gmail address as my Apple ID coupled with my Apple ID Password.
That's my Apple ID for all things Apple but it's not my Apple email address. My Apple email address was allocated to me by Apple once they started providing one.
Initially it was my [email protected], then my [email protected] then more recently my [email protected].

On an iPhone:

If you want to set up or find your Apple email address go to Settings > accounts > email accounts > iCloud > iCloud Mail.

On this page you will see the Default Apple email address/addresses allocated to you and have the option to create a new one.

Bear in mind this does not change the email address that is part of your Apple ID.
What does matter is that it be a reliable, functioning email account. If it isn't then you can change it but changing your Apple ID is a different topic and a time consuming, complex proceedure but it can be done and much preferable to creating a new ID.

 

[Rod]

So, which email address is dissapearing from the accounts list in Apple Mail? Is it the email address that's part of your Apple ID or an allocated email address that you created from Apple like [email protected]
or perhapes an "Alias" which you can also create for your Apple email address?

 

[PGB1]

Is the email account in question an iCloud email account?

Thank You for asking, Bob. It's an iCloud address that I made new when I bought the computer. E-mail gets really confusing for me.

Thanks JimjySB for the good-to-know information. I'm sure it will come in handy to have learned what you wrote.

Thank You Rod for the explanation. It cleared up some confusions I had.

you can change it but changing your Apple ID is a different topic and a time consuming, complex proceedure but it can be done and much preferable to creating a new ID.

Thanks, too for the warning! I need no more "complicated", that's for sure sure.

So, which email address is dissapearing from the accounts list in Apple Mail? Is it the email address that's part of your Apple ID or an allocated email address that you created from Apple like [email protected]
or perhapes an "Alias" which you can also create for your Apple email address?

It's the e-mail (@iCloud.com) address that is part of my Apple ID.
When I first set up the new computer, one of the first things the machine asked when I turned it on was if I wanted a new iCloud address for the computer. So, I created the troublesome one.

UPDATE-
Today the iCloud address in question was still on the list of accounts as Enabled. But, an entirely different one (sbcglobal.,net) decided to become disabled.

Perhaps this is a glitch with the Mail application that (hopefully) Apple will fix in a future update. I'll send a bug report.

 

[MacInWin]

Perhaps this is a glitch with the Mail application that (hopefully) Apple will fix in a future update. I'll send a bug report.

Not happening here, with three email accounts in Mail, so not a system Mail issue. I do rarely see one or another drop offline, but that is generally associated with a server outage on the other end.

 

[ferrarr]

I only have three providers servers with my Mac Mail, iCloud, Hotmail (Outlook/Exchange now), and gmail. I stopped using my internet provider email account back in 2002 or '03. I was still testing their services (free) to find the easiest, and best for my area.

 

[PGB1]

Update #2-
Apple technical support had me re-install the operating system to try to fix a problem that prevents folders (not files) from being deleted & the trash from emptying all; plus not being able to edit files inside the folders.
That folder/file repair is still pending, but the Mail accounts have all been in place all day today and working fine.

Guess they aimed at one target and accidentally hit another. Happy for that.

 

[Rod]

PGB1, Apple technical support's solutioin to everything seems to be the same; re-install the operating system. I'm not saying that doesnt work on a range of problems but it's such a broad brush approach and doesn't take into account the time and effort involved for the user and more importantly often does not fix the problem.
I have been constantly disappointed with Apple Mail over the years which is why I don't use it. My wife persists but she only has gmail accounts (4 of them).

Apple Mail has been broadly criticised for being illegible (grey text on white background), too complicated, constant drop outs, that it does not support background syncing on iOS devices and the macOS Mail app only delivers mail when the app is open, which is seen as outdated behaviour, the cumbersome process of deleting emails, requiring multiple clicks or swipes, problems with emails disappearing when moved to different folders or issues with image attachments being ruined upon delivery, reports of the app crashing or not opening at all, and issues with emails not loading or displaying properly.
I believe some users have become so accustomed to "fixing" Mail that they just accept it as normal behaviour.

I gave up on Apple Mail about 6 years ago and despite using a couple of different Email apps I have never gone back. I cannot understand why Apple cannot provide a better native app for such an essential service. Dont get me wrong here, I love Apple products and Operating Systems I've been a Mac users for decades but I dislike at least two of their "flagship" native apps and so I use alternatives.

I do give it a decent "try" every now and again, after major macOS Upgrades ect. and I do like some of the new features recently added in macOS and iOS versions but, I still find it unnecessarily complicated.

So, whats my suggestion? Do make sure the account in Mail > Settings > Accounts is Visible and Active.
Send yourself an email from another account to verify it is active.
In the sidebar at the top you will see "Favourites" hover your Mouse (cursor) over the word "Favourites" note the ⌄ and + Button that appears at the right hand end.
Click on the ⌄ button to see all inbox accounts if your iCloud account is not there click on the + button and ensure that your iCloud account is (has been) added. If not add it.

 

[MacInWin]

Apple Mail has been broadly criticised for being illegible (grey text on white background), too complicated, constant drop outs, that it does not support background syncing on iOS devices and the macOS Mail app only delivers mail when the app is open, which is seen as outdated behaviour, the cumbersome process of deleting emails, requiring multiple clicks or swipes, problems with emails disappearing when moved to different folders or issues with image attachments being ruined upon delivery, reports of the app crashing or not opening at all, and issues with emails not loading or displaying properly.

That is an interesting long list of issues, Rod, but I have never seen any of them myself. The grey on white is not great, but I can see it just fine and my eyes are now almost 80 years old. Every time I have seen a "drop out" it has been the mail server that disappeared, not Mail. I don't even know what you mean by background syncing on iOS devices as my iPhone and iPad both faithfully match my MBP every time. Mail delivery is instantaneous. Deleting mail is two clicks, and even just three for batches of messages. And I have never seen a message disappear that I did not delete. The images being "ruined" on delivery is another that I have never seen as a receiver or sender. I think what happens is that sometimes people don't know that ISPs have size limits on attachments and may compress large image files to fit under their limits. Unlike compressing the images locally on the Mac prior to sending them, those compression algorithms may not be as lossless. I always resize images using Preview, as it works very well, if I know that I'm going to hit my mail server's limits. If I need to send a large image file, I'll use a service like Dropbox as the pickup location for my target receiver.

I'm not saying that those things don't happen, but I don't think they are systemic or I should have seen them at least once or twice in the last 15 years of using Mail, and I have not. I don't use Gmail, just iCloud, my ISP's service (which is unreliable at best) and a service from Fastmail. They all work well, except for the ISP (Comcast/Xfinity) one, which I don't use much anyway.

I'm not arguing here, just observing that not all criticisms of Mail are universally seen. I suspect that a lot of complaints about Mail are really configuration/server issues but it's easier to blame Mail. Even the grey on white is not that terrible. I find it to be no worse than any other app created for macOS/iOS. Again, I wonder if it's more of a monitor setup issue than the design from Apple.

Mail isn't perfect. But I think it gets a much worse rap than it deserves. Just my humble opinion and observation.

 

[Jimmysb]

The only thing I have against Apple Mail on IOS is to read the next item, you have to close the current one, then open the next, yet iPad and iPhone mail both have an up/down arrow for the next mail, and on the similar subject when you delete an email there is no option to open the next email.
Other than that quite happy, tried lot of email clients, on both Mac and Windows, and Outlook for Windows is my favourite, but Outlook for Mac is just glitchy, so I will stick with Apple mail.

 

[ferrarr]

on the similar subject when you delete an email there is no option to open the next email.

Really? I have always had Mail, open the next email* when I delete an email. How are you trying to delete the messages?

* next email is either above or below deleted email, depending how you arrived at the email deleted. Up or Down arrow.

 

[MacInWin]

The only thing I have against Apple Mail on IOS is to read the next item, you have to close the current one, then open the next,

There are up and down arrows in the upper right corner to do exactly that.

 

[Jimmysb]

Really? I have always had Mail, open the next email* when I delete an email. How are you trying to delete the messages?

* next email is either above or below deleted email, depending how you arrived at the email deleted. Up or Down arrow.

There are up and down arrows in the upper right corner to do exactly that.

I am on my iPad at the moment, will check in the morning, when I fire up the Mac Mini.

 

[MacInWin]

I am on my iPad at the moment, will check in the morning, when I fire up the Mac Mini.

You said "iOS" in your post. That is on iPhones. On a Mini, when I delete a messaage it shifts up or down, based on which way the last shift was. To move from message to message, the arrow keys move up and down one message.

 

[Jimmysb]

You said "iOS" in your post. That is on iPhones. On a Mini, when I delete a messaage it shifts up or down, based on which way the last shift was. To move from message to message, the arrow keys move up and down one message

My error, but I did say "yet iPad and iPhone mail both have an up/down arrow for the next mail". Having looked this morning the is no up and down arrows, so which arrows are you talking about in MacOS.

 

[Jimmysb]

Really? I have always had Mail, open the next email* when I delete an email. How are you trying to delete the messages?

* next email is either above or below deleted email, depending how you arrived at the email deleted. Up or Down arrow.

I assume this is the setting you are talking about:



As you see it is ticked, yet hem binning or moving a message I have always gone to the mail page, and never the next mail!!

 

[Rod]

Maybe it depends on the View you are using? Just trying to think laterally here

 

[ferrarr]

There are up and down arrows in the upper right corner to do exactly that.

When I mentioned them in my post, I was talking about the keyboard Up/Down keys. Just for clarification.