Messages not deleting from Gmail server

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equoox
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Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by equoox »

I am new to using Gmail with Thunderbird and had a stressful time configuring all the settings to get things to work yesterday so that I only had one Inbox :roll: now sorted thankfully.

Next question is how to I set Thunderbird to delete messages from the Gmail servers automatically as I receive them, as it does from my ISP mailboxes.

All my set-up is using the POP mail server for ISP and Gmail.

I don't really understand IMAP v POP and have selected POP for Gmail as my ISP uses POP. I also use MailwasherPro 2011 to filter messages for Spam before downloading them onto my machine so worry whether that would handle IMAP and POP at once 8-[ Have set all up as POP and all work, which is a relief!
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tanstaafl
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by tanstaafl »

Did you compact the folder?

You can configure Thunderbird to automatically compact folders. See http://kb.mozillazine.org/Compacting_folders and http://kb.mozillazine.org/Keep_it_working_-_Thunderbird

MailWasher should be able to deal with both IMAP and POP accounts. You may find http://kb.mozillazine.org/Download_only ... P_messages interesting.
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equoox
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Location: England

Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by equoox »

Yes I have compacted folders but that only deals with Thunderbird on my machine, not the messages on Google's mail server.

I have also checked under Thunderbird > Tools > Account Settings > Server Settings and there is NO tick on Leave Messages on Server for any of my accounts. This deletes messages from my ISP accounts quite happily but not from Google Mail .... anyone know why?
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tanstaafl
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by tanstaafl »

IMAP accounts don't have that, POP accounts do. Another difference is that IMAP accounts also have "when I delete a message", which POP accounts don't.

Take a look at tools -> account settings -> server settings to verify it says its a POP account.
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equoox
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by equoox »

Yes it is a POP account. It also gives options ... "Leave message on server for at most .... XX days" and "Until I delete them", these are branches from the original option "Leave Messages on Server" .... which I have NOT ticked and works to automatically delete messages from my other accounts but sadly not Google mail.

What I have selected for all accounts under these Server settings is ... "Check for new messages on start-up" and "Empty Trash on Exit"

Now MailWasher Pro 2011 is set to check my mailboxes at regular intervals and reports back with the messages in the web based Inboxes. When I "wash mail" to get rid of the Spam with MailWasher Pro Thunderbird launches and automatically receives the messages I have selected to receive, but for some reason they are also left on the Google Mail server, but automatically deleted from my ISP's server. MailWasherPro deletes the Spam direct before it has a chance to get to Thunderbird.
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DanRaisch
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by DanRaisch »

You may need to change a setting on the Gmail side. On that webmail page, use menu path Settings->Forwarding and POP/IMAP->2. When messages are accessed by POP->select "Delete Gmail's copy".

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equoox
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by equoox »

Thank you Dan that has done the trick.

Sorry about the signature, I didn't realise.
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DanRaisch
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by DanRaisch »

1. You're welcome.

2. Not a problem. Thanks for cooperating so promptly.
wpatters1229
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Joined: April 10th, 2012, 11:15 am

Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by wpatters1229 »

I am not sure what you are saying with regards to the settings in gmail. I have several clients who use gmail to receive pop email. They have setup the pop mail to be received at gmail and have the setting to NOT save the emails on the server. BUT the emails are being saved on the server at the pop email host. This seems to be a problem that I do not understand how to fix. Are you saying to go into Forwarding and POP/IMAP and under POP Downloading, selelct item 2 and using the drop down selection "When messages are accessed with POP", select to to delete Gmail's copy?
How will that remove the copy on the pop email server? Will that remove the copy on the pop email server? It does not sound logical or I am missing something.

Thanks
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DanRaisch
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by DanRaisch »

wpatters1229 wrote:How will that remove the copy on the pop email server? Will that remove the copy on the pop email server? It does not sound logical or I am missing something.


It should give your customers what they want. What you are missing is Gmail's philosophy of keeping every message ever received by or sent from an account on the server. You have to specifically order it to delete those messages because by itself, Gmail will keep them to enable users to search through their entire message history.
wpatters1229
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Joined: April 10th, 2012, 11:15 am

Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by wpatters1229 »

So to set the Gmail to delete it's copy it will also then remove the copy from the POP host? But will it then continue to show the mail in the inbox on gmail or will it delete it only on command of the person using gmail?
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DanRaisch
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by DanRaisch »

To what POP host are you referring? Gmail is the host. Or are you talking about a situation where messages are forwarded to Gmail from some other server?
wpatters122946
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by wpatters122946 »

OK let me start over. I have a pop account at bluehost that I want to get the email on my gmail account. I set it up so I am able to go to gmail and see the incoming email for that pop account. The problem is that the email on bluehost is not being removed when it is received at gmail even though the settings to leave the email on the server is not clicked on in the gmail settings. What exactly should be checked on or off etc. in gmail to remove the email from the bluehost email server? I have created a test pop email for testing if the settings someone could suggest works.

Thanks
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DanRaisch
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by DanRaisch »

That's not something managed by Thunderbird. In the scenario you describe, the only link is between the bluehost and gmail and Thunderbird only has access to the gmail server. I don't have an answer for your question but see if this link is helpful -- http://support.google.com/mail/bin/answ ... swer=21288
Kamen
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Re: Messages not deleting from Gmail server

Post by Kamen »

I would like to add to this thread as it is very close to the issue I am seeing. I, too, have setup my Thunderbird client (ver. 15) to use POP to download my email from GMail, on one machine, and use IMAP on multiple others. The reason is that I don't want Google keeping records of my messages (and I asked a former Google engineer and he confirmed that since a few years back, GMail does not keep its own copies of your emails). So, I want to be able to see 30-days-worth of messages from my multiple IMAP-setup clients and from the GMail webmail interface, but I want my single POP-setup client to download the messages and delete those older than 30 days and the ones I delete manually. I have setup "When messages are accessed with POP" to "Mark GMail's copy as read", but I don't want to set it to "Delete GMail's copy" because that will empty the inbox and I will see nothing in my IMPA clients or the webmail interface. I just want it to remove 1) messages older than 30 days, and 2) those that I have deleted (and expunged) with my POP3 client. But there seems to be no way of doing that. Is there any way around it? Thanks.
Kamen
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