Email system failing today

[#1]

Might be a bit too soon to celebrate. Just deleted a load of files only for them to come back - I am using my email client and I assume that whilst I can download my emails now when I delete them they are removed from my desktop inbox but not the actual server. So it then downloads them again after I have deleted them!  Hopefully Webmail working directly on the servers will not have the same problem?

[#2]

Since PlusNet took over the running of Totalise/Madasafish email service around 9 years ago there have been frequent problems, usually resulting in delivery of messages being delayed up to 2 weeks or more and sometimes loss of emails all together. As a result I now use another provider to correspond with anyone where I need to get a timely response. Often it would appear their servers run out of space which smacks of lack of management. I now empty all of my mailboxes at the beginning of every month as I was advised there is also a personal limit which may impact service. I only store a very few current emails within the email system but still it goes wrong quite regularly. The usual response from PlusNet support is they are unaware of any problem (sometime have even needed convincing they provide an email service at all!) and to leave it a week or two and see if it sorts itself out. And by the way I don't consider £20pa to be free! Today I have to say was a rare occasion as whoever I spoke to was very aware of the current situation.

[#3]

Although my Inbox is now receiving emails I am still not getting any messages in my Sent folder on my iPhone - get an error - or seeing emails in any of my other folders. Is this being looked at does anybody know?

Been thinking about ditching Plusnet email and moving to iCloud since I came across the option recently being as wife and son now have iPhones and I have an iCloud+ subscription for extra storage (was 79p/month  for 50Gb for years but just gone up to 99p) which I can share with them both, although son has his own anyway).

Have set up a test domain with my domain provider Netnerd today and got it working this afternoon with the wife. (must admit I was nervous about changing MX records etc, but the Apple instructions were good and it worked first time!) Once I'm happy it's working as expected and I know what I am doing(!) I will move off Plusnet email - I'm sure that is what PN are wanting its customers to do anyway - too much hassle for them maybe and no additonal revenue?

After closing the mobile phone service (I've moved onto O2 now for £7/month for 15Gb plus free roaming in 48 EU countries - £1.75 cheaper than my 12Gb with PN) and the sorry current state of affairs with the email system, plus not not updating it or giving customers the option to purchase additional storage (surely the could have done like Apple and charge?) it feels like we are seeing the death throes of PN which is very sad having been with them for donkeys with broadband and mobile phone and recommending them to other folks.

[#4]

Can't help with the iPhone Sent folder problem I;m afraid as mine is now working properly..

I did however have an issue in Outlook on my PC where sent messages were getting stuck in my Outbox. When I tried to send I got an error pop-up saying the server I was trying to connect to did not have a valid security certificate.

After doing a bit of research, I checked the Outgong Server settings for PN in Outlook settings which I suspect may have somehow been reset.

According to the PN website, the Outgoing settings for IMAP should be:

Server: relay.plus.net

Port: 587.

My settings were:

Server: smtp.plus.net

Port: 465.

I changed them to the PN recommended version, the stuck messages were immediately sent and I haven't had an issue since.

I'm just user, not a techie - but I guess if anyone's having problems with Sending or the Out or Sent Boxes, it can't do any harm to check these settings.

[#5]

Still not working here, either in RoundCube or Squirrel Mail. I wonder if the IMAP configuration settings in these two PN web based email applications are correct?

[#6]

Just an update for anybody on an iPhone (or similar maybe) suffering with Sent or other folders not displaying and coming up with an error.

I remembered from previous experience where PN mail doesn’t work on the iPhone. Shut down the mail app and then reboot the phone.

Miraculous my folders are not populating again!

Maybe worth those who are experiencing problems in other system also close them down and reboot

[#7]

Now getting this message displayed in Squirrel Mail:

We’ll be right back!

Uh oh, we can’t show this page right now.

Please try again later, or the links below will help - you'll get details about what’s going on.

• Service Status »
• Community Service Status »
• @Plusnet Twitter »

The Service Status has nothing on Email

The Community Service Status board has an email status post: Latest posted on ‎17-11-2021

The Plusnet Twitter (X) has Tweets from the 2000 and teens.

[#8]

Plusnet email is basically working fine for me this morning - subject to one glitch explained below.

I can even send and receive on Squirrel Mail - though I'd never normally use it.

Send and receive is perfect on iPhone and folders synchronising normally..

But I wonder if anyone can help with a blip when using Outlook on my PC first thing after switching on today.

I tried to send an email from Outlook and it got stuck in the Outbox. Nothing would shift it.

Folders, especially the Sent folder, were only displaying intermittently. I often got the message: "Cannot display the folder. There are not enough system resources for this operation."

This problem only occurred in Outlook with my Plusnet account.

I also use Outlook to monitor a backup Gmail account.

With the Gmail, I could Send normally, nothing got stuck in the Outbox and all the folders were displaying  normally.

I have now resolved the Outlook issue for the time being - but only by closing Outlook and rebooting the PC.

The outgoing email stuck in the Outbook was then sent immediately and the folders are all now displaying properly.

Having said that, I did have this issue once yesterday as well, so I have a suspicion it may well happen again.

Any of this week's fellow-sufferers have any thoughts or advice?

[#9]

Mine seems okay now, although quite slow, and it's working with Thuderbird again as well, so here's hoping!

[#10]

Mine recovered about 3 yesterday afternoon.  There were a few issues such as stopping and starting and many duplicates so I assume that more than one backup had been used in the recovery.  When I say duplicates I was lucky if it was just duplicates as some were far more instances of the same email.  However the main issue was resolved and that's what counts.  Just wish that we still had status pages and ongoing updates from PN.  Though I suppose we will be told we need to be with BT to get those services.

[#11]

Hey there guys, sorry about the lack of response on here. We weren't made aware of any issues from our side until I saw this post. I will keep an eye on it just in case it drops again.

[#12]

@willcutforth 

There really should be a better way of recording issues. You've actually highlighted the problem that you came across this thread by accident.  If there was a location where these sort of issues could be recorded and PN watched that would be a start, with updates on a regular basis.  You certainly don't want all the customers effected to be phoning support and tying up your lines and staff. 

[#13]

@willcutforth 

I agree with Total_Chaos above.  The handling of the recent email outage was not handled to the previous high standard, with links to non existent pages and a non functional text update service.

It has been asked earlier, but where did the Service Status page go, and why would you have thought to remove it?  It was my first port of call when I had a problem, before I risked changing settings at my end.

Now I have to join the queue and waste your support team's time.

Seems it would be pretty useful for the support team to have access to it too!

[#14]

Glad to see Plusnet email system is now OK and working briskly today - first chance I have had to check since end of week.

[#15]

Out of curiosity, I just checked Plusnet webmail (though I wouldn't normally us it).

Both versions are working very well for me - in fact response times are faster than I can ever remember.

Congratulations to whichever team achieved that.

There are still a ,ot of very good things about Plusnet.

The staff were hugely helpful in helping me move house recently and get set up on full fibre broadband for the first time.

It's such a pity that communications are such a weak spot when things go wrong, especially with email.

There has to be a cost-effective way of fixing that.

Had the old Service Status page still been available online during the recent email outage - and kept up to date - it would surely have reduced the load on the phone helplines enormously .