Cannot enable IMAP / POP3

Question

If I go Settings --> Forward and IMAP --> Enable POP3 and IMAP --> Enable --> Save

and then F5 reload, the setting will be disabled again. Same if I sign out and in again. I also cannot set up IMAP on my program, it's not reachable. WTF?

[Moved from Microsoft 365 and Office | Other]

Answer 1

Hi FMR,

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A forum.

Although the settings page still shows options to enable IMAP or POP, these protocols are blocked at the server level for apps that use only a username and password. When the setting is saved, it automatically reverts it to Disabled to prevent legacy authentication from being used. Please kindly check to see if your account has MFA yet or not.

In the meantime, to connect IMAP to your Outlook account, please use an email application that supports Microsoft sign‑in (OAuth 2.0 / Modern authentication). Microsoft has retired legacy (Basic) authentication for IMAP/POP/SMTP. Because of this change, email apps that only ask for a username and password can no longer connect to Outlook.com. During account setup, the app must show a Microsoft sign‑in window to complete authentication.

Reference: Deprecation of Basic authentication in Exchange Online

Here are some steps that you can kindly try:

1. Update your email app to the latest version (for example: Outlook, Thunderbird 115+, Apple Mail).
2. Add your Outlook.com account and sign in via the Microsoft login page (do not use manual/basic setup).
3. If the app asks for server details, use:
   • IMAP: imap-mail.outlook.com, Port 993, SSL/TLS
   • SMTP: smtp-mail.outlook.com, Port 587, STARTTLS

While completing the setup, you can continue to access your email via Outlook on the web or Outlook Mobile.

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