Home Forums Networks & Cross-Platform Networking Email comes into iphone but not the desktop

Has anyone ever seen this? I received an email in my iphone inbox, but it's not on the desktop, Mail app? Thanks. First time ever seen, worrisome.

Assuming the two accounts (iPhone and Desktop) are both IMAP, then yes, I have seen this. It could be the result of delays as described in your "Contacts…" post elsewhere, but can also result from issues with your e-mail provider.

I have also seen a variation of this where I go to the e-mail provider's website to view the mail, and it appears different from what is on my iDevice or in Apple Mail. Eventually everything seems to "even out".

I don't see any grand global conspiracy or massive technological breakdown in any of this. With the complexity of some of these systems, I am amazed any of it works at all!

If one of your accounts is POP you will see this every time. That is the way POP works.

POP can make it a bit of a footrace, depending on how the devices are configured. Whichever device happens to check mail (automatically) first after a message gets delivered to your inbox has first crack at it. It'll download it, but it might delete it immediately, if it's configured to do so. Most POP setups will default to "retain messages on server for two weeks" before they command the server to delete them. But if one is set to "delete immediately", then if they get to it first, any other devices that check the mailbox afterward won't see it because it's gone.

This can also be a problem if there's a delay set. Say the delay is one week. If you don't use your laptop very often, and get it out and Get Mail, you won't see any mail that's arrived since you last opened it, that's more than a week old, because that other device with the one-week retention has already wiped out the older mail.

Things get more complicated when you consider deletion. If you delete a message off a device, it probably won't remove it from the server. It instead waits for the 1 or 2 week policy above to remove it. This gives other devices a chance to grab it, even after you've deleted it on this device. On the other hand, IMAP, which normally leaves messages on the server until you delete them, will remove them from the server immediately when you delete them on that device. This won't remove them from the other POP devices, but no others will get a chance to see them.

Webmail access introduces additional variations on the theme, allowing you to delete a message with timing that could have a random result as to which device gets the message.

Basically what all this means is that if you have all your devices set to use the same access type, (POP or IMAP), check mail frequently on all devices, and don't muck with your mailboxes directly via webmail, things will be pretty consistent. But if you do mix modes, let computers go weeks without checking mail, or do use webmail, you're going to see unpredictable behavior from time to time.

Yah. What he said (and well said).

Great post!

Snail mail rules!

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