Mailbox Information

Note: This page pertains to Mailbox limits and attachment policies. For information on how to use Email on the Web, click here.

If you have a question about using a dedicated email program or BlueLight Internet's POP and SMTP settings, click here.

Summary of Mailbox Limits

Maximum Mailbox Size - BlueLight Internet users receive 1 GB of space to store their email. Members with full mailboxes will not be able to receive new mail.

Maximum Incoming and Outgoing Total Message Sizes - BlueLight Internet users are able to send and receive individual messages (including attachments) up to 10 MB in size.

Email Inactivity Policy - If you are a Free user, your email account will remain active as long as you check your mail at least once every 60 days. If you do not sign in to your Free email account for 60 days, your account will become inactive.

If you were previously a paid member and are now a Free user, your email account will become inactive after one year of no activity. After an additional 30 days if there is still no activity, all e-mails in the account will be deleted.

An inactive account:

1. Will not accept new mail
2. Will have all stored email deleted

BlueLight Internet's mail and mailbox size limits

• Members are able to receive email attachments of up to 10 MB.
• Members using Email on the Web can send email and attachments up to 10 MB.
• Members can send email and attachments up to 10 MB when using a dedicated email program such as Outlook Express.

If a message or attachment exceeds the mailbox size of 1 GB, new messages will not be delivered until old messages are removed from your mailbox.

BlueLight Internet's attachment limits

• Members using Email on the Web can send email and attachments up to 10 MB.
• Members can send email and attachments up to 10 MB when using a dedicated email program such as Outlook Express.

What happens when a member tries sending a message or an attachment to another member with a full mailbox?

BlueLight Internet will not allow you to send a message or attachment to another member once their mailbox exceeds 1 GB. Email that is sent to such a member will be 'bounced' or returned to the sender with a message explaining that the BlueLight Internet member's mailbox is full.

The only way to retrieve bounced email is to have the sender resend the mail after full-mailbox user's mailbox becomesfree again. The following is an example of how a 'bounced email' message would appear to the sender:

How does a mailbox become too full?

1. Too much unread email is left on the BlueLight Internet server. A member's mailbox may have too much unread mail. To fix this, simply let your email program download all of your mail to your computer and you will be able to accept messages again. You may have up to 1 GB of mail or more in your box so please be patient while it downloads. It may take a considerable amount of time to download a large file or attachment (e.g., a sound or video file). To avoid this problem, download your email regularly.
   
   
2. A large email or attachment is taking up space. A mailbox can become too full if a BlueLight Internet member receives a large file or sends a large file to a friend and their friend's Internet Service Provider (ISP) does not accept the email because of its size. Some ISPs limit email to one MB or less and will 'bounce' a large email back to you. Either of these scenarios will take up space in your account until you check your email successfully again.
   
   
3. Saved copies of read email are being saved on the BlueLight Internet server. You may have 'leave email on the server' set as a default in your email program. This setting overrides your deletion and still keeps a copy on the BlueLight Internet server. Although you cannot see the email, it continues to occupy space that a new email could be using. Eventually, your 'unseen' email will fill your allotment of 1 GB and your mailbox will not accept any more mail. To check your settings, click here. Select your email program and follow the instructions in red at the top of the page.

What about my BlueLight Internet account status?

Having a full mailbox does NOT prevent you from sending email; it only stops you from receiving any new email. It does NOT prevent you from using the BlueLight Internet Toolbar or Companion and connecting to the Internet.

How do I free up my mailbox?

If you check your email and the volume of email in your account drops below the 1 GB quota, new email will begin to accumulate in your account once again.

Should your mailbox reach its size limit due to large attachments, corrupt messages or just too many emails, you can use BlueLight Internet Email on the Web to check your BlueLight Internet mail on the Internet. Delete the mail that is causing the download problem, and you will be able to view and download the rest of your mail using your regular email program.

How do I verify that my mailbox is no longer full?

To verify that your mailbox is no longer full, send yourself a message. If you receive the message successfully, you are under the 1 GB limit.

Facts and Figures

BlueLight Internet email accounts are created to hold 1 GB of messages. An email that contains a full page of text is about 5K, which leaves a lot of room for regular email. Pictures and sound files take up considerably more room. A few of these files can fill an email box quickly. BlueLight Internet allows emails and attachments up to 10 MB. This limit applies to incoming and outgoing mail.

If a BlueLight Internet member attempts to send an email larger than the 10 MB limit, it will fail. The email will not 'bounce,' because it is stopped before it is sent. Therefore, BlueLight Internet members do not have to worry about filling their email accounts with large, unsuccessfully sent emails. But remember, other ISPs may have limits less than BlueLight Internet. They may bounce any large email files back to your account, filling it to the BlueLight Internet limit very quickly. We recommend that you ask your friends what their ISP's limit is before sending them a large email.