When IntelliDesk can't sign in to a desk's mailbox, the mailbox card shows a red Error badge and an Email account error box with the reason. While it's in Error, IntelliDesk stops checking the mailbox, so no new email arrives as tickets and replies may fail to send. Your email isn't lost: it stays in the mailbox until you reconnect.
You'll find the card under Settings → Help Desks → your desk → Channels. You need to be a manager of the desk to disconnect and reconnect it.
Retrying is not the same as Error
A single failed check doesn't put a mailbox in Error. If the mail server or Google/Microsoft doesn't answer, the card keeps its Connected badge and shows a Sync is retrying notice, such as Last sync attempt failed (2 in a row) — retrying automatically. IntelliDesk tries again on the next 5-minute check, and the notice disappears as soon as a check succeeds. You don't need to do anything.
The mailbox moves to Error when:
- the mailbox rejects the sign-in (wrong or changed password, expired app password, access revoked). This happens straight away. The box reads The mailbox rejected our sign-in, so sync is paused.
- 5 checks in a row fail for any other reason (about 25 minutes). The box reads Sync is paused after repeated failures.
Why it happens
The most common causes:
- The mailbox password was changed, or an app password was deleted or expired.
- Someone removed IntelliDesk's access in their Google or Microsoft account security settings.
- Microsoft's sign-in expired. The error reads Microsoft authentication expired. Please reconnect your Outlook account.
- The mail server was unreachable for a longer stretch (IMAP mailboxes).
Recent events under the card shows when it started failing and the error each time.
First, try Sync mailbox
If the problem was temporary (for example the mail server was down for a while), click Sync mailbox. If it works, the badge goes back to Connected, automatic checking resumes, and email that arrived in the meantime is picked up. If it fails again, you'll see Sync failed with the reason; follow the steps for your mailbox type below.
IMAP/SMTP mailboxes: Edit settings
For a changed or expired password, you don't need to disconnect:
- Click Edit settings on the card.
- Enter the password again. For Gmail, Yahoo, iCloud and Zoho with two-step sign-in, this is a new app password.
- Click Test connection and wait for OK next to both IMAP and SMTP.
- Click Save changes.
IntelliDesk checks the mailbox straight away. Your existing tickets and the sync position are kept, so email that arrived while it was broken is picked up too.
Gmail and Outlook / Office 365: disconnect and connect again
- Click Disconnect. Existing tickets and messages stay where they are.
- Decide on Skip initial sync (recommended) (see the next section).
- Click Connect Gmail or Connect Outlook / Office 365 and sign in as the mailbox itself, for example support@yourcompany.com. IntelliDesk reads the inbox of whichever account you sign in with, so check the address shown on the card afterwards.
- Approve the permissions IntelliDesk asks for.
For Microsoft 365 sign-in problems (admin approval, Conditional Access, wrong account), see Fixing Outlook and Microsoft 365 connection errors.
Catching up on email that arrived while it was broken
When you reconnect Gmail or Outlook with Skip initial sync switched on (the default), only email arriving after you reconnect becomes tickets. Anything that came in while the mailbox was in Error is left in the mailbox.
To bring those emails in, switch Skip initial sync off before you click Connect:
- Gmail: the 25 most recent emails in the inbox are checked.
- Outlook / Office 365: everything in the inbox is checked, so only do this if the inbox doesn't hold a large backlog of old mail.
Emails IntelliDesk has already imported are recognised and skipped, so this doesn't create duplicates. Customer replies are added to their existing tickets rather than opening new ones.
Afterwards
- Send a test email from a different address and click Sync mailbox to confirm it arrives.
- Look for replies your team sent while the mailbox was broken. Each one that couldn't go out has an internal note from IntelliDesk starting Couldn't email the customer. Send those again (see Why didn't my customer get our reply?).
When to contact support
If Test connection passes (IMAP) or the sign-in completes (Gmail, Outlook) but the card goes back to Error straight away, contact IntelliDesk support with the desk name and the error shown on the card.
Related: Why aren't my emails arriving as tickets? · Connecting a mailbox: Gmail, Outlook, and IMAP · IMAP/SMTP connection errors: app passwords, servers and ports