How to completely reset mail on mac

Resetting mail on a Mac can be a bit involved, but it's a good idea to do so if you're experiencing issues with your email account or if you're switching to a new email provider. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to completely reset mail on a Mac:

Method 1: Reset Mail Preferences

  1. Go to the Apple menu and select "System Preferences."
  2. Click on "Mail, Contacts, Calendars."
  3. Click on the "Accounts" tab.
  4. Select the email account you want to reset and click the "-" button at the bottom left corner of the window to remove it.
  5. Click "OK" to confirm the removal.
  6. Go back to the "Mail, Contacts, Calendars" preferences and click on the "Accounts" tab again.
  7. Click the "+" button at the bottom left corner of the window to add a new email account.
  8. Follow the prompts to set up your email account again.

Method 2: Reset Mail Database

  1. Go to the Terminal app on your Mac. You can find it in the Applications/Utilities folder or use Spotlight to search for it.
  2. Type the following command and press Enter: sqlite3 ~/Library/Mail/V2/Mail.db
  3. This will open the Mail database in SQLite. Type the following command and press Enter: .dump
  4. This will dump the contents of the Mail database to the console. You can ignore the output and continue with the next step.
  5. Type the following command and press Enter: .quit
  6. This will close the SQLite console.
  7. Restart the Mail app by going to the Apple menu and selecting "Force Quit" or by restarting your Mac.

Method 3: Reset Mail Settings

  1. Go to the Apple menu and select "System Preferences."
  2. Click on "Mail, Contacts, Calendars."
  3. Click on the "General" tab.
  4. Click the "Reset" button next to "Reset Mail Settings."
  5. Confirm that you want to reset the Mail settings by clicking "Reset" again.

Additional Steps

  1. If you're using a third-party email client like Microsoft Outlook or Mozilla Thunderbird, you may need to reset those apps as well.
  2. If you're experiencing issues with your email account, you may need to contact your email provider's support team for assistance.
  3. If you're switching to a new email provider, you may need to update your email account settings in the Mail app.

By following these steps, you should be able to completely reset mail on your Mac and start fresh with your email account.