After connecting to Yahoo for 6 weeks, it suddenly times out when downloading messages
Thunderbird version number: 148.0.1 Mail provider: Yahoo Client OS: Windows 10
The issue and steps I tried to resolve: On 1 Jan 2026 I switched from Outlook client on my Windows 10 PC to Thunderbird 146.0.1. I did not import any user data from Outlook but started with a clean install of TB for the new year. I use yahoo.com with POP3 as my email provider. Server Settings: Server Name "pop.mail.yahoo.com", port 995, SSL/TLS, OAuth2 Outgoing Server: Server Name "smtp.mail.yahoo.com", port 465, SSL/TLS, OAuth2
it all worked fine and I was very happy with the setup. Then from early to mid-February I was unable to use my computer. When I finally accessed Thunderbird again, it connected to Yahoo and showed that approximately 800 email messages would be downloaded and started downloading them. After downloading about 100 messages, Thunderbird timed out and I haven't been able to get it to work since.
I have read and followed or tried to follow these articles plus others that I may have forgotten about (not listed in any particular order) - OAuth2 Authentication for Yahoo, AOL and ATT | Thunderbird Help - including all the steps in Please check the following before asking for support - POP access settings and instructions for Yahoo Mail | Yahoo Help - Automatic Account Configuration | Thunderbird Help - Manual Account Configuration | Thunderbird Help - Thunderbird and Yahoo | Thunderbird Help - Send and receive messages in Thunderbird | Thunderbird Help - Can no longer get emails | Thunderbird Support Forum | Mozilla Support - Emails suddenly stopped downloading to Thunderbird 140.2.1esr | Thunderbird Support Forum - Get Messages | Thunderbird Support Forum | Mozilla Support - Cannot receive messages | Thunderbird Help - Problem with Thunderbird working with Yahoo Mail acccounts. | Thunderbird Support Forum
I have removed all messages from the Yahoo inbox and tried to find one or more messages that may be affecting the download. I don't know the best way to determine that.
I use Windows Defender for my antivirus. I don't see anything in Defender that blocks or scans email messages which would prevent downloads, although I could be wrong about that. if this might be the issue, please provide some guidance about how to check Defender.
I have uninstalled and re-installed Thunderbird. In the process I downloaded the setup file for Thunderbird Setup 148.0 and installed that version. It later auto-updated to 148.0.1. Before installation, I removed all external connections from my Yahoo account and completely removed Thunderbird from my PC, including the profile and profile.ini. When I reinstall and switch the account to POP3, Thunderbird captures the App password from Yahoo and connects just fine. But it still times out while attempting the first download of a message. The first several times it timed out, an error message was displayed but now it doesn't show anything. Except no messages are downloaded.
At this point, I don't know what else to try. Since I don't have much experience with Thunderbird, I don't know how to troubleshoot the process (logs to look at, etc.). I don't want to go back to Outlook but I need the email client to work and download messages. Any help would be much appreciated.
All Replies (3)
Thank you, Wayne Mery, for your reply. However, that article was the first one on my list that I had tried. Just to be sure, I went through all the steps again after your post. Same result: connection is good, but no messages are downloaded.
I say the connection is good because I hit TB button "Test connection to server" and the response was "Successfully established a secure connection to pop.mail.yahoo.com:995".
Also, I removed all saved passwords (all were Yahoo passwords) in TB. Then I logged out of Yahoo webmail and back in using my Yahoo password. I hit "Get Messages" for the TB account and was presented with the Yahoo OAuth2 panel. I logged in with the same password that I used for webmail and it was successful. I checked Saved Passwords and the password for Yahoo was there again. One thing of note, 2FA is enabled for my Yahoo account. So, to log in to the Yahoo OAuth2 panel with my password, I also had to answer a 2FA prompt, which was a QR code. Could this be part of the issue?
End result: thanks for your reply but I still need help.
By the way, "OAuth2 Authentication for Yahoo, AOL and ATT | Thunderbird Help" references "POP access settings and instructions for Yahoo Mail" which in turn has a link for Thunderbird at "Setup instructions and POP info > Instructions for common desktop apps". When I follow that link, I get Page Not Found.
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