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My SMTP server password has stopped working

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  • 10 have this problem
  • 3 views
  • Last reply by christ1

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I use Firefox and Thunderbird and up to date. Now when I try to send an email I get a message "Login to server SMTP.GMail.com failed." This looks like a Thunderbird message. I have had trouble now with several changes to my GMail account while trying to fix the problem, but none of my changes have corrected this situation. I tried to enable IMAP (I use POP3), switched on then off 2-step verification, and reset my Google password several times. Sometimes I get an option to enter a New Password to gain smtp access and when I paste the one I believe to be correct, still no access. Help.

I use Firefox and Thunderbird and up to date. Now when I try to send an email I get a message "Login to server SMTP.GMail.com failed." This looks like a Thunderbird message. I have had trouble now with several changes to my GMail account while trying to fix the problem, but none of my changes have corrected this situation. I tried to enable IMAP (I use POP3), switched on then off 2-step verification, and reset my Google password several times. Sometimes I get an option to enter a New Password to gain smtp access and when I paste the one I believe to be correct, still no access. Help.

Chosen solution

I use Firefox and Thunderbird and up to date.

Please confirm your Thunderbird version.

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All Replies (13)

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Chosen Solution

I use Firefox and Thunderbird and up to date.

Please confirm your Thunderbird version.

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Hi Christ1 - my Firefox version is 38.0.5 and Thunderbird was 31.7.0 but I saw that for some reason this has not been updated (I normally get advice of an available update). So, I have just updated Thunderbird to 38.0.1 and re-tested my smtp send function within Thunderbird. I get the same error message so it looks as though the problem is not fixed by this update.

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Can you post your Troubleshooting Information. Help (Alt-H) - Troubleshooting Information

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Application Basics


Name: Firefox Version: 38.0.5 Build ID: 20150525141253 Update Channel: release User Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 5.1; rv:38.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/38.0 Multiprocess Windows: 0/1 (default: false)

Crash Reports for the Last 3 Days


All Crash Reports

Extensions


Name: LastPass Version: 3.1.95 Enabled: true ID: support@lastpass.com

Name: Avast Online Security Version: 10.2.0.187 Enabled: false ID: wrc@avast.com

Name: HP Smart Web Printing Version: 4.60 Enabled: false ID: smartwebprinting@hp.com

Name: Search Helper Extension Version: 1.0 Enabled: false ID: {27182e60-b5f3-411c-b545-b44205977502}

Graphics


Adapter Description: Intel(R) G33/G31 Express Chipset Family Adapter Drivers: igxprd32 Adapter RAM: Unknown Device ID: 0x29c2 Direct2D Enabled: Blocked for your graphics driver version. DirectWrite Enabled: false (0.0.0.0) Driver Date: 1-13-2010 Driver Version: 6.14.10.5218 GPU #2 Active: false GPU Accelerated Windows: 0/1 Basic (OMTC) Blocked for your graphics driver version. Subsys ID: 02381028 Vendor ID: 0x8086 WebGL Renderer: Blocked for your graphics driver version. windowLayerManagerRemote: true AzureCanvasBackend: skia AzureContentBackend: cairo AzureFallbackCanvasBackend: cairo AzureSkiaAccelerated: 0

Important Modified Preferences


browser.cache.disk.capacity: 358400 browser.cache.disk.smart_size.first_run: false browser.cache.disk.smart_size.use_old_max: false browser.cache.frecency_experiment: 4 browser.download.importedFromSqlite: true browser.places.smartBookmarksVersion: 7 browser.sessionstore.upgradeBackup.latestBuildID: 20150525141253 browser.startup.homepage_override.buildID: 20150525141253 browser.startup.homepage_override.mstone: 38.0.5 dom.mozApps.used: true extensions.lastAppVersion: 38.0.5 media.gmp-gmpopenh264.lastUpdate: 1434136912 media.gmp-gmpopenh264.version: 1.4 media.gmp-manager.buildID: 20150525141253 media.gmp-manager.lastCheck: 1434227753 network.cookie.prefsMigrated: true network.predictor.cleaned-up: true places.database.lastMaintenance: 1434227756 places.history.expiration.transient_current_max_pages: 53402 plugin.disable_full_page_plugin_for_types: application/pdf plugin.importedState: true privacy.sanitize.migrateFx3Prefs: true

Important Locked Preferences


JavaScript


Incremental GC: true

Accessibility


Activated: false Prevent Accessibility: 0

Library Versions


NSPR Expected minimum version: 4.10.8 Version in use: 4.10.8

NSS Expected minimum version: 3.18.1 Basic ECC Version in use: 3.18.1 Basic ECC

NSSSMIME Expected minimum version: 3.18.1 Basic ECC Version in use: 3.18.1 Basic ECC

NSSSSL Expected minimum version: 3.18.1 Basic ECC Version in use: 3.18.1 Basic ECC

NSSUTIL Expected minimum version: 3.18.1 Version in use: 3.18.1

Experimental Features


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Also:-


 Application Basics
   Name: Thunderbird
   Version: 38.0.1
   User Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 5.1; rv:38.0) Gecko/20100101 Thunderbird/38.0.1
   Profile Folder: Show Folder
             (Local drive)
   Application Build ID: 20150608103712
   Enabled Plugins: about:plugins
   Build Configuration: about:buildconfig
   Memory Use: about:memory
 Mail and News Accounts
   account1:
     INCOMING: account1, , (none) Local Folders, plain, passwordCleartext
   account7:
     INCOMING: account7, , (pop3) pop.googlemail.com:995, SSL, passwordCleartext
     OUTGOING: SMTP.GMail.com:465, SSL, passwordCleartext, true
     OUTGOING: SMTP.GMail.com:465, SSL, passwordCleartext, false
 Crash Reports
   http://crash-stats.mozilla.com/report/index/bp-a8a1bcb2-a61b-4459-bdf0-756232141003 (03/10/2014)
 Extensions
 Important Modified Preferences
   Name: Value
     accessibility.typeaheadfind.flashBar: 0
     browser.cache.disk.capacity: 1024000
     browser.cache.disk.smart_size_cached_value: 358400
     browser.cache.disk.smart_size.first_run: false
     browser.cache.disk.smart_size.use_old_max: false
     extensions.lastAppVersion: 38.0.1
     font.size.variable.x-western: 14
     mail.openMessageBehavior.version: 1
     mailnews.database.global.datastore.id: a533beca-022f-48b0-bc0e-3e1006a9091
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     mailnews.database.global.views.global.columns: {"threadCol":{"visible":true,"ordinal":"1"},"flaggedCol":{"visible":true,"ordinal":"3"},"attachmentCol":{"visible":false…
     network.cookie.prefsMigrated: true
     places.database.lastMaintenance: 1434138503
     places.history.expiration.transient_current_max_pages: 53402
     plugin.disable_full_page_plugin_for_types: video/quicktime
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     plugin.state.npdeployjava: 0
     plugin.state.nppl: 0
     plugin.state.nprndlchromebrowserrecordext: 0
     plugin.state.nprndlhtml5videoshim: 0
     plugin.state.nprndlpepperflashvideoshim: 0
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     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_bgcolor: false
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_bgimages: false
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_colorspace:
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_command:
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_downloadfonts: false
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_duplex: 1515870810
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_edge_bottom: 0
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_edge_left: 0
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     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_evenpages: true
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     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_footerleft: &D
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_footerright: &PT
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_headercenter:
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_headerleft: &T
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_headerright: &U
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_in_color: true
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     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_margin_top: 0.5
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_oddpages: true
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_orientation: 0
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     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_paper_data: 9
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_paper_height: 11.00
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_paper_name:
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_paper_size_type: 0
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_paper_size_unit: 1
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_paper_width: 8.50
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_plex_name:
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_resolution: 1515870810
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_resolution_name:
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_reversed: false
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_scaling: 1.00
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_shrink_to_fit: true
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_to_file: false
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_unwriteable_margin_bottom: 0
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_unwriteable_margin_left: 0
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_unwriteable_margin_right: 0
     print.printer_HP_Photosmart_B110_series.print_unwriteable_margin_top: 0
     privacy.sanitize.timeSpan: 4
     security.disable_button.openCertManager: false
     security.disable_button.openDeviceManager: false
 Graphics
     Adapter Description: Intel(R) G33/G31 Express Chipset Family
     Vendor ID: 0x8086
     Device ID: 0x29c2
     Adapter RAM: Unknown
     Adapter Drivers: igxprd32
     Driver Version: 6.14.10.5218
     Driver Date: 1-13-2010
     WebGL Renderer: Blocked for your graphics driver version.
     GPU Accelerated Windows: 0. Blocked for your graphics driver version.
     AzureCanvasBackend: skia
     AzureSkiaAccelerated: 0
     AzureFallbackCanvasBackend: cairo
     AzureContentBackend: cairo
 JavaScript
 Incremental GC: 1
 Accessibility
   Activated: 0
   Prevent Accessibility: 0
 Library Versions
     Expected minimum version
     Version in use
     NSPR
     4.10.8
     4.10.8
     NSS
     3.18.1 Basic ECC
     3.18.1 Basic ECC
     NSS Util
     3.18.1
     3.18.1
     NSS SSL
     3.18.1 Basic ECC
     3.18.1 Basic ECC
     NSS S/MIME
     3.18.1 Basic ECC
     3.18.1 Basic ECC
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That's all Christ1 - did it help?

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OUTGOING: SMTP.GMail.com:465, SSL, passwordCleartext, true OUTGOING: SMTP.GMail.com:465, SSL, passwordCleartext, false

For whatever reason you appear to have created the SMTP server twice. Delete the second one, i.e. the one which isn't the default SMTP.

Then change the server name of the remaining one to: smtp.googlemail.com

Change the Authentication method to: OAuth2

Try again. You'll be prompted for your Gmail password.

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Hi Christ1 - I've solved my problem - sorry to have troubled you. I found that I could display stored passwords within Thunderbird - Tools > Options > Security > Saved Passwords and there were two showing for smtp. I deleted both and re-tried my email send function. I was then prompted for a smtp server access password, so I copied / pasted my existing one for access to my gmail / Google account. This worked. I don't know if it will now be stored in the right place, but this is a major step forward. Sorry again for troubling you. Geoff.

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Christ1 - thanks for your inputs. Problem now resolved. Geoff.

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Hi Christ1 - I just discovered something else that may be relevant to people reading this thread. After getting my smtp "Send" function (above) to work OK, apparently by removing two saved Thunderbird server passwords, I have this evening tried again to look at new and only recently advised changes to Google's account management functions. I logged onto myaccount.google.com and re-switched to "OFF" the function at > Sign-in and Security > Connected Apps and Sites > Allow Less Secure Apps > OFF. I then re-tried my smtp send function which failed with the error message and password prompt as before. So, I then reverted to function > ON and smtp worked again. So one part of original solution may have been to allow Google access to Less Secure Apps - which could mean Thunderbird in Google's eyes. Regards.

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Thunderbird 38 now supports OAuth2 authentication, i.e. allowing less secure apps isn't required anymore. https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1066957#answer-740648

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LezLezLez said

I use Firefox and Thunderbird and up to date. Now when I try to send an email I get a message "Login to server SMTP.GMail.com failed." This looks like a Thunderbird message. I have had trouble now with several changes to my GMail account while trying to fix the problem, but none of my changes have corrected this situation. I tried to enable IMAP (I use POP3), switched on then off 2-step verification, and reset my Google password several times. Sometimes I get an option to enter a New Password to gain smtp access and when I paste the one I believe to be correct, still no access. Help.

This is a new update on 20-Jun-15. I continue to have this problem and cannot send email from Thunderbird. After I hit "Send" I get a progress bar stating "Status - Connecting to smtp.gmail.com" which is ongoing. Then I get a superimposed message "Login to SMTP,GMail.com failed" with an option to Retry my password. However this option has a bug and is not working - no data entry field is presented for a new or refreshed password. I did try the option suggested in your Support pages viz in Thunderbird go to > New > File > Existing Mail Account and entered refresh data as requested including what I believe to be my correct smtp password (Google has changed its systems so that only one password may possibly be required for all entry points / domains). So I am stuck and have no sight of a way forward. I do not want to switch from Thunderbird so please help me.LezLezLez

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If you still have the problem, I'd suggest you start a new thread.