Email System Basics
Total Office Manager has a built-in email system. It can be used to send invoices, estimates, and other documents. You will find a Email option button anywhere this feature is available. An email windows opens, and the documents is attached as a PDF. You can change the email subject and body as needed prior to sending.
This email feature uses your current email system credentials to send email only. It cannot receive email. You will use your current email system, such as Outlook, Gmail, etc., for that purpose.
Please keep in mind that Aptora Mobile II has its own email settings.
To utilize the email system, you must first set it up. This help topic uses Microsoft Outlook for an example. Other email systems should be very similar.
Access Email Settings
- From the main menu, click Edit | Preferences | Company | My Preferences
Step by Step Setup
- Enter your Email Username (such as helpdesk@aptora.com).
- Enter your email Password, Be sure that you use a strong password such as 6tR4Pa$$w0rd1.
- Enter the Mail From Name (such as Aptora Support).
- Enter the Mail From Email (such as support@aptora.com).
- Fill in your Outgoing mail (SMTP). For Outlook, this will be either “smtp.outlook.com” or “smtp.office365.com” for Office 365 users.
- Choose port 587 for if your Microsoft Office account is an exchange server. Port 587 is typically the best choice. Start with port 587, but you may have to experiment.
- Select “This is a Microsoft Exchange Server” only if you selected port 587.
- Make sure you check “My server requires secure connection (SSL)” only if you selected port 587 (typically recommended) or 465.
- Click the “Test Account Settings” button. You will receive a message indicating the message was delivered successfully to your email address. Check your email inbox to verify. Be sure to check your spam folder too. If you find the email in the spam or junk folder, please be sure to right-click on the message and scroll down to “Not Junk”.
Email Setup Tips
- It is recommended to consult your network administrator to verify the SMTP settings you are to use for sending email.
- When Total Office Manager or Aptora Mobile II send email, that email will not be added to your email software’s “Sent” folder.
- Software programs such as Outlook, Google Mail, and Yahoo Mail are not used by Aptora software. Our software uses your email account credentials to send email. These programs are not involved in the process, so the email does not appear in their Send folder.
- We recommend that you include a BCC. That stands for Blind Carbon Copy. Have this email go to a special folder that customer service personnel can access. It is common for customers to call and say that they never received email. This will allow them to quickly resend the email and demonstrate that the email was actually sent to them. Be sure the BBC is different from the Mail From Name.
- Be sure that you have something in the “Mail From Name” field in Total Office Manager or Aptora Mobile II.
Basic Troubleshooting
- When SSL is required (which is almost always), try using port 587. Port 465 might work for a test email but not for real use. That is because you may have attachments and other things that are not included in a test email.
- You should enter information in each of the email setup fields. The BBC option is not a requirement.
- Be sure the BCC email is different from the Mail From Name email address. Having them the same is known to cause issues.
- For Gmail Only: You will need to turn off the Captcha option. You must also turn on the “Allow Less Secure Apps” option.
For more advanced troubleshooting or how to setup other email systems, please review the related article. KB – Email Settings.