Email not working when on mobile network

[MartyBC]

I am on an iPhone 12 Pro Max using iOS 15.6.

My email settings have worked fine, allowing me to send and receive email using the Apple Mail app.  A few months ago, things changed.  Email still works fine when I am on WiFi but is significantly delayed, or not working at all, when on the EE mobile network.  This appears to be an issue when on 3G, 4G and 5G.

I have checked my email settings with my provider (Fasthosts) and they are correct.

The iPhone settings are correct (for using mobile data for email etc).

If I refresh the mail app screen to force a download, the 'checking for mail' message shows for some minutes, then it fails to connect with the server.

I also have an Apple iCloud email account.  That works on WifI and the mobile network.  I can also access my  email using webmail.

Any suggestions greatfully received. 

[Leanne_T]

The information was supplied to the team and as this is not happening all the time when using the email, this would need to be looked into by our tech gurus by calling us on 150 @ScottJC

Leanne.

[CSayer]

Has there been any updates one this issue. I have just moved all my email accounts over the Fasthosts and  cannot get a single one to work on EE 4G, they all work perfectly on our Wifi connection. Tried changing all the port numbers, with SSL on and off and at one point i could retrieve email with SSL off on the incoming and port 465 or 25 (can't remember which now) but cannot send at all, no matter what settings i use. Also made sure the iPhone was completely not using any of the new Apple features like "Hide my IP" etc and also the limit IP address tracking in mobile data. Now at a dead end! It's completely unusable on EE, come on EE, not had this problem in the past, it's something that has only happened in the last few months. The fact hat everything works perfectly on all out wifi networks means the issue can only be somewhere on EE. Everyone reply if you are still having the same issue and hopefully EE will listen if they get the same issue from everyone!

[ProfBranestawm]

Certainly issues here. But the issues are to do with connection to the Fasthosts mail servers when (only) using the EE network. On fixed broadband, the same device works all the time, and it will occasionally connect and receive when on mobile- but not with any consistency. Mostly it’s just unable to connect, so no emails delivered or received. It feels like it’s timing out to me….

And yes, the issue only started a few months ago.

[CSayer]

Found the solution!!!!! on the iPhone go into settings, then “Mobile Data”, “Mobile Data Options” and turn off “Limit IP Address Tracking”. VERY IMPORTANT - Turn off the iPhone and power back on again. I have tried everything and it was only when i selected the above and turned off the iPhone and back on again, it seems to work perfectly, using all the original Fasthosts email settings as on Wi-Fi. When i tried it without turning the iPhone off and on again it didn’t work. Hopefully this helps and works for everyone!

[CSayer]

Just did the same on another iPhone and its now working, so it looks like that was the issue, Apple introduced this setting a little while ago, so also ties in with when the issues first started for other people.

[James_B]

Thanks for sharing your solution @CSayer 🙂

James

[ProfBranestawm]

I have an awful feeling I already tried this, and it worked first time but then stopped again the next time I checked my emails.

I hope to be wrong - I’ll try it again today and report back…

[ProfBranestawm]

Sadly, it is exactly as I thought. It works once, immediately after restart, but if you try again a minute or so later, we get the familiar account errors of a failed connection. 

So, sadly, this is NOT a fix (except once!)

[CSayer]

Very strange, as it seems to have fixed all our iPhones (8 of them) and is still working fine on all of them, I am assuming you did completely turn off the iPhone and turn it back on again and not just put it to sleep and wake it? Just double checking!

[CSayer]

Make sure you also have all the options turned off in "Privacy Protection" in the Mail settings which have a similar affect to the mobile data bit