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Use Outlook with MSN and MSN Hotmail
 
Applies to
Microsoft Office Outlook® 2003
Microsoft Outlook® 2002

You can use Outlook to work with your MSN® and MSN Hotmail® e-mail accounts. MSN Premium and Microsoft Office Outlook Live subscribers can use the Microsoft Office Outlook Connector for even greater reliability and functionality, including access and synchronization of e-mail messages, contacts, calendar, tasks, and notes.

Notes

  • Support for MSN and MSN Hotmail is not available in Outlook 2000 or earlier.
  • Free MSN Hotmail accounts cannot be used with Outlook.

Access e-mail messages, contacts, calendar, tasks, and notes

You need to use the Outlook Connector and to subscribe to one of the following MSN Premium Services:

  • Outlook Live
  • MSN Premium
  • MSN Dial-up

More information about MSN Subscription Plans is available on the MSN Web site.

The Outlook Connector lets you access your MSN Mail, MSN Hotmail or MSN Personal Address accounts from Outlook 2002 SP2 or later. This includes the MSN Calendar account associated with your MSN Mail, Hotmail, or Personal Address account.

  1. Close Outlook.
  2. Insert your MSN Installation CD or download and save the installer to your computer's hard disk.
  3. Open the MSN installer, click Typical, and then follow the instructions on your screen.

    Note  If you use the MSN installation CD, the installer should start automatically.

  4. When the installation is complete, open Outlook.
  5. When you are prompted to sign in with a Microsoft .NET Passport, type your MSN or MSN Hotmail user name and password, and then click Sign In.

Access e-mail messages only

If you want access only to your MSN and MSN Hotmail e-mail messages, follow these steps to set up Outlook to both receive and send e-mail messages with your MSN account. You need to use one of the following MSN services:

  • MSN Premium
  • MSN Dial-up
  • MSN Hotmail Plus

More information about MSN subscription plans is available on the MSN Web site.

Note  We recommend that you use the Outlook Connector, which provides more reliable access to your e-mail messages, as well as your calendar, contacts, tasks, and notes attached to your account.

Do one of the following:

ShowAdd your MSN or MSN Hotmail e-mail account

  1. On the Tools menu, click E-mail Accounts.
  2. Click Add a new e-mail account, and then click Next.
  3. Click HTTP, and then click Next.
  4. Under User Information, do the following:
    1. In the Your Name box, type your full name the way you want it to appear to other people.
    2. In the E-mail Address box, type your MSN account name, followed by @msn.com or @hotmail.com.
  5. Under Server Information, in the HTTP Mail Service Provider box, click MSN or Hotmail.

    Note  The HTTP Mail Service Provider setting automatically switches to MSN or Hotmail if an e-mail address ending with @msn.com or @hotmail.com is entered in step 4.

    The Server URL for MSN or MSN Hotmail is automatically set.

  6. Under Logon Information, do the following:
    1. In the User Name box, type your e-mail address, including @msn.com or @hotmail.com.
    2. In the Password box, type your password.
    3. Select the Remember password check box.

      Note  You have the option to have Outlook remember your password by typing it in the Password box and selecting the Remember password check box. Having Outlook remember your password means that you won't have to type your password each time you access the account; however, it also means that the account is vulnerable to anyone who has access to your computer. Use strong passwords that combine upper- and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Weak passwords don't mix these elements. Strong password: Y6dh!et5. Weak password: House27. Use a strong password that you can remember so that you don't have to write it down.

  7. Click Finish.

Note  Do not select the Log on using Secure Password Authentication (SPA) check box.

ShowRemove your MSN or MSN Hotmail e-mail account

  1. On the Tools menu, click E-mail Accounts.
  2. Click View or change existing e-mail accounts, and then click Next.
  3. Click the e-mail account that you want to remove, and then click Remove.
  4. Click Finish.
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