Author Topic: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??  (Read 39290 times)

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petfam

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Hi,
I've been using avast over a year. Past 2 days my email cannot send and receive. I think it was after an update (I'd heard the update voice from another room but didn't think anything of it). Don't think it's avast, but not sure. Called my ISP (Commspeed) and they said line looked ok (I still can connect to the internet and get my email from webmail, that's how I was able to click link to sign up for forum). ISP felt incoming message was too long or anti-virus program was causing the problem. Don't be offended, they have never blamed anti-virus in the past. ;-) Yesterday I finally just rebooted and then all worked fine. Now, this morn it was fine. Log on again this afternoon and I have the same email problem. Before I restart again thought I'd ask forum. I paused internet mail and stopped internet mail from the avast icon with no luck. Also, the avast mail scanner icon on the taskbar is always on. I think that used to disappear after my email was done downloading. I have Win XP Sp 2 and use Outlook Express still. No other antivirus on my computer.
A side note: A month or so ago Outlook Express started giving me an error when I would click on an email link in emails. It said: Could not perform this operation because the default mail client is not properly installed. I'm still working on that also.
Any thoughts?
Thanks, Dan

Offline FreewheelinFrank

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #1 on: May 21, 2008, 11:15:06 PM »
Booted into Windows the other day and noticed the same problem (unable to send/receive email with avast! running), so it may be a problem with avast!

I haven't seen any other reports of the same problem so it may only affect certain users with specific configurations.

 ???
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petfam

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #2 on: May 21, 2008, 11:27:44 PM »
Thanks for the info. I restarted my computer after I posted and now email coming and going fine. Weird!
But I'm starting to think it's gonna happen again.
Dan

Offline alanrf

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #3 on: May 22, 2008, 12:04:25 AM »
You noted that the problem occurred even with the avast Internet Mail provider terminated.  In that circumstance avast is not involved in any way with the receiving or sending of your emails. 

If the problem does occur again can you note the error messages from OE and let us know. 

petfam

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #4 on: May 22, 2008, 12:15:29 AM »
Hi,
thanks for your input. So, if I click on the avast icon on the taskbar and pause internet mail then that means avast is completely out of the picture?
Sounds good, but I want to make sure. Also, even when I paused the internet mail I still had another avast icon on the taskbar near the main icon that comes on when I send and receive email. That icon just stayed on. Usually it shows only when I send or receive and goes away after the task is done.
The only messages I get are after 60 seconds of OE trying to send/rec it brings up a window that says it has been trying to send/rec for 60 seconds and asks if I want to continue. I did once but it pretty much just does nothing and then the 60 second window pops up again. I don't get any error messages.
I'll let you know if I get any more info.
Thanks again, Dan

Offline alanrf

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #5 on: May 22, 2008, 12:19:42 AM »
No,

avast is only out of the picture if you terminate the Internet Mail provider.

The avast icon remaining indicates that you still have an active mail connection. 

Are any of your accounts IMAP?

petfam

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #6 on: May 22, 2008, 01:24:33 AM »
Ok,
that's why that icon is still there. So to terminate the internet mail provider what do I have to do? Hate to let my ignorance show, but I'm not familiar with IMAP. If you're talking about email accounts I did not see any with IMAP.
Thanks again, Dan

Offline alanrf

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #7 on: May 22, 2008, 01:58:16 AM »
Most email accounts with your email client are still likely to be POP/SMTP accounts.

In Outlook Express if you look at the "Properties" of a mail account and click on the "Advanced" tab it will tell you the incoming mail server is typically POP3 and the port number will usually be 110.  That then is a POP account. 

If the account is an IMAP account (for example free AIM.com accounts are IMAP) then in the "Advanced" tab in the OE properties it will tell the server is an IMAP server and the port number will usually be 143.

POP/SMTP connections are set up, the mail is received or sent and then the connections are taken down. You only get the icon in the system tray when the connections is busy receiving or sending and then the icon disappears. 

For folks who have IMAP accounts the connection is kept up all the time and the accounts syncs with the server frequently.  In this case the avast icon will stay in the tray all the time OE is open. 

There are other reasons the icon can remain in the systray, most of them are not so good. 

1) fairly harmless ... if you use a P2P program and the peer has told you to connect to them at their port 25, 110, 143 this can fool the avast Internet Mail provider into thinking this is a mail connection and showing the icon.

2) if your accounts are experiencing delays or problems in receiving mail or sending it and retrying then the icon will appear for longer than usual

3) of greater concern is the case where the icon continues to appear in the systray even when Outlook Express has been shutdown and explanation (1) above does not apply.  This usually indicates that your system has been infected by a spambot which is using your system to generate large numbers of spam emails.  This problem can usually be detected by avast (which will alert you) by setting the sensitivity slider in the Internet Mail provider to the "High" setting.

To completely shutdown the Internet Mail provider: Right click on the avast icon in the tray > Stop Provider > Internet Mail.  When you do this (to see if it resolves your sending/receiving email issues) avast will ask if you want to "Persist the change".  I suggest you answer "No" so that avast will restart the Internet Mail provider on your next restart in case you forget to restart it.  Only if you do want to keep the Internet Mail provider off permanently you would answer "Yes".   

petfam

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #8 on: May 22, 2008, 02:10:52 AM »
Great information. Thanks much! I am POP3, 110. I have just set the avast slider to high. I run spyware a couple times a month but will run them now (spybot and adaware). And if I continue to have problems I can try your other suggestions. Thanks again, Dan

storkman

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #9 on: May 28, 2008, 09:10:23 AM »
 this is something to do w/Avast not outlook express as mine is doing this after the most recent update.. no error msgs just the email incoming server is timing out after 1 min & only given option from OE to wait/stop. I have to totally stop the email scanning from Avast in order to get my emails.. Avast please advise fix for this asap!!! thx


Offline DavidR

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #10 on: May 28, 2008, 03:05:28 PM »
I beg to differ, if OE was working previously before an update, then it should be working after and update.
Was it working prior to the update ?
What version of avast are you using ?
What is your OS ?

I have been using OE6 for as long as I have had avast a little over 4 years, and I have never had a problem after an update with OE and the Internet Mail provider and not being able to send email that wasn't down to my firewall blocking ashMaiSv.exe (even when it said it had permission) not avast blocking email.

You don't say what that update was as a VPS update would have no impact at all only a program update would update the Internet Mail provider and the most common issue after a program update is a firewall blocking.

What is your firewall ?
Does it allow ashMaiSv.exe internet access ?
- If it does delete the entry for it, reconnect to the internet and try to collect your email, this will force the firewall to ask permission again.
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storkman

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #11 on: May 29, 2008, 08:35:34 PM »
 OS is XP home, not using any firewall other than the firewall the Linksys wireless SRX200 router has. Im also using cat-5 my connection not wireless at this time.
 Whatever the latest ver of Avast is, believe its 4.8 is what im using, have Avast set to auto update virus def/prog updates. not sure bout that VPS that u mention as in past ive never had a problem receiving/sending emails so unless the most recent avast update changed something to do w/the VPS then not sure where problem lies..Ive used OE for years myself as well.

Offline DavidR

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #12 on: May 29, 2008, 08:56:26 PM »
AS I said changes in the VPS (virus signatures) wouldn't have this effect.

The last program update was 4.8.1201 on 16/5/2008 now you should have received notification of that program update availability between the 16-23rd May as they are spread over 7 days to balance server load.
Does that coincide with the start of this problem ?

Does your router's firewall provide outbound protection ?
If so you would need to check that.


- Try a repair of avast. Add Remove programs, select 'avast! Anti-Virus,' click the Change/Remove button and scroll down to Repair, click next and follow.
If that doesn't work try, uninstall, reboot, install, reboot.
It would probably be best to first Download the latest version of avast http://www.avast.com/eng/download-avast-home.html and save it to your HDD, somewhere you can find it again. Use that when you reinstall.

If not you should really consider a firewall that does provide outbound protection.
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Offline alanrf

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #13 on: May 29, 2008, 08:59:02 PM »
storkman,

does this problem occur every time you try to get your emails now? 

how are you "stopping scanning" and when you do is the mail then always received successfully?

Have you made any changes at all to your email settings recently?

MarylandGuy_42

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Re: Can't send or receive email...maybe after latest avast update??
« Reply #14 on: May 30, 2008, 01:24:59 AM »
This has nothing to do with OE.  I am having the same exact problem with Thunderbird since applying the 4.8.1201 Program update.  Once, I was able to stop and restart the Internet Mail provider and get it to work.  Today I have been unable to restart the provider.  I, too, also had the Internet Mail icon in the taskbar stay even after I had canceled retrieving mail and even exited Thunderbird.  I tried to stop all of the providers (Stop On-Access Protection), and instead of all of them stopping it attempted to stop Internet Mail once, then gave up (all other providers were still running).  Trying again to stop all On-Access Protection finally did result in all of them stopping (after an abnormal delay, at which time the Internet Mail icon finally went away), but now the Internet Mail Provider will not restart.  Attempting Termination seems to work, but upon starting it never gets past a status of "The provider is waiting for a subsystem to start."  Mail retrieval times out and fails.

I would be surprised if I had a spambot on my system, since I scan regularly (weekly on average) with Ad Aware, Spybot, and even Windows Defender (which I mainly use for real-time protection since I have had problems with Spybot's Tea Timer).  I also have not noticed any unusual system behavior or excessive utilization of my Internet connection.

I never had a problem before the 4.8.1201 update, and now this has happened to me twice.  I have moved the sensitivity to High, just to be sure, and will monitor outbound connections on my system.  But this smells like a fairly nasty little bug in Avast to me.