I configured my account as an IMAP account and noticed that it will only download the message when I actually click on the message. This is actually quite annoying when I’m not connected to the Internet at that time.
Outlook for Mac 2011 is a new e-mail client and personal information manager from Microsoft, not just an upgrade to its predecessor, Entourage 2008 ( ). Outlook 2011 has some features that. Download headers only. If you have a slow network connection, you can use this option to improve performance. Only message headers are automatically downloaded to your computer. Therefore, large messages (and any attachments) are downloaded only if you select them in the message list.
How can I configure it so that it will directly download the message in full without clicking on it first?
Up until Outlook 2007, by default an IMAP account will indeed be set to “Download headers only”. With Outlook 2010, this default has changed to “Download complete item including attachments”. You can change these default settings in your Send/Receive settings.
Note: This option no longer exists in Outlook 2013. For IMAP accounts, Outlook 2013 will always download the full items and there is no option to set it back to “Download headers only”.
Send/Receive settings
Download Outlook For Mac 2011
To edit your Send/Receive settings, press CTRL+ALT+S and press the Edit… button.
Another way of reaching this dialog is via;
Another way of reaching this dialog is via;
- Outlook 2007 and previous
Tools-> Options…-> tab Mail Setup-> button Send/Receive…-> Edit… - Outlook 2010
File-> section Options-> section Advanced-> button Send/Receive…-> Edit…
If you’ve got multiple accounts configured, select your IMAP account in the left column.
Configure download behavior
How to configure the download behavior depends on your version of Outlook and your desired settings.
- Outlook 2003 and previous
In the Folder Options section, select a folder and change the option from from “Download headers only” to “Download complete item including attachments”. You’ll have to do this for each individual folder; there is no way to change this for all folders at once. - Outlook 2007 and Outlook 2010
Under “Receive mail items” you can change the download method for all folders at once. If you want to control it on a per-folder basis, then you’ll have to select the option “Use the custom behavior defined below”.
Outlook 2003 and previous do not have the option to manage all folders at once.
This enables to you browse through your e-mails without actually having to download all the e-mails andtheir attachments in their entirety, which can often be a lengthy task.
Note: This works only for POP3, not for IMAP protocol...
To configure Outlook to download only the e-mail headers, do the following:
1. On the Send / Receive tab, in the Send & Receivegroup, choose Send/Receive Groups:
2. In the Send/Receive Group list, choose Define Send/ReceiveGroups... (or press Ctrl+Alt+S):
3. Select a group to modify and click Edit....
4. From the Accounts section on the left side of the dialog box,you can select the mail account that you want to modify the settings for.
5. Check the Include the selected account in this group checkbox to see all the options:
6. Select a folder from the list of folders in the Folder Optionssection and then choose the option Download headers only.
It is possible to have different setting for each folder in an account, so, for example, you could setOutlook to download only headers in a folder that you know gets a large volume of e-mails.
Note: This works only for POP3, not for IMAP protocol...:
Outlook Download Headers Only Setting
See also this tip in French:Comment configurer Outlook pour télécharger uniquement les en-têtes de messagerie.