Outlook 2016 repeatedly asking for Password for gmail account

Anonymous
2022-10-03T04:14:03+00:00

Today, I've had to clean re-install Windows 10 and, therefore, also had to re-install Office 2016.

Everything is working fine except that I can't configure Outlook to retrieve emails from my gmail account and have been browsing/searching the subject for hours.

Have had the same problem a few times before and solved it by changing the following gmail settings:

(i) to accept "less secure apps" (which option, by the way, is no longer available),

(ii) turn off "2-step verification".

Those settings have not been changed since, but Outlook is repeatedly asking for a password and I can't set up the account. I get the same result if I let Outlook configure the account or if I do it manually using the settings from the gmail page or via the mail link in Control Panel.

Have also checked that Microsoft apps & services has been given access to gmail.

The only new thing I found was this: https://accounts.google.com/DisplayUnlockCaptcha and I confirmed.

Question: Is this a Microsoft problem or a gmail problem . . . each not trusting the other's security?

Anyway, whichever it is, I would be most grateful for suggestions.

Many thanks in advance.

Outlook | Windows | Classic Outlook for Windows | For business

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Anonymous
2022-10-03T05:04:36+00:00

Hello JohnTCI

Hi, I'm Karl and will be happy to help you today.

What you need to do is enable 2 factor authentications on your Gmail account and then generate an <App Password> to be used as the password or the email account in Outlook. This is a Google change that took effect June 1, 2022

Recap of steps

#1 - enable 2 factor authentication for the GMail account

Turn on 2-Step Verification

https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/1858...

#2 - generate a Google <App Password> for this account (do not turn off 2FA fter generating the <App Password>)

Sign in with App Passwords

https://support.google.com/mail/answer/185833?h...

#3 - Change the password in Outlook for the email account to use the <App Password> you generated in step #2 (suggest using copy ;n paste - the <App Password> is a contiguous 16 character string - no spaces)

*** for an account already configured in Outlook, to change the email account password

#4 - press CTRL+ALT+S to bring up the Send / Receive dialog

#5 - Select the <Group> (most people only have one) --> click on ,<Edit>

#6 - Select the GMail account --> click on <Account Properties>

#7 - paste the <App Password> for the email account password

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  1. Karl Timmermans 3,685 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2022-11-01T22:49:27+00:00

    Trying to open Outlook just presented a dialog to setup an email account instead of letting me get into the application and use the file menu and then setup the account. Hence I am wondering IF I can revert to Office 2010 and use an APP PASSWORD issued by Google?

    I think I have hit the ropes with Microsoft and office 2019.

    If you activated Office 2019 AND it is not Office 2019 Professional Plus you purchased from a 3rd party reseller, it should be listed under the Microsoft Account under Services & Subscriptions used to activate it.

    Microsoft account | Services & subscriptions

    If this involves Office Professional Plus, it is not a legitimate consumer version of Office.

    #1 - When you open any version of Outlook for the first time on a system, it's going to ask you to configure an email account so that behavior is completely normal

    #2 - Can you install '2010 and use it - absolutely if that is what you want to do. Not what I'd recommend if you have a legitimate new version of Office but certainly something you can do.

    FWIW, a POP account configured in '2010 works exactly the same way in '2019.

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  2. Anonymous
    2022-11-01T22:18:20+00:00

    HI Karl,

    It has taken me a while to try and recover my PC. Sadly I had to go the nuclear route because nothing seemed to fix getting emails down that had images embedded in them. Whatever the Office 2019 Pro install did, even after removing Office 2010 seemed to mess things up. I looked in the Registry at profile information too but only looked and gave up as the Registry is a mess of info.

    So I have now done a Windows 10 RESET clean install twice as the first run through seemed to have issues with trying to get Office Pro 2019 installed. And I am wondering if I could revert to Office 2010.

    Basically I wanted to install the Office Pro from a DVD disc that I made from .iso file when I first installed it. Going anywhere near my MS account info is splattered with Office 365 stuff that I don't want and it is highly confusing. I thought, I would be able to find the Office 2019 that I had installed listed in my account details but I am totally lost trying to find that as everything seems labelled 365. I did get Office installed from the DVD but that never asked for an install key (very odd). Trying to open Outlook just presented a dialog to setup an email account instead of letting me get into the application and use the file menu and then setup the account. Hence I am wondering IF I can revert to Office 2010 and use an APP PASSWORD issued by Google?

    I think I have hit the ropes with Microsoft and office 2019.

    Thanks

    Phil

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  3. Karl Timmermans 3,685 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2022-10-27T17:34:13+00:00
    1. Unlink the existing .pst from the current Outlook profile (assuming it allows me)
    2. Then associate the new profile with the .pst file or create a new .pst file and associate that with it. (if necessary I could copy every thing folder by folder across from the old .pst file to keep it all together)

    There is nothing to "unlink" - just make sure that you configure the POP account to use the same PST file as used with the account in the other profile. Outlook can only use one Outlook profile at aa time so it doesn't mater how many profiles the PST files is used un.

    When using the Control Panel Mail app to add a new profile and configuring a POP account

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  4. Anonymous
    2022-10-27T14:44:18+00:00

    Hi Karl,

    Please excuse my stupidity. I was so desperate trying to fix this yesterday that I misread what the responder on the Gmail community said in relation to switching on 2FA and it affecting use of the Android app on my phone.

    I always used to use Outlook POP3 access to pull down copies of emails I had received on Gmail (leaving copies on the Gmail server) and I could reply form within Outlook without affecting my mobile device access which is what I am trying to retore.

    It has taken a long time to backup my computer files to a portable USB hard drive before I start making changes.

    I now intend to;

    1. Create a new Outlook profile with the system as is and reconfigure access to Gmail with an APP Password.
    2. Unlink the existing .pst from the current Outlook profile (assuming it allows me)
    3. Then associate the new profile with the .pst file or create a new .pst file and associate that with it. (if necessary I could copy every thing folder by folder across from the old .pst file to keep it all together)

    See if that works and I get embedded images in emails. If not then it has to be the full nuclear route to fixing the PC and if that doesn't work it means I will have to find another email provider that has better support than google. That last option would be even worse given the link of email to so many other systems etc.

    Thank you for your kind help.

    Phil

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