IOS – get a ‘connection to the outgoing server “smtp.gmail.com” failed’ message in iOS Mail

gmailiosmail.appsmtp

Today I noticed I have 3 emails stuck in my Outbox, and when I try to re-send one, I see:

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If I press Settings, then select "SMTP Gmail SMTP Server", and "Gmail SMTP Server" (under PRIMARY SERVER–it is the only one shown as "On"), I see:

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I can't edit anything here.

Has Gmail changed the way their SMTP authentication works? How do I fix this?

Best Answer

Had this issue too and didn't have any joy with deleting/removing accounts and restarting my phone as @Harv suggested. Fortunately I got some help from Google's G Suite support team and they offered a solution which worked for me:

  • Add the account as an 'Exchange' account
  • Set the server to m.google.com (leave the domain field empty).

The underlying reason behind this (and more detailed instructions) is addressed in this G Suite help article.

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