Reference number: CH000889
I can't receive any e-mail attachments.
Question:I can't receive any e-mail attachments.
Answer:Below are some of the many different reasons why you may be unable to receive an attachment.
Not enough storage space
If the e-mail box is full of other e-mail messages and/or your storage space is only a few megabytes it's possible that the attachment being sent cannot be received. Often if this problem is occurring the person sending the e-mail should get a response back from your e-mail server indicating that your mailbox is full and/or has exceeded its allocated size.
If this is occurring you may want to consider using an alternate e-mail service such as Gmail that allows several gigs of storage space.
Attachment is too big
Not all e-mail providers will allow their users to send and/or receive e-mails with large attachments. If the file you want to send is larger than 2MB we suggest you post the file using one of the services mentioned in document CH000755.
Attachment extension is not allowed
Because computer viruses and other malware are best distributed through e-mail many e-mail service providers, companies, and e-mail programs prevent certain types of file extensions from being distributed or received through e-mail. For example, Microsoft Outlook protect its users by automatically disabling the below file extension types from being received in e-mail.
.ad, .adp, .crt, .ins, .mdb, .mde, .msc, .msp, .sct, .shb, .vb, .wsc, .wsf, .cpl, .shs, .vsd, .vst, .vss, .vsw, .asp, .bas, .bat, .chm, .cmd, .com, .exe, .hlp, .hta, .inf, .isp, .js, .jse, .lnk, .msi, .mst, .pcd, .pif, .reg, .scr, .url, .vbe, .vbs, .ws, and .wsh.
Additional information about this Outlook feature and how to disable/enable it can be found on document CH000728.
If you're attaching a file with any of the above attachments or a file that is being rejected the best method around this is to compress the file into a .zip or other compressed file format. Additional information about how to do this can be found on document CH000506.
Attachment contains a virus
Make sure to scan the file you're attempting to send or forward for viruses. If the file is infected with a virus, trojan, or other malware many servers will automatically reject it to prevent their users from becoming infected.
E-mail provider does not allow attachments
Some companies and e-mail providers will simply not allow any e-mail with any file attachments to be received or sent by their users as a safety precaution and/or to help any confidential information from getting outside.
Attachment not being sent properly
Finally, it's also possible that the attachment is not being added properly to the e-mail. Additional information about sending e-mails with attachments can be found on document CH000887.
Additional information:
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