Gmail - FAQs

Yes. Your OntarioTechU.Net email account will be the primary email address and the official means of communication between the University and you. This account is totally separate from your personal Google/Gmail account.

If you have a Self-Service Network Password Management profile, please access the password management tool.  Otherwise, call the IT Service Desk at 905.721.3333, option 1 for assistance.

To access your OntarioTechU.Net account you will use your student number and network password.  Please call the IT Service Desk at 905.721.3333, option 1 for support.  Or, if you have created a Self-Service Network Management profile, you can reset your password yourself by using the password management tool.

To look for messages, type a word that the message may contain in the Search in mail window. Note that it only matches "whole words" - that is, it doesn't recognize partial or similar matches. For example, if you search for benefits, you won't find benefit or benef. Also, it won't recognize special characters, such as square brackets [ ], parentheses ( ), currency symbols $, the ampersand &,  and asterisks *. 

By default, the search feature doesn't look in your Trash or Spam folders; remember to search those separately. 

You can find more information about using Search at About Gmail search. 

Though Google does have a "Check Spelling" feature, we recommend the built-in spell check in the Chrome and Firefox browsers. Spell check is enabled by default in these browsers, and misspelled words are automatically underlined in red.  The advantage of this built-in spell check is that you can add words to the dictionary, and it is checked automatically as you are typing.

To learn how to set up an Email Signature in Google, please visit Google Support.

Yes, if your browser is set to display pop-ups in a new window, you can select the following: 

• If you're reading a message, select the New Window link in the upper-right corner of the message.
• If you're composing a new message, select the "pop-up" icon in the upper-right corner of the message.

No. Messages stored in the Trash label for more than 30 days will be automatically deleted and unable to be restored.

Please note: IT Services cannot access and/or restore deleted messages.

Google doesn’t use a folder system. Instead, labels are used to group and organize messages. Labels are more efficient for organizing your email because conversations can have more than one label and be searched for by label name.

Google uses a star system instead of flags. To star a message, click on the star icon to make the message stand out in your inbox. To view all starred messages click on the Starred link in the label list.

Yes. However, students will be responsible for the receipt of email sent from the University to their OntarioTechU.Net account. Ontario Tech cannot guarantee the delivery of forwarded email. 

Students can also forward mail from their OntarioTechU.Net account to another pre-existing account. To learn how to forward mail to a pre-existing account, please refer to the Google Support.

Google for Education includes a full set of keyboard shortcuts. To learn more about keyboard shortcuts, please visit Google Support.

Archiving lets you tidy up your inbox by moving messages from your inbox into your All Mail label so you don't have to delete anything.  It's like moving something into a filing cabinet for safekeeping rather than putting it in the trash can.  Any messages you've archived can be found in the All Mail label on the left side of your Gmail page.  When someone responds to a message you've archived, the conversation containing that message will reappear in your inbox.

No.  There's no need to delete or archive messages in the Sent folder. Deleting messages in the Sent folder will delete the associated conversations, so it is not recommended.

Google organizes all replies with their original message, creating a single conversation or thread. Click here to view more information on conversations. This feature is turned on by default. You can turn this feature off by going to Settings. Under General, look for the Conversation View setting and select Conversation view off.

While in the conversation, you can click on the drop down arrow on the far right of the message that you wish to delete and select Delete this message. 

Google filters for viruses and spam before delivering the message; please refer to How is spam handled and Anti-virus scanning.

To make sure that any messages you receive from a specific person outside our domain pass through the spam filter, create an email filter using the Never send it to Spam option.  To learn more about using Gmail's filters, please visit Google Support.

Use the Report Spam button to let Google know if you received junk e-mail or a spoofed message.  For more information - Reporting spam and Report Phishing 

Google limits the amount of mail a user with an account can send.  The limits restrict the number of messages sent per day and number of recipients per message. After reaching one of these limits, a user cannot send new messages but can still receive incoming email.  Click here for more information on sending limits.

To end your OntarioTechU.Net session, click your account photo or email address in the top right corner, and select Sign out. We encourage you to log out of OntarioTechU.Net after each session to protect the security of your email information. Logging out of OntarioTechU.Net is especially important if you check your email on a public computer.

Yes, you can access your OntarioTechU.Net email through your mobile device by using your mobile device's browser and entering mail.uoit.net, or you can configure the mobile native app on your mobile device by following mobile device/smartphone guidelines.