Why won't "Rules" work?

I set up Rules according to your on-line instructions.  I like to keep my Rules in alphabetical order as there are quite a few.  Most of the Rules work just fine.  However, the Rule that was created for communications with eM Client won’t work.  It doesn’t matter how many times I create it, or where it is placed in the list (in alphabetical order or as the first rule on the list).  The communications with eM Client always end up in the Junk E-mail folder.  I have to manually move the emails to the eM Client, or run the Rules again from the Menu.  Why?  Is there some magical word or process that I am missing?  Thanks for your help.

Hi Lynne.

Actually the order of Rules in the list is the order they will run in, so if you want certain Rules to run before others, alphabetically is not the way to go.

Can you post a screenshot of the Rule that is not working?

It could also be possible that your email client (gmail, yahoo, etc) is the one putting it in the junk mail and not EM Client.  

Prior to adding the rule, where those emails going to your junk mail or inbox.?

Yes, the email server can be doing that. :slight_smile:

Bur that would not explain why her Rules are not working.

I guess that depends though… if the email client is pushing it to the junk mail before it even reached EM client to be filtered by the rules, then there isn’t even a chance for the rule to work in the first place. 

Which email client are we talking about? eM Client?

maybe i’m using the wrong term… I’m not saying email client as in the program used to view the email, i’m talking about the company that actually host the emails… gmail, yahoo, hotmail, etc. If they are pre-filtering to the junkmail, then the rules set in EM client aren’t going to apply to it.

OK. That is the email server.

Answering your questions:

Gary Curtin - it makes sense that the Rules would be applied in the order that they are in the Rule screen.  I’m not fussy about what Rule does what in what order.  I like to be able to find the Rules quickly when or if I need to.  Here’s the screenshot.

Jonathan Downer:  My email is with frontier.com; is that what you mean when you say email server?  I don’t recall where the eM Client mail was going before creating the Rule.  But I suspect it might be the In-Box cause I created all the Rules from email received there. 

Thanks for your help, gentlemen.

OK, I have the same Rule.

In the Rule you have two email addresses. The first one is incomplete so just remove that from the Rule. However, the second is correct, so should work.

If messages from this forum are always going to Junk, then it could be as Jonathan commented, and it is the email server moving them. You will need to login to your email account using the provider’s web interface and remove them from the spam filter that way.

If that is not it, then it may be that the address or domain is in your Blacklist in eM Client. In that case you want to right-click on the message and choose Move to Inbox > Move to Inbox and remove blacklisted address/domain. Or you can open the Blacklist Rule and remove the address or domain from the list manually.

If the messages are already in Junk because of a server action, or they are moved by Blacklist or Spam filter Rules, other Rules will not apply to them when run automatically, because they are not in the Inbox.

Thanks.  I’ve continued to try and get the Rules to work.  But each time mail is downloaded, there are some that go into the Junk folder, despite the fact there is a Rule directing that certain emails go to certain folders.  And it happens to other mail besides mail from eM Client.  As you suggested, I checked the Blacklist, and at my servicer – nothing. I could not find any Spam filter.  I now have to re-run the Rules after mail is downloaded, applying All Rules, and then the mail usually goes where it is supposed to go.  Any idea why this problem continues?  Thanks. 

You can always disable the Spam filter Rule and the Blacklist Rule in eM Client and then see what happens. If the messages are still going to Junk, then it is either another Rule you have created, or it is being done at your mail server.

I am leaning more towards Johnathan’s suggestion that it is the server. Either it is adding a spam header, so the Spam filter Rule is moving the message, or the server is moving the message before eM Client syncs.