What is the Mailshell Premium Service?

Mailshell's Premium Service provides additional benefits and features for your Mailshell account:

• Use your own name: You can have @"yourname".com for all your addresses. It's simple and easy to remember.



• Stop existing spam: You can download and filter messages from up to three other POP, IMAP, AOL, Hotmail, or Yahoo accounts and get all the benefits of Mailshell's Intelligent Email system for your current email account.



• Get email where you want: You'll have complete control over where you read messages--send different Mailshell addresses to your work email, home email, cell phone, PDA, etc.



• Keep your computer safe: Use our filters to screen out viruses, unwanted images, and hidden tracking devices from senders you don't trust.



• More than enough storage: Get 50MB to save all your emails.



• No Mailshell ads: You won't have any extra ads cluttering your email.



• Track and encrypt messages: Know when your recipients have opened your messages and send password- or PGP-encrypted messages for extra security.



• Tons of other great features: Point your domain to an existing website, remove Hotmail ads, and much more.



• Read on your desktop: Mailshell Premium integrates fully with POP- and IMAP-capable email clients like Outlook and Eudora, letting you download and store messages locally if you want.

The Premium Service costs $34.95/year, payable by credit card. To sign up, click here.

What extra features will I get with the Premium Service?

Mailshell's Premium Service provides many additional features for your Mailshell account:



• Personal domain: You'll get your own easy-to-remember domain name (e.g., yourdomain.com) rather than a Mailshell subdomain (e.g., yourdomain.mailshell.com). If you already own a domain, you can transfer it to Mailshell and take advantage of our service.
  
  
• Stop existing spam: You can download and filter messages from up to three other POP, IMAP, AOL, Hotmail, or Yahoo accounts and get all the benefits of Mailshell's Intelligent Email system for your current email account.
  
  
• Multiple forwarding addresses: As a Premium user, you can use multiple forwarding addresses instead of just one; for example, you can have some of your subscriptions go to your personal email address and others go to your work address. You'll have more control than ever before over where you receive your email!
  
  
• More storage space: Premium users get an additional 40 MB of storage space, for a total of 50 MB.
  
  
• Anti-virus and privacy protection: You can make your email safer and more secure with Virus Protection, which screens out possible sources of email-borne viruses, unwanted pornographic images, and hidden tracking devices.
  
  
• Look more professional while using Hotmail: The Email Provider Hider lets you send professional email while still using Hotmail and taking advantage of their features; we'll change the "from" address and strip out the tags that Hotmail appends to outgoing mail.
  
  
• No Mailshell-inserted ads: Mailshell has to make a living, and part of that living has been made by appending ads to emails sent or received through your account. But if you sign up for our Premium Service, Mailshell will no longer insert these ads.
  
  
• POP and IMAP access: View messages stored in your Mailshell folders through Outlook, Eudora, Netscape Messenger, or other POP/IMAP-capable email clients without needing to sign in at our website.
  
  
• URL forwarding:You can point your domain to any website or IP address you like, including a personal home page, letting you integrate your Mailshell account with other websites and make your personal domain truly personal.
  
  
• Track delivery: You can track messages you send from Mailshell and see when the recipients have opened them.
  
  
• Encrypted messages: You can send password- and PGP-encrypted messages for extra security.

To sign up for the Premium Service, click here.

How do I use the different Premium features?

For more information on how to use a Premium feature, click the appropriate link below:


• Learn how to stop your existing spam.
  
  
• Learn more about forwarding addresses.
  
  
• Learn more about protecting your computer from viruses and tracking devices with Virus Protection.
  
  
• Learn how to send email from Hotmail using your disposable email addresses and have Mailshell strip out appended ads with the Email Provider Hider.
  
  
• Learn how to configure a desktop client like Outlook, Eudora, and Netscape Messenger for POP access.
  
  
• Learn how to configure a desktop client for IMAP access.
  
  
• Learn how to point your domain to another website or IP address.
  
  
• Learn how to track messages so that you know when your recipient(s) have opened them.
  
  
• Learn how to protect your messages with password or PGP encryption.

How does the Premium Service compare with other email providers?

Mailshell offers a complete service for intelligent email management, including many features not available from standard email providers. You can see a comparison chart by clicking here.

How much does the Premium Service cost?

The Premium Service costs $34.95 a year, payable by credit card.

How do I sign up?

Signing up is easy!



• If you don't yet have a Mailshell account, just go to the front door and enter the personal domain name you would like, then follow the step-by-step registration process to select your domain and activate your account.
  
  
• If you already have a Mailshell account and would like to upgrade, just click here. (You will still receive messages sent to your existing subdomain.)

Do I have to select my domain during registration, or can I do it later?

You must select your domain during registration, and domains cannot be changed once registration is complete.

If I already have an account, how can I upgrade to the Premium Service?

To upgrade, click here. (Please note that You will still receive messages sent to your existing subdomain even if you register a new domain.)

If I upgrade, do I have to get a new domain?

Currently, the Premium Service requires the registration of a new domain name. Remember, though, that if you choose a new domain you will still receive mail sent to existing addresses at your subdomain (whether approved or pending), although you will not be able to create any new ones and all new addresses will need to use your new registered domain.

If I upgrade and get a new domain, what happens to my existing subdomain?

You will still receive mail sent to existing addresses at your subdomain (whether approved or pending), but you will not be able to create any new ones. All new addresses will need to use your new registered domain.

If I register a domain through Mailshell, will I own my domain?

You will own your domain as long as you are a current Premium user with Mailshell. The name you provide with your credit card will be listed publicly in the WHOIS database as the organization registrant; to protect your privacy, Mailshell's address will be given. Mailshell will be listed as the administrative, technical, and billing contacts.

Will I be able to have a website at my domain?

Unfortunately, to keep prices low, Mailshell currently cannot offer web hosting services. If you wish to have a website associated with your domain, you can use the Manage Your Domain Address feature: this allows you to either forward your domain to an existing website or specify the IP address where your website resides.

Will I have the option of transferring my domain elsewhere in the future?

You do have the option of transferring a domain you have registered through Mailshell as long as you are a current Premium user, although there will be a $20 processing fee. To do so, contact the new registrar you wish to use and have them request the transfer, then notify Mailshell Support that you will be transferring your domain to this registrar.

How long does it take for a new domain to be ready?

Premium domains can take up to 48 hours to register before they are ready to use. You will receive a confirmation email when your Premium domain is ready.

If I already own a domain, can I use Mailshell for my email?

If you own a .com, .net., or .org domain name and would like to have Mailshell protect your email, there are two ways to do so:

• Transfer the entire domain to Mailshell. To do this, click any of the "Already have a domain?" links on the front door or when selecting a domain and follow the directions related to transferring your domain.



• If you are an advanced user, you may prefer to update your DNS MX records so that you can have Mailshell protect your email without transferring the domain. To do this, click any of the "Already have a domain?" links on the front door or when selecting a domain. On the "Transfer a Domain" page, follow the directions related to DNS MX updating. (For more information about updating your DNS MX records, click here.)

Transferring a domain costs $34.95 a year; updating your MX records costs $24.95. Both fees include the Premium Service.

What domain suffixes do you support?

Mailshell currently supports only .com, .net, and .org domain suffixes.

Do you plan on offering more domain suffixes in the future?

Due to additional costs and resources associated with other domain suffixes (.biz, .name, etc.), Mailshell is not planning on offering those in the near future.

Can I use a desktop client (e.g., Outlook) to send and receive email?

What is a DNS MX record and how do I modify it to use Mailshell for my email?

DNS MX (Domain Name Service Mail eXchanger) refers to a domain name's mail server information. The MX record provides information about which servers handle the domain name's email storage, distribution, or redirection.

MX records contain the mail server name(s) and the priority setting assigned to each. For example:

MX Record: joe.com MX 10 mail.server.net

This MX record assigns mail.server.net a priority of 10 as the mail server handling email for joe.com. The priority number controls which mail servers are used first; values range from 0-99, with lower numbers corresponding to higher priority. The mail server with the highest priority is typically used for delivery of all email for the domain name, but if this primary server is unavailable, the server with the next highest priority will be used instead. (If an MX record contains two servers with the same priority number, both will have equal responsibility for email.)

If you would like Mailshell to handle email for your domain without transferring it entirely, you need to update your MX record with the following information:

Domain	Primary MX	Secondary MX
"yourdomain".com	mail1.mailshell.com	mail2.mailshell.com
at."yourdomain".com	mail1.mailshell.com	mail2.mailshell.com

Please do not set the priority preference for either server to zero, and do not include any additional MX servers beyond those listed above; if you do, email may be delayed or lost.

If you do not have direct control over your DNS, please contact the DNS provider that currently handles email for your domain name for assistance in updating the MX records.

Using Mailshell to handle email for your domain costs $24.95 a year and includes our Premium Service.

Please note: This is not a registrar transfer. You will still be responsible for all ongoing domain name registration and renewal fees to your current registrar.

What is Mailshell's refund policy?

Mailshell does not provide refunds for Premium accounts.

Could the cost of the Premium Service increase in the future? If so, will I have to pay more?

Prices can change at any time. Your price will be locked in for whatever term you have paid for and can be extended at any time at the most current rates.