Basic troubleshooting steps
Description
How to resolve the most common issues in Yahoo! Mail, Yahoo! Contacts, Yahoo! Calendar, and Yahoo! Notepad, including:
- Mail freezes, performs slowly, or folders / messages will not load
- Mail is blank
- Buttons / pull-down menus / scroll bars / text fields are missing or don't work
- Can't attach or download files
- Unable to send, forward, or reply to an email message
- Can't insert, add, or edit contacts in the "To" field or Address Book.
Cause
Your
Internet browser is usually the cause of the problem. Your browser may
not be supported, or your browser's settings may need adjustment.
Resolution
By making a few adjustments to your Internet browser and/or computer settings, you can resolve the most common problems in Yahoo! Mail, Contacts, Calendar, and Notepad. We encourage you to sign in to Yahoo! Mail after each set of steps to see if the issue is resolved.
Before proceeding: Test with a different supported browser. If you experienced problems in Internet Explorer, try accessing your Yahoo! Mail in Firefox or Chrome to see if the problem resolves itself.
Step 1:
- Ensure that you are using a supported browser. Yahoo! Mail may not work properly in older browsers.
- Clear your browser's cache and cookies.
- Ensure JavaScript is enabled and updated.
- Sign in to Yahoo! Mail and see if the issue is resolved.
- Disable browser add-ons and plug-ins.
- Update Adobe Flash Player.
- Sign in to Yahoo! Mail and see if the issue is resolved.
- Temporarily disable antivirus, antispyware, and firewall products.
- If you're using Internet Explorer, check your Internet Explorer Compatibility Mode settings. You should disable compatibility mode if it is enabled.
- Sign in to Yahoo! Mail and see if the issue is resolved.
- Restart your computer.
- Test from another computer (this eliminates your computer as a cause of this issue).
- Sign in to Yahoo! Mail and see if the issue is resolved.
Troubleshooting "error 999" code
Description
This
article provides troubleshooting steps for resolving the "Unable to
process request at this time -- error 999" error when using Yahoo!.
Resolution
The
999 error is caused by unusually high activity from either your
computer or your IP address to a specific page or pages within Yahoo!.
While this type of error is usually temporary, there are troubleshooting
steps you can take if you continue to experience this issue:
- Try accessing Yahoo! from a different computer or a different Internet connection to see if the issue continues or if it goes away.
- Scan your computer for spyware and viruses. Spyware programs can change your system settings, serve pop-ups, record your surfing habits, or display advertisements over websites you visit. Other spyware programs and certain computer viruses will run separate programs on your computer for a variety of purposes, sometimes slowing your computer down in the process, and even preventing you from accessing certain Internet sites such as Yahoo!.
- Enable cookies and make sure that your Web browser is enabled to accept cookies from Yahoo!. Deleting your cookies can contribute to your receiving this error. For information, please visit help article about enabling cookies.
- Does your household or office have multiple computers accessing Yahoo! through a shared Internet connection? If so, you may collectively have to moderate the amount of access you have during a given time frame, so you won't exceed the limit of access from a single IP.
- Do you use a third-party software program or application to access Yahoo!? If so, please keep in mind that these types of programs are not supported by Yahoo! and may contribute to you receiving this error. For example, certain plug-ins, depending on how they are configured and the level of activity in your groups, may lead to your receiving the 999 error.