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I get the message "Your login session has expired." Why?

You'll see this message if it has been more than eight hours since you last signed in to Yahoo! and you did not click the "Sign Out" link at the end of your session. We display this message and ask that you log in again as a safeguard for Yahoo! Business Email users, specifically those who use public or shared computers. Other possibilities:

  • Check your account information. If you've chosen to be prompted for a password more frequently than every eight hours, your session will expire after the specified amount of time. To change this:

    1. Sign in to your account at http://mail.yourdomain.com/ (be sure to replace "yourdomain" with your domain name).

    2. Click the "My Account" link at the top of the page. You'll be prompted to verify your password.

    3. On the "Review My Account Information" page, click the "Edit" button or link to the right of "Member Information."

    4. Under General Preferences, toward the bottom of the page, select your "Prompt for Password" setting in the pull-down menu. You may choose everythign from every 15 minutes to every 2 weeks.

    5. Click the "Finished" button to save your changes.

  • Please note that opening another browser window and signing in to a second Yahoo! account will automatically sign you out of the first. When you return to the first account, clicking on any link will give you the "Your login session has expired" message.

  • If you repeatedly receive the message "Your login session has expired" or are repeatedly cycled back to the sign-in screen with no error message after entering your ID and password, your problem may be caused by a difficulty setting your user cookie. (A cookie is a small piece of information stored by your browser to help identify who you are. Yahoo! Business Email uses cookies to keep you logged in to your account as you move from page to page.) If your cookie isn't being accepted correctly, you'll be logged out of your account as soon as you move to a different page. This will prevent you from signing in or staying signed in.

    There are a number of reasons why your cookie may not be set properly. We have listed the possible reasons and their solutions below. We recommend trying the steps in order, as they are listed from easiest-to-fix to most difficult.

    • The date on your computer is set incorrectly. Since cookies rely on dates, a computer with an incorrect date may mislead your browser into forgetting about your cookie. To fix this, set the correct time and date on your computer.

    • You have installed an application that monitors/blocks cookies from being sent. This may include virus protection software. To remedy this, simply disable the monitoring application before logging in.

    • You are behind a firewall that doesn't allow you to receive cookies. This is sometimes the case for users connecting from a business intranet that limits cookie acceptance for security reasons. Contact your system administrator for more information.

    • Your browser is not set to accept cookies. Most browsers have the option of accepting all cookies, showing an alert before accepting a cookie, or not accepting cookies at all. In order to use Yahoo! Business Email, your browser must be set to accept all cookies without alerts (don't select the option that will display an alert before accepting cookies). To adjust this setting, we've provided instructions for several browsers. When making adjustments, be sure to confirm any changes you make by clicking the "OK" button in the Options windows.

      Internet Explorer 6.x and higher:

      1. Click "Tools."
      2. Click "Internet Options," and then the "Privacy" tab.
      3. Move the slider up or down depending upon your desired level of security.

      Internet Explorer 5.x:

      1. Click "Tools," then "Internet Options."
      2. Select the "Security" tab and click the button labeled "Custom Level."
      3. Scroll down to "Cookies" and make sure that the box next to "Accept cookies" is checked.

      Netscape 7.x:

      1. Select the "Edit" menu, then "Preferences."
      2. Scroll down to "Advanced" and click "Scripts and Plugins."
      3. Check the boxes next to "Create or change cookies" and "Read cookies" are checked.

      Netscape 4.x:

      1. Click "Edit."
      2. Click "Preferences," and then "Advanced."
      3. Make sure the setting "Accept all cookies" is checked.

      Internet Explorer 5.x for Mac:

      1. Click "Edit" and select the "Preferences" option.
      2. Under "Receiving Files," select "Cookies."
      3. Next to "When receiving cookies:" select the level of cookie acceptance. 4. Click "OK" to finish.

      Netscape 4.x for Mac:

      1. Select the "Edit" menu and then click "Preferences."
      2. Scroll down to "Advanced" and make sure that the box next to "Accept cookies" is checked.

    • Your browser's cookie files are corrupted. Sometimes corrupted cookie files won't support Yahoo! Business Email. Try shutting all of your browser's windows, then deleting the cookie files in your browser's directories. Usually these files will be called simply "Cookies." As always, be sure that you have selected the proper files before actually deleting them.

    • Your browser is corrupted. If the above suggestions haven't helped, it may be that your browser itself is corrupted. The easiest solution may be to try another browser on your computer; you can also reinstall your current browser by finding the original installation file and repeating the installation process. As a last resort, you can download a new browser, such as Mozilla Firefox or Netscape, or an updated version of your current browser.

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