You need to have ashMaisv.exe running to be able to check your mail. Since you’re running Outlook you could have just run the Mail Protection Wizard & it would have started ashMaiSv.exe for you.

Quote directly from “Setting up Mail Protection”

If your mail program tells you that it cannot contact mail server, check whether the ashMaiSv.exe program is running. If not, run it and try again. Installation program sets an automatic startup of ashMaiSv.exe at the time of the computer start. If it is still not starting, add its shortcut to "Startup" menu in Start menu.