What is IMAP for email – And how does it work?

[samiaseo222]

IMAP is an email protocol that retrieves email from a receiving server and transfers it to the recipient's email account.

Without IMAP, the email you waited for so long would probably remain on the server, and you'd never see it.

So, let's give IMAP a round of applause, shall we?

But before we shower board members email list IMAP with praise, let's answer a few crucial questions about it first.

What is IMAP, and how does it work? ‍
IMAP's primary function is to retrieve emails from receiving servers.

of transferring the email, it copies it to its own IMAP server, which becomes accessible to you if you've configured the IMAP server Instead in your email client or app.

All messages and even folder structures get synced with IMAP. That means that if you make changes to them in your email client or app, these changes will also be applied to the emails on the IMAP server.

The cool thing is that you can connect with multiple devices and email clients, and your email account will still sync perfectly, thanks to IMAP.

Here's a slightly more technical explanation:

The email client (Gmail, Outlook, etc.) connects to the IMAP server through a secure connection
Once connected, the mailbox on the IMAP server and the one in the email client synchronize. Any changes made are reflected on both the email client and the server.
On reading an email message, the email client retrieves the message to display it to the user. The email won't be downloaded unless the user specifically opts to do so.
Users can create and delete email folders, which will all be synchronized
Users can access their mailbox offline. On reconnection, the email client synchronizes the changes with the IMAP server.