Email clients such as Outlook, Gmail, and Apple Mail operate similarly when it comes to sending an email. This article will give a full breakdown of what the process involves. We’ll cover everything from when you compose a message to how your Email Hosting server sends it to its final arrival in the recipient’s inbox.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Process For Sending An Email
Step 1: Compose and Send an Email
Composing and sending an email is generally the same process, regardless of which email software or app you use. The start of the process is the actual writing of your message and telling your client what address to send it to.
As you most likely know, to compose and send an email, open your Mail App and click New Mail, Compose, or New Message.
Enter the recipient’s email address in the To field, enter the subject, type in the body text, and click Send. You can attach files by clicking the Attach icon and selecting the files.
Step 2: Transfer to an Outgoing Mail Server
Once you’ve clicked Send, the email is sent from your outbox using Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP). It first goes to an outgoing mail server, which verifies the email’s domain and address to direct it to the correct recipient.
This verification is handled by a Message Transfer Agent (MTA), which is your email hosting mail server.
The MTA checks the recipient’s domain name (e.g., @sendername.com) using a Domain Name System (DNS) server and Mail Exchange (MX) protocol to determine the correct email server to deliver the message to.
Step 3: Delivering to the Recipient Server
The MTA delivers the email to the recipient’s email server. The receiving mail server takes in the message for delivery to the recipient’s inbox.
The recipient’s email client then uses either POP3 (Post Office Protocol version 3) or IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) to retrieve the message from the server and display it to the user.
Finally, the email reaches the intended inbox. The recipient can then open, read, and respond to it using their email client.
Additional Information
Types of Email Protocols
An email protocol consists of standardised rules and processes that govern the sending, receiving, and management of email messages. They are the common languages and methods used by email clients (such as Outlook, Gmail, or Apple Mail) and email hosting servers to communicate with each other.
These protocols ensure that emails can be exchanged, regardless of the software or email hosting providers involved. When sending email, several protocols are used:
SMTP
This protocol is responsible for sending emails. When you click Send, your email client uses SMTP to send the message to your outgoing mail server, which then uses SMTP to forward it to the recipient’s mail server.
POP3
This protocol is used for retrieving messages from a mail server to a local device (computer/laptop). With POP3, emails are downloaded to your computer and then often deleted from the server, making them only accessible from that device.
IMAP
This protocol is also used for retrieving email messages, allowing you to access and manage your emails directly on the mail server. This means that emails stay on the server, and any changes you make are synced across all devices that access that email account.
What is An Email Client
Email clients are software applications that enable users to send, receive, and manage emails. They can be standalone (e.g., Microsoft Outlook) or web-based (e.g., Gmail). Email clients often offer features such as calendar integration, spam filtering, and email forwarding.
