Introduction
Your email client application communicates with an email server to login, get mail status, and send and receive email.
Sending email uses special protocols or rules that determine how the internet handles message packets flowing on it.
The most common client connection protocols are SMTP, POP and IMAP.
SMTP
Stands for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol.
SMTP is a relatively simple, text-based protocol, that handles out going messages.
This decides which path an email message takes on the internet.
Port 25 is the standard port used by SMTP.
SMTP started becoming widely used in the early 1980s.
POP
Stands for Post Office Protocol which is a common Open Internet Standard to handle incoming messages.
Allows Mail servers to receive and store email messages in mail boxes.
Enables any email program to connect to any email server to read and send email, as long as they have a valid account and password.
Using client email program can download messages to your computer and POP delete messages from the service's computer.
Stands for Internet Message Access Protocol.
First developed at Stanford University in 1986. The current version is IMAP4, providing similar services to the POP protocol
Retrieve mail messages from server. Less common and more modern than POP. Keep your email on the server after downloading a copy to your machine.
The IMAP features are useful:
~ When you don't want to download your email onto another computer other than your home computer.
~ When use low-bandwidth devices as personal digital assistants, you can select email from a list before downloading ones you want
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