What Is the IMAP Protocol?
The Internet Message Access Protocol is abbreviated to IMAP. It is used to fetch emails from a mail server. It is not used to send emails. It can only pull down emails waiting on a server; these mails arrived there through the mediation of a different protocol.
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Email Scenario
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You write an email and press "Send." The Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) takes over and transfers this message to your local mail server. Knowing the receiver, the protocol routes the message to the receiver's local host. There, the SMTP job is completed. The email will remain on the server local to the receiver, until the receiver invokes his mail program to get emails. This action is performed by IMAP.
Alternative Protocol
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IMAP is the second most popular email retrieval program operating in the world. The most popular is the Post Office Protocol (POP). All email programs support these two standards.
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Difference from POP
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IMAP allows email to be accessed from different computers. POP requires that the user accesses email messages from the same computer every time. This is because POP deletes messages from the mail server once they have been downloaded. IMAP does not.
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References
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