Hey all

From a search through the forums, it seems that people don't really like the common limitation on shared hosting that using mydomain.ext/webmail requires two logins, using your full email address. The answer, as far as I can see, is installing your own webmail client script, and configuring it as you please. I've tried it with Imp, and since it requires the Horde framework, it's really not fun.

1. I've looked at several alternatives, and it seems that squirrelmail, or derivatives such as sqmail etc may be the easiest option to customise. Not a fun process searching and testing all, so I'm wondering about recommendations:

- I need multiple Imap and pop account access, with messages *not* downloaded into the local account's imap folders, but kept separate, in a temporary folder for pop mail, or a view of the remote imap folders in the normal list for IMAP. This seems to be a limitation with many clients; DWmail and even the expensive @mail seem to copy secondary account messages into the local account's folders; very very annoying. Outlook Express' folder/account organisation is just fine, but I have yet to see that in a webmail client.

- I would like hotmail checking facilities. Available via plugin in Squirrelmail; but my current understanding of their folder organisation is such that I don't really like it. This would be used a lot

- I would like outoing mail to be sent from any SMTP server. I've seen limitations with webclients only using the local SMTP service, which seems nonsensical to me. A client that would choose outgoing account/server based on current folder view would be great.

- I don't mind customising the package, in fact I would like to be able to for integration into the site. Login options should be flexible; I know that squirrelmail's are. This would allow for full integration, e.g. a userlist local to that domain, so that domain1.com and domain2.com can login to the same script with username joe and access different accounts. To make customisation easier, a package based on php/mysql (not perl) would be good.

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2. The webmail subdomain that is added by default in cpanel will affect all domains on the server as far as I am aware, and is specified in httpd.conf. I may be talking rubbish on that point, I saw it in a thread that I can't find again. If I install a custom webmail client under a reseller account, can I automatically define that to be the target for sub accounts' webmail subdomain? That is, overriding the server default. If it has to be another subdomain, then it'd be default DNS records: aliases or whatever. Would these override apache's directives?

Sorry it's wordy. Any input is welcomed, even if it's "look at xappname, I heard that's good".

Many thanks! :D

Olly

Didn't look very far for that httpd.conf info, obviously! Reseller has no access to that, so the question applies to overriding that for particular domains, in an outomated way

Olly

Try looking at openwebmail. I don't know about imap and hotmail, i have only used it with pop3. Its really nice and easy to customize.

it seems to fit your requerments.

Most true webmail clients, i.e. those that simply load email from email accounts do not copy emails to local folders. I don't believe either of the two you mentioned copy emails to their own proprietry storage systems but load directly from the server.

Your question about SMTP. There are reasons why many webmail clients work in the way they do. If an SMTP server is a closed relay you can only connect to it if the domain you are using is allowed through that SMTP server thus you can't just add any SMTP server to send using.

Understood about the open relay thing. However, using SMTP authentication, you supply a password to be able to send an email. Are there any clients that can use this in the same way as say outlook express does?

Olly

If you have php configured with the right features I would do my best to get Horde/Imp to work. The newest release is much easier to install than the older ones. If memory serves me correct my most recent install with Horde went without a problem. I have Horde installed with about every imaginable module intalled along with it. It really makes webmail more enjoyable to use. Plus I enjoy the pgp service available with IMP.