Using IMAP instead of POP3...Why
The Cal Poly OpenMail server can work with two different types of email: IMAP and POP3. These descriptions may help you choose which one you want to use. Read the "Note" at the bottom about changing between IMAP and POP3 mail servers.
Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP)
Advantages:
1. Your messages stay on your server. When you open your inbox, you download message headers only. When you open a message, it's then downloaded to your local computer, so startup time is faster. Also, because messages are stored on the server, and changes are copied back from your local computer, you always have access to an updated mailbox, as well as the ability to access your mail from multiple locations.
2. Performance on a modem is faster.
3. You have the ability to synchronize specific mail folders for offline use, thereby saving disk space.
4. You can access and store mail in folders on the server with IMAP, but not with POP3.
Disadvantages:
1. Losing the server connection causes problems. Unless you copy your messages to your local computer, when your server connection is lost you can see only the message headers, not the messages themselves. If your connection goes down while you're working, you won't have access to your messages. In order to read your messages when you're working offline, you must first select them for downloading before you go offline.
Post Office Protocol (POP3)
Advantages:
1. Downloads messages to your local computer all at once after you connect to your server, thereby making offline reading easier. You can also specify whether to keep copies of the messages on the server. If your connection goes down while you're working, you have your messages, and most ISPs currently support POP access. The OpenMail email server does support POP3. Access.
Disadvantages:
1. You must synchronize your local inbox with your server's mailbox. This can result in downloading new messages over and over (if you save your messages on your server) each time you connect. If you use more than one computer, messages might reside in one or the other, but not both. The end result is you are sometimes unable to access all your messages when you need to.
2. POP doesn't work as well as IMAP over a slow link connection.
3. Also, you can't access all mail folders from multiple locations.
Note: With Netscape Messenger, you can have only: multiple IMAP servers or one POP3 server. You can not have both IMAP and POP3 servers within Messenger. Once you configure a mail server within Messenger as IMAP, you can not then add a POP3 server. Once you configure a server as POP3, you can not then add any other server.
