Skip to main content
Version: 4.17.4

Inbound Email component

The Inbound Email component is used to retrieve email messages and/or attachments from an email server. After retrieving messages and/or attachments, they are sent to the next component in the flow.

Configuration​

This component has the following configuration options:

Protocol​

Specifies the protocol used to connect to the email server.

Options

  • imap (default)
  • imaps
  • pop3
  • pop3s
  • smtp
  • smtps

Host​

Defines the hostname of the email server.

SSL Certificates

If the mail server you are connecting to uses an SSL Certificate, it should work out of the box as long as it is signed by a default trusted certificate authority. If the mail server uses a self-signed certificate or a certificate not signed by a default trusted certificate authority, it must be imported manually. Please contact your Dovetail provider for support.

Port​

Defines the port of the email server.

Authentication Type​

Specifies the authentication type used to log in to the email server.

Options

  • Basic (default)
  • OAuth

Username​

Defines the username or email account used to log in to the email server.

note

This refers to the email account you want to access when Authentication Type is set to OAuth.

Password​

Defines the password used to log in to the email server.

note

Only available when the Authentication Type is set to Basic.

Access Token​

Defines the access token used for authentication on the email server.

note

Only available when the Authentication Type is set to OAuth.

tip
  • Use the @{tenantVariableName} syntax to retrieve the access token from the Tenant Variables.
  • Refer to the SetOAuth2Token component page on how to set up access tokens.

Content​

Specifies whether the message body and/or attachments should be retrieved, put on the body and sent to the next component.

Options

  • Message body (default)
  • Attachments
  • Message body and attachments

No attachments​

If you attempt to retrieve attachments from an email that does not have any, the body is processed and sent to the next component instead. A header named noAttachmentsFound with the value true is set to indicate this.

tip

Use a simple expression like ${header.noAttachmentsFound} == true in a Filter component or Content Router component to handle such cases.

Message body and attachments​

If Message body and attachments is selected, both the email body and it's attachments are retrieved. Additionally:

  • A header named isEmailBody with the value true is set when the email body is sent to the next component.
  • A header named isEmailAttachment with the value true is set when an email attachment is sent to the next component.
  • Each attachment is sent as a separate message.
  • A header named CamelFileName is set with the original file name of the attachment.
  • Every time an attachment is sent to the next component, the email body is set on a header named emailBody.

Unseen​

Specifies whether only unread messages should be retrieved.

note

This option only applies to the imap and imaps protocol.

caution

An email will not be marked as read if there is a failed exchange shortly after it is retrieved and starts following the flow.

Polling interval (in ms)​

Specifies the amount of time (in milliseconds) between each poll for new email messages.

processing bottleneck

The fewer emails there are present in the mailbox, the faster the reading process will be. Having a large number of read and/or unread emails on the server may create a performance bottleneck. Consider archiving emails to improve performance.

emails with large attachments

If you expect to retrieve emails with large attachments, ensure the polling interval is long enough to complete the retrieval process before the next poll.

Search subject​

Defines (a part of) the email subject, only emails with this text in their subject are retrieved.

Search body​

Defines (a part of) the email body, only emails with this text in their body are retrieved.

Search from​

Defines the from email address, only emails received from this email address are retrieved.

Search to​

Defines the to email address, only emails sent to this email address are retrieved.

no regex in search

The four search terms above only support strings. Regular expressions are not supported.

search capabilities

We use the JavaMail API to search for and retrieve emails. The search capabilities depend on the protocol, provider and server used.

Last update on Feb 18, 2025