getmail

Note

WebFaction supports IMAP and POP mail protocols, but IMAP is recommended. By default, IMAP leaves messages stored on the mail server, allowing you to access your mail from different computers and devices, while POP typically does not. If you still want to configure your email client to use POP, please see Configuring Other Mail Clients for details.

You can use getmail to fetch mail from WebFaction’s mail servers. To configure getmail:

1. Create a .getmail directory in your HOME directory. Enter mkdir -m 0700 $HOME/.getmail and press Enter.

2. Open a new file, $HOME/.getmail/getmailrc, in a text editor.

3. Add the following lines to the file:

   [retriever]
   type = SimpleIMAPSSLRetriever
   server = mail.webfaction.com
   username = mailbox_name
   port = 993
   
   [destination]
   type = Maildir
   path = maildir_path
   

   where mailbox_name is the name of the mailbox you configured in the WebFaction control panel and maildir_path is the location where you would like the incoming messages to be stored.

   Note

   For more information about configuring getmail, please see the getmail documentation. It contains important information about mail file formats and other settings.

4. Save and close getmailrc.

Now, if you enter getmail and press Enter, you will be prompted for your password and your mail will be downloaded to the specified destination.