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Configuring IMAP Provider Connections in Aurinko

This guide explains how to configure Aurinko to work with IMAP email accounts, including provider credentials, server settings, synchronization, sending emails, and troubleshooting.

What is IMAP?

IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) is a standard email protocol that allows email clients and applications to access and manage messages stored on a mail server while keeping them synchronized across multiple devices.

Before You Start

Before connecting your IMAP account to Aurinko, you need:

  • Your full email address

  • An app-specific password or your regular email password, depending on your email provider

  • Your IMAP server and port, if required by your provider

  • Your SMTP server and port, if required by your provider

App-Specific Passwords

Most modern email providers require you to generate an app-specific password (also called an application password or app password) instead of using your regular account password.

App-specific passwords are credentials created specifically for third-party applications such as Aurinko. They provide an additional layer of security because you can:

  • Revoke access without changing your main account password

  • Limit access to a specific application

  • Track which applications have access to your account

Where to Find App Password Settings

The exact process varies by email provider:

Provider
App Password Settings

iCloud

Apple ID → Password & Security → App-Specific Passwords

Yahoo

Account Security → App Passwords

AOL

Account Security → App Passwords

Zoho

Security → App-Specific Passwords

Fastmail

Settings → Privacy & Security → App Passwords

Note: If your provider is not listed above, look for App Passwords, Application Passwords, or Third-party App Access in your account's security or privacy setting

Important: Save your app-specific password immediately. Most providers display it only once and will not allow you to view it again later.

Providers That Use Regular Passwords

Not all email providers support app-specific passwords. Some providers, typically smaller or self-hosted email services, may require you to use your regular email password for IMAP access.

These may include:

  • Self-hosted IMAP servers

  • Many custom-domain email hosting services

  • Some legacy email providers

In these cases, enter your regular email password when connecting your account to Aurinko.

Once you have your credentials, you are ready to add your IMAP account to the Aurinko portal.

Example: Generate a Gmail App Password

If you use Gmail and want to connect your account to Aurinko via IMAP, you may need to generate an app-specific password.

Step 1: Enable 2-Step Verification

Gmail app passwords can only be generated when 2-Step Verification is enabled on your Google Account.

  1. Sign in to your Gmail account.

  2. Click your account icon in the top-right corner and select Manage your Google Account.

  3. In the left-hand menu, select Security.

  4. Under How you sign in to Google, find 2-Step Verification.

  5. If it is not enabled, click Get started and follow the on-screen instructions.

Step 2: Generate an App Password

After enabling 2-Step Verification:

  1. Go to the Security section of your Google Account.

  2. Under How you sign in to Google, select App passwords.

  3. Enter your Google password again if prompted.

  4. Under Select app, choose Mail.

  5. Under Select device, choose the device you are using, or select Other and enter a custom name.

  6. Click Generate.

  7. Google displays a 16-character app password.

Important: Copy the password immediately. Google displays the generated password only once. The spaces displayed in the password are cosmetic and can be omitted when pasting it into Aurinko.

Adding Your IMAP Account to the Aurinko Portal

Once you have your credentials, follow these steps to connect your account.

Step 1: Open the Aurinko Portal

Sign in to the Aurinko API Portal and go to Accounts.

Step 2: Add a New Account

  1. Click Add Account.

  2. Select IMAP from the list of service types.

Note for iCloud users: iCloud has a dedicated service type in Aurinko. Select iCloud instead of IMAP to use the optimized integration for Apple's email services.

Step 3: Select Scopes

Select the permissions your application requires.

Scope
Description

Read

Read emails and email metadata

ReadWrite

Read, update, and delete emails

Drafts

Create and manage drafts

Send

Send emails

Step 4: Enter Account Credentials

Using a predefined provider? You do not need to enter the IMAP or SMTP server details manually. Aurinko already has the required connection settings for supported providers.

Using a custom or unsupported provider? You will need to obtain the IMAP and SMTP server addresses and ports from your email provider's documentation or support team.

Enter your IMAP account information:

Field
Description

ServiceProvider

Select your email service provider

Email

Your full email address, for example user@example.com

Password

Your app-specific password or regular email password

IMAP Server / Port (Incoming)

The server address and port used for receiving emails. Required for custom email providers.

SMTP Server / Port (Outgoing)

The server address and port used for sending emails. Required for custom email providers.

How Aurinko Connects to Your IMAP Server

Aurinko connects to your IMAP server using IMAPS (imaps://), the secure, TLS-encrypted version of IMAP.

This ensures that communication between Aurinko and your mail server is encrypted.

Aurinko uses standard IMAP authentication methods, including:

  • PLAIN

  • LOGIN

These authentication methods are used over the encrypted IMAPS connection.

Security Note: Your credentials are transmitted securely and are not stored in plain text. If you are unsure about your IMAP or SMTP server addresses, check your email provider's documentation or contact their support team. Incorrect server addresses or ports will prevent Aurinko from connecting to your account.

Sending Emails and the "Sent Messages" Folder

How Aurinko Handles Sent Emails

When you send an email through the Aurinko API, Aurinko delivers the message to the recipient through your SMTP server.

However, not all email providers automatically save a copy of sent messages to the Sent folder.

For example:

  • iCloud does not automatically add sent emails to the Sent Messages folder.

  • Some self-hosted IMAP servers may also omit this step by default.

Enable Sent Email Copies

Aurinko provides an account-level option that allows sent emails to be copied to the Sent Messages folder.

To enable it:

  1. Go to Accounts.

  2. Select your IMAP account.

  3. Find the Copy sent emails to 'Sent Messages' folder checkbox.

  4. Turn the option ON.

After enabling this option, Aurinko automatically copies sent emails to the configured Sent folder.

Account Creation and Background Synchronization

What Happens After You Submit the Form

After you submit the IMAP account configuration, Aurinko:

  1. Creates the account and associates it with your application.

  2. Starts a background synchronization process.

  3. Continuously updates mailbox data, including:

    • Folder and directory structures

    • Email messages

    • Read/unread status

    • Other mailbox metadata

The background synchronization runs automatically. You do not need to manually trigger updates.

Initial Synchronization

During the initial synchronization, Aurinko performs a full scan of your mailbox to build an index of folders and messages.

Depending on the size of your mailbox, the initial synchronization may take some time.

Troubleshooting

If Aurinko encounters an issue while connecting to or synchronizing your IMAP account, the error details are displayed on the account page.

View Provider Errors

  1. Go to Accounts.

  2. Select your IMAP account.

  3. Open the Provider Errors section.

Common provider errors include:

  • Authentication failures caused by an incorrect password or app-specific password

  • Server connection timeouts

  • SSL/TLS handshake errors

  • Rate limiting

  • Server bans or connection restrictions

Need Help?

If you see an error in Provider Errors that you do not understand, or the problem persists after verifying your credentials and server settings, contact Aurinko Support.

Include the following information:

  • Your account ID

  • The exact error message shown in Provider Errors

  • Your email provider

  • Relevant timestamps

This information will help the support team diagnose and resolve the issue more quickly.

Using Your IMAP Account with the Unified Email API

Once your IMAP account has been successfully added and synchronized, you can interact with it through the Aurinko Unified Email API.

The REST API provides a consistent interface for accessing and managing email across supported providers, including:

  • Google

  • Microsoft 365

  • iCloud

  • IMAP

Key Capabilities

The Email API allows you to:

  • Read email messages, including content, sender and recipient information, subject lines, and dates

  • Search inboxes using the q parameter

  • Update message status, including read/unread and flagged status

  • Manage and download email attachments

  • Create drafts and send emails

  • Perform incremental synchronization to efficiently retrieve only changes

Full Documentation

For the complete API reference, including endpoints, parameters, and response formats, see the Aurinko Email API Documentation.

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