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Messages are exchanged between hosts using
the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol with software programs
called mail transfer agents (MTAs); and delivered to a mail
store by programs called mail delivery agents (MDAs, also
sometimes called local delivery agents, LDAs). Users can
retrieve their messages from servers using standard
protocols such as POP or IMAP, or, as is more likely in a
large corporate environment, with a proprietary protocol
specific to Novell Groupwise, Lotus Notes or Microsoft
Exchange Servers. Webmail interfaces allow users to access
their mail with any standard web browser, from any computer,
rather than relying on an email client. Programs used by
users for retrieving, reading, and managing email are called
mail user agents (MUAs).
Mail can be stored on the client, on the server side, or in
both places. Standard formats for mailboxes include Maildir
and mbox. Several prominent email clients use their own
proprietary format and require conversion software to
transfer email between them. Server-side storage is often in
a proprietary format but since access is through a standard
protocol such as IMAP, moving email from one server to
another can be done with any MUA supporting the protocol.
Accepting a message obliges an MTA to deliver it, and when a
message cannot be delivered, that MTA must send a bounce
message back to the sender, indicating the problem. |