WMail - a POP3/SMTP Webmailer for vBulletin

What is this?
---------------
WMail is a "webmail client" - a front end, like a mail tool installed locally on your PC, for using POP3/SMTP mailboxes.

In short:
WMail adds POP3/SMTP access to vBulletin.

A live demo can currentliy be found on my testing board here:
http://vbdev.area-42.net/wmail.php


Key features:

• The obvious: Getting mailbox content, reading mails from every POP3 mailbox and sending mails through any SMTP server (configurable in the user options)
• written from scratch, spezificially to be used with vBulletin 3.5.x - not a port of something
• fully phrased and templated down to the last bit
• Full multipart support for downloading (and sending) attachments
• When reading mail the mail text is parsed for BB-Codes, so you get the graphical smillies from the forum, text formatting and URLs automatically become clickable links
• When replying to, or forwarding, mail the text of the original mail is quoted, propper quotemarks are added and a quote-header is added (customizable via template)
• various options for admin and users to customize the webmail client
• Does NOT require any special modules to be compiled into your PHP installation (like the IMAP libraries)
  (for techies: this uses basic socket connections instead of special PHP function calls)
• Admin can override certain aspects of the user config (forcing to use a given mailserver, force using forum email address and such)
• Write your mails using vB's WYSIWYG editor
• buildin (yet simple) addressbook for your E-Mail contacts
• Read/Unread markings - unread mails are highlighted, options for "mark selected read", "mark all read" and "mark selected unread"
• custom hooks to make it easy to develop addons for it
• automatically adds links to the webmailer in "Quick Links" menu, navbar and UserCP. Usualy no template edits needed when using default ones (can be disabled for each link in admin options)

Planned features:

• Support for multiple config sets per user
  (and so multiple mailbox accounts that can be querried)
• Sort mails into folders
• User configurable filters (for automatically sorting mails into folders)
• Preview of mailtext in inbox view (bellow subject)
• Forward mails as PM / Forward PMs as mail
• Reply to threads and PMs by mail
• Give/Provide your members an own eMail adress and inbox on your forums!
  • Members can recieve and send mails as "username@forumdomain.tld" without the need for an own POP3 account anywhere
  • Admin only needs ONE "real" POP3 box as "catch all".

Installation
--------------

Level : EASY
Duration : a minute or so
Files to upload : yes (11)
Products to import : yes (1)
Templates to edit : usually none


ChangeLog
===========
1.00 - first final release

• Fixed some minor bugs
• Login details are no longer stored as plain text in the database (*see note bellow!)
• Added option to save login details in a cookie on the users local computer instead of storing them in the forum's database

* Note on storing the login details in the database:
The login details are only base64 encoded when stored in the database.
A more secure encryption would make no sense anyway, the login details must be decrypted to be passed to the POP3/SMTP server - one well placed line of additional code in the POP3 or SMTP class could save the decrypted info anywhere the admin likes.
This "encoding" is only meant to prevent login details to be read (in plaintext) when doing maintanance to the database and stepping over it.
For fully securing the login details the "Save in cookie" option has been added.

Known Issues:

• On some installations mass deletion of mails (via "Delete Selected" from the inbox view) does not delete all mails
• Sometimes you get "-4 mails in inbox" - reloading the page then shows the correct inbox again

Besides of those two issues, that do not really break the function of the webmailer, it seemed to run pretty stable so far - that's why I decided to release 1.00 without having them resolved.


(more changelog entries in the readme)

____________________
This vBulletin extension is FREE! Be welcome to download and use it.
However, if you feel like supporting further development any donation is appreciated :bunny:

[Parker Clack]

Hellcat:

If you could put in a redirect after the template that tells you that your email has been sent that would be great.

Any ideas on the deleting of messages problem?

[maranello]

Originally Posted by dreck

 There has been an error while talking to your SMTP server!
Sessionlog follows:

Connection to mail.thisdarncar.com:25....
Sent: helo localhost
Rcvd: 220-We do not authorize the use of this system to transport unsolicited, 
Sent: auth login
Rcvd: 220 and/or bulk e-mail. 
Sent: MAIL FROM:dreck@thisdarncar.com
Rcvd: 250 box115.bluehost.com Hello box115.bluehost.com [70.103.140.115] 
Sent: RCPT TO:help@itwrks.net
Rcvd: 503 AUTH command used when not advertised 
Sent: DATA
Rcvd: 250 OK 
Sent: QUIT
Rcvd: 250 Accepted

I too get error on all 3 settings. And I am not sure what info you need, but I would be more than glad to ask my hosting service.

I did see this in my cpanel:


Take you time, I have been waiting for a hack like this. :banana:

Great work, thanks!
*install*


dreck

Yep I have exactly the same problem. My cpanel says the exact same thing. I need to enable STMP Authentication, but that feature is not available in the vwmail so it doesn't work.

[juanchi]

Correct me if I'm wrong but this mod will not give an automatic email account to the board's users, right? If not there is a feature that vbms does have and keep me from using this one, I'm really tired of waiting for the release of vbms but I'm looking for an email system that will kive my users an account on the board.

[-=Sniper=-]

correct, it will allow users to access their pop3 emails account...s

[TTG]

Originally Posted by maranello

Yep I have exactly the same problem. My cpanel says the exact same thing. I need to enable STMP Authentication, but that feature is not available in the vwmail so it doesn't work.

thats the same problem I'm having .. would be good to get this working.

[BANDiT600]

Question for those, who tested, what 'bout server loads???

[shadow smith]

Is there a way to give accounts to users of vbulletin without having to make a pop account for everyone?

[Hellcat]

About the authentication issues:
I'd need to to know how the SMTP expects the authentication to be done.
I am researching additional auth methods for SMTP now, any input would be helpfull here....

However, the last posted SMTP log shows that there's a "collision" when a multiline welcome message is sent from the server - I try to handle that, maybe the already existing AUTH types start working for some more ppl then!

For the moment it seems those AUTH trouble is the main showstopper....
But I'm on it!
We WILL get those resolved It's just a matter of time, but I try to make it not taking too long


For the remaining errors posted so far (PHP warnings and false error on empty mailbox) I seem to have those almost fixed.
An update will come later tonight, still gotta fix the one or the other small thing....

Originally Posted by melefire

i mean i can, but if i click settings nothing happens same with all the links

Getting a blank/empty page, or everytime the Welcome-Panel again?

Originally Posted by Parker Clack

If you could put in a redirect after the template that tells you that your email has been sent that would be great.

Any ideas on the deleting of messages problem?

OK, I see what I can come up with for the redirect

The deletion of mail, however, is working fine here.... weird....
They do not get deleted when using "Delete selected" but DO get deleted when using "Delete" from the mailview, when reading the mail?

Originally Posted by juanchi

Correct me if I'm wrong but this mod will not give an automatic email account to the board's users, right? If not there is a feature that vbms does have and keep me from using this one, I'm really tired of waiting for the release of vbms but I'm looking for an email system that will kive my users an account on the board.

No, this will not automatically install an email account on your server.
But I could check out what could be done to add that feature.

Do you have some more details on this for me?
Like how the accounts should be created?

Originally Posted by shadow smith

Is there a way to give accounts to users of vbulletin without having to make a pop account for everyone?

I have a rough idea on how to do that with only using ONE POP box.... hmm.... must see if my idea might work, there's only one way to find out

[juanchi]

Originally Posted by Hellcat

No, this will not automatically install an email account on your server.
But I could check out what could be done to add that feature.

Do you have some more details on this for me?
Like how the accounts should be created?


I have a rough idea on how to do that with only using ONE POP box.... hmm.... must see if my idea might work, there's only one way to find out

Well I'm not sure about the method but vbms use one pop account, like a catch all account and some how it gets the mail deliver to each user.

[Hellcat]

Originally Posted by juanchi

Well I'm not sure about the method but vbms use one pop account, like a catch all account and some how it gets the mail deliver to each user.

Yap, that goes exactely into the direction on my rough idea mentioned in my earlier post.

Well, I see what I can do, but it's pretty safe to say that one of the upcomming versions will have such a feature.