Using server mailboxes (via IMAP) in Thunderbird

Most people access their email from more than one computer, and many are frustrated with being unable to access their stored mailboxes or sent mail from their home computer or from the Calmail web interface. With the server storage for a CalMail email account having been elevated to 250MB, it has become realistic to store user email on the server, and access it from multiple computers using the IMAP protocol. This could allow you to see all of your mailboxes, including stored mail and sent mail, no matter where you are connecting from.

When using IMAP, the actual mailbox folder structure is designed to reside on the email server to assure that the various local structures are synchronized with each other. Whether you're using an IMAP client (such as Thunderbird) to access your mail from your office or your home computer, connecting to your email via your PDA, or using a web browser in an Internet cafe, you can access all of the mail you store on the server.

When using Thunderbird as a mail client, you can also choose to store messages on your local machine; you might want to do this if you are near Calmail's quota, or have unusual concerns about security or privacy. Local mailboxes are not available from other computers or from Calmail's web interface.

We recommend configuring Thunderbird for IMAP use, and will assist our customers with setting up and migrating their mailboxes to this configuration.