JAVA MAIL API

• High level representation of the basic components of any mail system.

• The components are represented by abstract classes in the javax.mail package.

• These classes are all abstract because they don’t make many assumptions about how the email is stored or transferred between machines.

• JavaMail API is a standard extension to Java, not part of the core JDK or JRE class library. Consequently there’ll need to download it separately from Sun.

• Download “mail.jar”. This file contains the actual .class file that implement the JavaMail API.

• Add this file to the class path OR simply place it in jre/lib/ext directory.

• Java Mail API uses JavaBeans Activation Framework(JAF) to describe and display multilingual text and encoded multimedia data.

• The JavaBeans Activation Framework is also a standard extension to Java, not part of the core API.

• Download “activation.jar” file and place it in the class path.

Sending Email

1. Set the “mail.host” property to point the local mail server-

Properties props = new Properties()

props.put("mail.host",“<name of mail server>");

It can be like::

alt2.gmail-smtp-in.l.google.com

How to know about mail server

• Open a DOS Command Prompt 

• Type "nslookup". 

• Your computer's DNS Server name and IP address will be displayed. 

• Type "set type=mx"

• This will cause NSLOOKUP to only return what are known as MX (Mail eXchange) records from the DNS servers. 

Step 2

• These properties are used to retrieve a Session object from the Session.getInstance() method like this-

• Session mailConnection = Session.getInstance(props,null);

• Session object represents an ongoing communication between a program and one mail server.

• The second argument to the getInstance(), null here is a javax.mail.Authenticator that ask the user for a password if requested by the server.

Step 3

• Session object is used to create a new Message object-

• Message msg=new MimeMessage(mailConnection);

• MimeMessage is used to send Internet email.

Step 4

• Set up from address and to address-

• Address fromMy=new InternetAddress(ajayinvns@gmail.com,”ajay”);

• Address toMy= new InternetAddress(ajayinvns@gmail.com);

Step 5

• Set up from header-

• Msg.setFrom(fromMy);

Step 6

• Set up the To header-• Not only specify the address that the message

will be sent to but how that address is used i.e. TO, Cc, or Bcc. This is done by

• Message.RecipientType.TO• Message.RecipientType.CC• Message.RecipientType.BCC• Set the to header-• Msg.setRecipient(Message.RecipientType.TO,

toMy);

Step 7

• Set message subject-

• Msg.setSubject(“This is Subject Line”);

Step 8

• Set up the content of message-

• msg.setContent(“TextTextText”, “text/plain”);

Step 9

• Send the message-

• Transport.send(msg);

• Example to Send Email

Receiving Mail