Using Gmail to Retrieve Your Personal or Business Mail Server Email – IMAP vs POP

IMAP vs. POP: Detailed Differences

When configuring Gmail to fetch mail from your personal mail server, you can choose between IMAP and POP. Here’s how they differ and how actions like deleting messages behave with each protocol.

IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol)

• How it works:
  • Emails remain on your mail server.
  • Gmail (or any client) acts as a synchronized “window” into your mailbox.
  • All devices accessing the account via IMAP see the same messages and folders.
• Synchronization:
  • Any change (read, delete, move) you make in Gmail is reflected on the server and all other IMAP clients.
  • If you delete a message in Gmail, it is deleted from your mail server and will disappear from all devices using IMAP to access that mailbox.
• Best for:
  • Users who access email from multiple devices (phone, tablet, computer).
  • Keeping your mailbox consistent across all platforms.

POP (Post Office Protocol)

• How it works:
  • Emails are downloaded from your mail server to Gmail (or another client).
  • By default, after download, emails are removed from the server (though some clients let you “leave a copy on the server”).
  • Once downloaded, messages exist only in Gmail; other devices or clients won’t see those messages unless they also downloaded them before deletion.
• Synchronization:
  • Actions in Gmail (like deleting a message) do not affect the original message on your mail server after it’s been downloaded.
  • Deleting a message in Gmail only removes it from Gmail, not from the mail server or other clients.
  • If you set POP to “leave a copy on the server,” deleting in Gmail still does not delete from the server; it only affects Gmail’s copy.
• Best for:
  • Users who only access email from one device.
  • Those who want to keep local copies and not rely on server storage.

Summary Table

Feature	IMAP	POP
Where emails are stored	On the mail server	Downloaded to device (optionally left on server)
Sync across devices	Yes, changes reflect everywhere	No, each device acts independently
Delete in Gmail affects server?	Yes, deletes from server and all devices	No, deletes only from Gmail
Best for	Multiple devices, full sync	Single device, local storage

Special Note on Gmail’s IMAP Behavior

Gmail uses “labels” instead of traditional folders, which can cause some quirks:

• Deleting a message in Gmail via IMAP usually moves it to the Trash, removing it from all folders/labels and the server.
• In some cases, if you only remove a label (folder), the message may still exist in “All Mail.” To fully delete, ensure the message is moved to Trash or deleted from “All Mail”.

In summary:

• IMAP: Deleting in Gmail deletes from your mail server and all devices.
• POP: Deleting in Gmail does not delete from your mail server; it only removes the message from Gmail.

If you want your actions in Gmail to reflect everywhere, use IMAP. If you want Gmail to act as a separate mailbox, use POP.

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How Sent Email Is Treated – Only Syncs Using IMAP

Sent Mail Visibility: IMAP vs. POP

When you send mail from your personal mail server address, whether a copy of the sent message appears in your “Sent” folder on Gmail (or any email client) depends on both the protocol used (IMAP or POP) and how your mail client/server is configured.

IMAP

• How Sent Mail is Handled:
  • With IMAP, sent messages are typically saved to the “Sent” folder on the mail server.
  • This means any device or client using IMAP to access your mailbox (including Gmail, if configured for IMAP) will see the same “Sent” folder and its contents.
  • If you send a message from any IMAP-connected client, it should appear in the “Sent” folder, and will sync across all devices.
  • Some mail clients may require you to specify which folder to use for sent mail to ensure proper synchronization.
• Summary:
  • Yes, sent mail will show up in the Sent folder when using IMAP, regardless of which device or client you used to send it, as long as all are configured to use the same Sent folder on the server.

POP

• How Sent Mail is Handled:
  • POP does not synchronize folders other than the Inbox. It only downloads incoming mail from the Inbox to your client.
  • Sent messages are stored locally on the device you used to send them, not on the server.
  • Other devices or clients using POP will not see sent messages, because POP does not upload or sync sent mail to the server.
  • Gmail, when fetching mail via POP, will not see or import messages from your Sent folder on the server.
• Summary:
  • No, sent mail will not show up in Gmail or any other client using POP to fetch your mail. Sent mail remains local to the device from which it was sent, unless you manually copy it to the server.

Table: Sent Mail Behavior by Protocol

Protocol	Where Sent Mail Is Stored	Visible in Gmail/Other Clients?	Notes
IMAP	On the server, in the Sent folder	Yes	All IMAP clients see the same Sent folder
POP	Locally, on the sending device only	No	POP only downloads Inbox, not Sent

Special Notes

• If you use Gmail’s web interface to send mail, Gmail automatically stores sent messages in its Sent folder, which is visible to IMAP clients.
• If you send mail using a third-party client (e.g., Outlook, Thunderbird) via IMAP, make sure the client is configured to save sent items to the server’s Sent folder for proper synchronization.
• POP is designed for downloading incoming mail only and does not handle sent mail synchronization at all.

In summary:

• IMAP keeps your Sent folder synchronized across all devices and clients.
• POP does not sync sent mail—sent messages are only stored locally on the device from which they were sent.

If you want sent mail to be visible everywhere, always use IMAP and ensure your client saves sent messages to the server’s Sent folder.