SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol)


Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) is an Internet standard for electronic mail (e-mail) transmission. First defined by RFC 821 in 1982, it was last updated in 2008 with the Extended SMTP additions by RFC 5321 - which is the protocol in widespread use today.

SMTP by default uses TCP port 25. The protocol for mail submission is the same, but using port 587, and SMTP connections secured by SSL, known as SMTPS, default to port 465.

While electronic mail servers and other mail transfer agents use SMTP to send and receive mail messages, user-level client mail applications typically use SMTP only for sending messages to a mail server for relaying. For receiving messages, client applications usually use either the POP3 or the IMAP.

While proprietary system, such as Microsoft Exchange or Lotus Notes/Domino, use their own non-standard protocols to access their mail box accounts on a mail server, as do webmail systems such as Hotmail, Gmail and Yahoo! Mail; all use SMTP when sending or receiving email from outside their own systems.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. Source: Wikipedia


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