Step A: Sender creates and sends an email

A message is composed on a computer by using an email program: a client. (Ex. Outlook Express)

Step B: The client connects to the SMTP server at mail.beautifoolmess.com using port 25.

It has a conversation with the SMTP server, telling the SMTP server the address of the sender and the
address of the recipient, as well as the body of the message.

The SMTP server takes the "to" address (chase@cracked.com) and breaks it into two parts: the recipient
name (chase) and the domain name (cracked.com). Since the recipient is at another domain, SMTP needs
to communicate with that domain.

Step C: The SMTP server has a conversation with a Domain Name Server, or DNS. It says, "Can you give
me the IP address of the SMTP server for cracked.com?" The DNS replies with the one or more IP
addresses for the SMTP server(s) that Cracked operates.

Step D: The message is sent to the mail server tasked with transporting emails (called the MTA, for Mail
Transport Agent) to the recipient's MTA. MTAs act as the post office (the sorting area and mail carrier,
which handle message transportation). On the Internet, MTAs communicate with one another using the
protocol SMTP, and so are logically called SMTP servers (or sometimes outgoing mail servers).

The sending MTA asks if the host accepts messages for the recipient's username at that domain (i.e.,
chase@cracked.com) and transfers the message.

Step E: An email encountering a firewall may be tested by spam and virus filters before it is allowed to
pass inside the firewall. These filters test to see if the message qualifies as spam or malware. If the
message contains malware, the file is usually quarantined and the sender is notified. If the message is
identified as spam, it will probably be deleted without notifying the sender.

Step F: When the email makes it past the hazards of the spam filter, it is accepted for delivery by the
receiver's MTA. The recipient's MTA then delivers the email to the incoming mail server (called the MDA,
for Mail Delivery Agent). MDAs act as mailboxes, which store messages until the recipients check the box.

There are two main protocols used for retrieving email on an MDA:
a) POP3 (Post Office Protocol), the older of the two, which is used for retrieving email. You connect to
your mail server (through an Internet connection), download a copy of your awaiting messages via POP,
and then disconnect. Pop! POP is a one-way ticket. By default, POP deletes mail from the server once it
has been retrieved by you. A POP3 server listens on well-known port 110.

b) IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) is true two-way email management. Any change you make in
any IMAP client will synchronize with the server. This means any email read on your device will also
automatically appear read when you check your account later via webmail or your desktop computer. Any
messages or folders you read, move, or delete will be updated across all devices.

For this reason, incoming mail servers are called POP servers or IMAP servers, depending on which
protocol is used. The mail program uses the Post Office Protocol (POP) to fetch the message. POP is used
instead of SMTP because the email message is no longer being sent on the Internet; it has arrived. All the
POP does is fetch the message waiting on the server and transfer it back to the user's computer and his
email program.

Step G: Retrieving mail is done using a software program called an MUA (Mail User Agent).
When the MUA is a program installed on the user's system, it is called an email client (such as Mozilla
Thunderbird, Microsoft Outlook, Eudora Mail, Incredimail or Lotus Notes).