Question
How does the mail autodiscover function work in Plesk?
Answer
The mail autodiscover allows configuring mail client automatically which greatly simplifies email setup for users on both desktop and mobile platforms.
Note: Autodiscover is enabled by default on new Plesk Obsidian servers but must be enabled manually on servers upgraded from previous versions.
Note: Mail settings auto-configuration does not work on domains with no hosting or with forwarding hosting. This will be rectified in future updates.
The feature works in the following way:
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Mail user adds a new account in their Outlook/Thunderbird/Apple Mail
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The mail client sends an autodiscover request to the domain:
- Outlook sends a POST HTTP request to https://<domain>/autodiscover/autodiscover.xml
- Thunderbird sends a GET HTTP request to https://<domain>/mail/config-v1.1.xml?emailaddress=<address> (or https://<domain>/.well-known/autoconfig/mail/config-v1.1.xml?emailaddress=<address>)
- Apple Mail sends a GET HTTP request to https://<domain>/email.mobileconfig?emailaddress=<address>
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Plesk generates an XML that contains information about available protocols, authentication methods, etc.
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Mail client (Outlook/Thunderbird/Apple Mail) configures mail account using the information provided in the generated XML
Additional Information
How to manage mail autodiscover in Plesk Obsidian?
Access Your Mailbox