Some applications can process incoming email automatically. Helpdesk systems, mailing list tools and ticket systems often use this kind of feature.
Direct email piping into a script is not usually available on standard hosted email. Email and web hosting are commonly separated for security, reliability and performance reasons, so inbound messages cannot simply be piped into a PHP script on the hosting account.
If your software needs to collect incoming email, check whether it supports POP or IMAP collection. Most helpdesk and ticket systems can log in to a mailbox, download new messages and turn them into tickets or records.
To use this method:
- Create a mailbox for the application.
- Find the mailbox username, password and mail server settings.
- Add those details to the application.
- Choose how often the application should check for new messages.
If you are not sure whether your application can collect mail by POP or IMAP, check the application’s documentation or contact its developer.