Reading and organizing mail
mail stores synchronized messages in PostgreSQL and presents them as individual messages, grouped threads, or swipeable cards. The same actions update local state immediately and queue the matching IMAP operation for the worker.
Views and navigation
- Toggle between individual messages and conversation threads from the mailbox toolbar.
- Filter the current mailbox to all, unread, starred, or pinned mail.
- Use card view for a focused, swipeable message workflow.
- Move between messages with the toolbar, keyboard shortcuts, or the three-pane layout.
- Open a thread to expand its messages, extract AI actions, and keep a private thread note that is never sent to participants.
Message actions
Messages and threads can be marked read or unread, starred, pinned, archived, moved to trash or spam, restored, or snoozed. Bulk selection supports the same common actions, and Shift-click selects a range. Snoozed messages are hidden until their chosen time.
The reader exposes sender and recipient details, message metadata, raw HTML and text sources, and the original raw message. Attachments can be downloaded, while images, PDFs, and videos have an in-app preview. Potentially risky filenames and MIME mismatches receive a warning.
Opened messages and recent mailbox lists are also available through the best-effort offline cache.
Configuration
| Item | Setting name | Environment variable | Requirement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Live mailbox data | Settings > IMAP > Host, Username / Email, and Password | IMAP_HOST, IMAP_USER, and IMAP_PASSWORD | Required outside demo mode to receive mail. See Mail accounts. |
| Default thread view | Settings > Interface > Use thread mode on page load | None | Optional; enabled by default. |
| Default card view | Settings > Interface > Use simplified mailbox view on page load | None | Optional. |
| Spacing | Settings > Interface > Display density | None | Optional; choose Comfortable, Compact, or Condensed. |
| Message privacy | Settings > Privacy > Mailbox message display and Trusted remote content senders | None | Optional; styling is shown and images are blocked by default. See Privacy controls. |
No reading-specific environment variable is required after an IMAP account is configured.