How to set up bare host space to recieve mails?

[Sticky]

I have a contact us form which is submitted using a html form and a mailer.php combination. I tested this by submitting it to my hotmail and it worked perfectly well everytime.

The problem I now have is this. My client purchased a domain and asked the company they purchased from to set up 3 email accounts, which they've done. they provided this info

Mail host: mail.companyname.co.uk
info@companyname.co.uk password: blahblah
john@companyname.co.uk (john@888)password: blahblah
lucy@companyname.co.uk (lucy@888)password: blahblah

Ok. The host company do not provide access to these email boxes through a website i.e a username & password setup, so I assumed that an email client (i.e outlook) would have to be sync with the above info for my clients to access their mails. However upon trying to do this outlook returned error messages along the lines of "outlook could not find the folders on the server."

This leads me to believe that I need to create certain folders in the hosting space to collect submitted emails as well as folders that outlook (or other clients can not only see but retrieve from) is this right? is it that simple?

I'm a bit confused because I have no idea
1) where submitted emails are meant to go in bare hosted space file structures.
2) what folders I would need to create and where.
3) what to google to get more info on this subject.

I have a feeling this (what i thought would be simple procedure) is a deep rabbit hole.

The folders on the host space are pretty bare bones. There folders that were there originally were htdocs, cgi-bin, log files and a private folder which has some .bash files?????

Just need to be pointed in the right direction or Ideally given the correct way to make the my clients space receive mails and then access them. There was a suggestion of just using hotmail but I would prefer to deliver what I promised and at the same time arm myself with this knowledge because theres bound to be a next time.

Does alot of what I've talked about depend on what type of server it is i.e POP3, IMAP, SMTP????? help

Thanks alot guys
Hope this made sense.

sticky

[chrispyking]

I'm not an expert on email, but I have never had to create folders for the mails to reside in, whether in my own hosting system (as a reseller) or in a clinets own hosting packages.

POP3 etc... You would need to define what sort of mail account you are connecting to in outlook and check if the email server requires authorisation.

As a side note.. Why is this your issue. If the client purchased the domain name and email through a third party then it is the third parties responsibility to sort it. Or at least supply relevent documentation.

How long did the client leave it before trying to connect to the mail accounts? Some hosts can take a while to create the emails addy's.

More often than not, if a client of mine has a problem with connecting they're outlook to an email addy I have setup for them it is down to user error.

[Sticky]

Thanks for your help so far Chrispyking,

There have been some interesting developments. Firstly, let me explain the situation of how my clients obtained space. They have a contact who is basically a sales man. He takes his customer domain name requests and registars them through (Company). For which I assume he gets commission. As his job is to register the domain names ‘on behalf of his clients.’ This results in all name registration documentation being in his name. He effectively owns the name.

Ok, secondly, (I think) he is a sales agent for another company who deal with hosting space and again a sales rep for a mail hosting company and does the same thing. I say this because on the domain registration companies web site it states. (company name) is in no way linked to the mail services provided.

So basically he’s a middleman for what appears to be 2 maybe 3 companies (domain name reg company/hosting space company/mail hosting company).

After a bit of time looking on the domain name registration company’s website (the site the contact works for) I came across a login page. I was hoping this would be access to a control panel governing features of their space and where I/my clients would have access to their email (pretty standard stuff right?).

We tested our contacts email address as forgotten details and it returned an email has been sent (confirming the login page was for him not us) I don’t even think its to a control panel I think it’s probably more to info about his account in relation to who he has registered, his emails, his sales stats etc.

Don’t get me wrong it’s probably a very viable way of obtaining/supplying space and hosting but I’m new to the game and can’t clearly see these benefits. I can understand that it means that companies can tell ‘middlemen’ to find me the best deal on hosting space deal and the best deal on mail space even if there independent of one another.

I think in the future, I’d prefer to deal directly with the more conventional hosting companies who provide hosting space, mail boxes and control panels for customers to log into control certain parts of their space and view emails. This would leave the design and development of the site down to me.

This is how I figure the name and space has been obtained:

Domain name: Customer – Sales Contact – Registration company
Hosting space: Customer – Sales Contact – Hosting company
Mail space: Customer – Sales Contact – Mail hosting company

Anyway to cut a long story short, where I stand at the moment is I need to change the mailer.php to the address giving by the contact then sync Outlook to those details and hopefully that should be it.

Thanks for spending the time to read this. I would love to know what you guys think about this system of supplying/obtaining space. Is it popular? What’s it called? Do you do it etc

N.b
It should be noted that I am fairly new to dealing with paying customers who approach me with space that they have already obtained and I have had to make a lot of educated assumptions. Maybe I’m wrong maybe this is the only way to obtain space but……..something tells me not. Let me know

Cheers

Sticky

[chrispyking]

No worries Sticky.

My 2 penies worth.

The above is not exactly a normal method. It is not good to have someone else as the registered owner of your(the clients) domain name.

It does happen and it ties you into they're prices and operation.

I would advise your client to get their name down as the legal owner of the name at the very least. if its .co.uk then the current owner has to send them a form to be filled and sent to nominet.

I much prefer my clients to setup Domains and Hosting with me simply because it is less hassle. I don't have high prices, and I don't make alot out of it. However, when they come with it already setup then it is theirs to deal with, I just ask for the FTP details. If they want help or advice it costs them because each reseller/company is different and I then have to learn how that company do things before changes can be made.

My 'operation'.

I am a reseller for a hosting company. With them I can register domain names (in the clinets names) setup hosting and emails, specify Mb's and bandwidth per account and a hole host of other bits and pieces.

I keep everything under one roof.

It is however quite a common practise, from what I've read, to have a Name with one company and the hhosting and email with another. It's done as a safe guard against businessess going under.

Hope that helps.

[Sticky]

Excellent thanks for the reply.

How did you know it was nominet? LOL I was trying to not mention their name because i'm not sure bout any issues I may implicate the forum in etc.

I'm planning to vet/compare a few hosting companies that I can work with. i.e next time i'm approached to create a website from scratch I turn to that company and go from there.

Whats your companies name Chrispyking?

cheers again

Sticky

[Ned]

Back to your original question... It sounds like the only problem you're having is not knowing the proper POP server address. That's why outlook is not finding the mail files, they do not reside in the public HTML folder (which is where you'll go if you use just the domain name), they reside in the mail folder, accessed through the mail server's subdomain. This is usually either "mail.domainname.co.uk" or else "pop.domainname.co.uk".

Then your username and password will work to pull your mail through outlook.

Just make sure you're using POST for your form submission type. From what you've said, that's what it sounds like you have set up.

[chrispyking]

How did you know it was nominet?


Whilst I'd like to pretend I have indepth psychic abilities...

You wrote the emails as @companyname.co.uk :p


Whats your companies name Chrispyking?


That would be me! :rolleyes: