what is SMTP? different types of mailer . process for integrating the SMTP.

 What is SMTP?

SMTP stands for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. In easy words, it is a set of rules or guidelines that computers follow to send and receive emails over the internet. Just like how we use the postal service to send letters to others, SMTP is like the "postal service" for emails.

When we send an email, our email application (like Gmail, Outlook, or others) uses SMTP to communicate with the email server. The SMTP server takes care of delivering your email to the recipient's email server. It's like dropping our  letter into a mailbox.

Similarly, when someone send us an email, the SMTP server receives it and stores it temporarily until we check email. When we log in and retrieve our emails, our email application (like Gmail) uses another protocol called POP or IMAP to download the messages from the SMTP server to our device.

So, SMTP is the backbone of email communication, ensuring that our emails reach the right destination and that we can receive emails from others.

How we can integrate in our website? what are the process to integrate them?

Integrating SMTP into our website allows us to send emails from our website to our users or customers. 

Here is the following steps to integrate the SMTP in our website .

Step 1: Choose an SMTP Provider

There are several SMTP providers available that we can use to send emails from our website. Some popular SMTP providers include wp mail,SendGrid ,  Mailgun, SMTP2GO, and Gmail SMTP. 

Step 2: Install and Activate the Plugin

Log in to WordPress dashboard, navigate to "Plugins" on the left menu, click "Add New," and then we can search for our chosen SMTP plugin. Install the plugin, and once the installation is complete, click "Activate" to activate it on the website.

Step 3: Configure SMTP Settings

After activation, go to the plugin's settings page. Usually, we can find this under "Settings" > "Email" or something similar. we will  need to enter the SMTP credentials of yours obtained from your SMTP provider during signup (SMTP server address, port number, username, password, encryption method, etc.).

Step 4: Test Email Sending

Most SMTP plugins have a built-in feature to send a test email. Use this feature to send a test email to your own email address or any other valid email address. This step helps verify that the SMTP integration is working correctly.

Step 5: Use wp mail in  Theme or Plugin (Optional)

If we want to programmatically send emails from our theme or plugin using the WP Mailer library (wp mail), we can do so. The plugin we installed in Step 2 should automatically override the default WordPress mail function with the SMTP settings you configured.

Step 6: Test Sending Emails 

we can test sending emails  , we can create a test page or initiate the sending process through any relevant event in our theme or plugin. and we can check  the emails are delivered successfully.

That's all! With these steps, we can  successfully integrated SMTP with our WordPress website using the WP Mailer library. Now, our website's email functionality should work through the SMTP server we can configured, ensuring email delivery and avoiding potential issues with WordPress's default mail function.

 What are the mailer available in SMTP ?

In WordPress, you can integrate SMTP functionality using various plugins. These plugins act as mailers, allowing you to send emails through SMTP servers instead of relying on the default WordPress mail function. Some popular SMTP plugins available for WordPress are:

1. WP Mail SMTP by WP Forms: This plugin is widely used and offers an easy-to-use interface to configure SMTP settings. It supports popular SMTP providers like Gmail, Outlook, Send in blue, and more.
2. Easy WP SMTP: This plugin allows you to configure SMTP settings for email delivery. It supports SSL/TLS encryption and can work with various SMTP services.
3. Post SMTP Mailer/Email Log: This plugin provides advanced SMTP configuration options and has a built-in email log feature to help you monitor the status of sent emails.
4. WP SMTP: This lightweight plugin lets you configure SMTP settings and is straightforward to set up.
5. Send Grid: While not an SMTP-specific plugin, Send Grid offers a dedicated plugin for WordPress integration, allowing you to use their SMTP service for sending emails.
6. Gmail SMTP: Similar to Send Grid, Gmail also offers a dedicated plugin for WordPress that enables you to use your Gmail account as an SMTP server for sending emails.

These plugins typically provide an interface within the WordPress dashboard to input our SMTP credentials, such as SMTP server address, number, username, and password. 

Some plugins may also offer additional features like debugging tools, email logs, and SSL/TLS support.

By using these SMTP plugins, we can ensure better email deliverability, avoid emails going to spam folders, and overcome potential limitations of the default WordPress mail function. Choose the plugin that best fits your requirements and follow its setup instructions to integrate SMTP with your WordPress website.