OTOBO / Znuny - Sending and Receiving Emails

Introduction

Email remains the most important channel for business communication. For companies that serve customers across various departments—from support to sales—efficient management of email addresses is essential. OTOBO makes it easy to maintain an unlimited number of email addresses for different teams and purposes, ensuring that emails are always sent from the correct address. This enhances the professionalism and efficiency of communication.

An example could be:

• support@example.org for customer support inquiries,
• hr@example.org for human resources matters,
• sales@example.org for sales inquiries.

OTOBO simplifies the management of these and other email addresses by providing a central platform where outgoing and incoming emails are effectively assigned. This ensures that communication errors, such as sending a reply from an incorrect address, are avoided.

Managing Email Addresses

Add Email Address

To add a new email address to your OTOBO system, navigate to the Email Addresses module within the Communication & Notifications group and follow these steps:

1. Select Add system address in the left sidebar.
2. Fill in the necessary information.
3. Click Save to register the new address.

WARNING

Deleted email addresses cannot be completely removed from the system but can only be deactivated to prevent potential communication problems.

Edit Email Address

Editing existing email addresses is a simple process:

1. Select the address to be edited from the list view.
2. Adjust the required fields.
3. Save the changes using Save or Save and finish.

Important Email Settings

When adding or editing email addresses, the following settings are relevant:

• Email Address: The address to be registered.
• Display Name: The name displayed in sender information, which can contain any desired characters.

Sender Information in Email Articles

OTOBO optimizes email management by allowing seamless switching between different email addresses, depending on the role or department in which the agent is acting. This reduces the risk of miscommunication and ensures that your customers always receive relevant information from the correct department.

Queue Settings for Email Addresses

When configuring email addresses in OTOBO, in addition to the actual address and the display name, two settings are particularly important:

• Queue: Here you define which queue the email address is assigned to. This setting determines which email address is used as the default for outgoing messages from a specific queue. This assignment ensures that customer messages are always routed to the correct teams.

INFO

The choice of queue can be overridden by Postmaster filters or specific configurations in the mail account settings (e.g., distribution to a selected queue).

• Validity: This determines whether an email address is active in the system. For regular operation, this field should be set to valid. By setting it to invalid or temporarily invalid, the address can be deactivated without deleting it, which can be helpful, for example, during temporary changes in the team structure. An email address should only be deactivated if it is no longer assigned to any queue.

• Comment: Here you can store additional information or notes about an email address. This field is primarily for internal documentation and ensures better clarity and understanding within your team.

Receiving/Fetching - Email with IMAP/POP

OTOBO offers robust features for managing email mailboxes, which facilitate communication between different teams and departments. With support for all common email protocols, OTOBO meets your needs for flexible and reliable email communication.

Automatic Email Fetching

• Automatic Email Fetching: OTOBO automatically fetches incoming emails—by default every 10 minutes, provided the OTOBO daemon is running. This automatic fetching ensures that your team is always up-to-date on new customer inquiries.

WARNING

Please note that OTOBO deletes emails from the mail server after fetching them. If you wish to keep copies of the emails on the mail server, you should set up appropriate forwarding rules on your mail server.

Add Email Account

To add a new email account:

1. Click on Add email account.
2. Fill in all required fields.
3. Confirm with Save.

Setting up Microsoft - OAuth2

Edit Email Account

To edit an existing email account:

1. Select the account to be edited from the list.
2. Make the desired changes.
3. Save your changes.

The Importance of Filters

In OTOBO, filter fields support efficient management of email addresses and accounts, especially in environments with a large number of entries. They allow you to find the information you need quickly and easily.

OTOBO combines powerful email management features with ease of use. The setup and management of various email addresses and mailboxes make OTOBO a valuable tool for any company that values efficient and well-organized communication.

Optimizing Email Management

OTOBO provides comprehensive support for common email protocols to optimize communication with your customers. The variety of supported protocols allows you to configure an email account according to your specific requirements:

• IMAP / IMAPS / IMAPTLS: Ideal for organizations that want to manage emails on the server to access them from different devices.
• POP3 / POP3S / POP3TLS: Suitable for users who want to store their emails locally.

To set up an email account in OTOBO, the following configurations are required:

• Username & Password: Your login credentials for the email account.

• Host: The server name or IP address of your mail server.

• IMAP Folder: Specify the folder that OTOBO should use for fetching emails. Other folders will remain untouched.

• Trustworthiness & Distribution: The "Trusted" option allows actions to be executed based on X-OTOBO headers in incoming emails. This should only be enabled for known and trusted senders.

  For email distribution, you have two strategies: distribution based on the To: field of the email or direct assignment of all emails to a selected queue. This ensures efficient assignment of incoming messages to the responsible teams or departments.

• Validity & Comment: These fields allow you to control the active use of the email account and provide additional notes or descriptions for internal use. Setting up OAuth2

AI Classification of Email Tickets in OTOBO

The AI classification of email tickets in OTOBO allows you to automatically categorize incoming emails. By using machine learning algorithms, OTOBO can analyze the emails and, based on the content, move them to the correct queue and assign the correct priority. OTOBO AI Ticket Classification

Email Sending - SMTP

Step 1: SMTP Settings in OTOBO

First, you need to configure the SMTP settings in OTOBO. These settings allow OTOBO to send emails via your preferred SMTP server.

System Configuration: Access the system configuration via the Admin area in OTOBO. Search for Email Settings: Go to the email settings by searching for Core::Sendmail in the search bar. Enter SMTP Server Details: Configure the following keys according to your mail server:

• SendmailModule::Host: The hostname of your SMTP server, e.g., smtp.mydomain.com.
• SendmailModule::Port: The port your SMTP server uses, usually 587 for SMTP over TLS.
• SendmailModule::Auth: Set this to Yes if your SMTP server requires authentication.
• SendmailModule::User: Username for authentication on the SMTP server.
• SendmailModule::Password: Password for the user above.

INFO

Ensure that SendmailModule::TLS is set to Yes if your SMTP server requires TLS/SSL.

Example configuration:

SendmailModule::Host: smtp.mydomain.com
SendmailModule::Port: 587
SendmailModule::Auth: Yes
SendmailModule::User: myemail@mydomain.com
SendmailModule::Password: mySecurePassword
SendmailModule::TLS: Yes

Step 2: Troubleshooting

If you encounter problems sending emails, you should check the OTOBO log files and possibly also the logs of your SMTP server. In some cases, configuration issues or network restrictions can prevent successful email delivery.

By following these steps, you can ensure that your OTOBO system is correctly configured for sending emails via SMTP, which guarantees a reliable communication bridge between your ticket system and the users.

Filtering and Forwarding Emails

Postmaster filters in OTOBO are a powerful tool for automatically preprocessing incoming emails. They enable efficient sorting and assignment of incoming messages based on specific criteria such as sender, subject, or certain headers. This functionality ensures that emails are forwarded to the correct queue or team to optimize customer service.

The following steps guide you through the process of adding, editing, and deleting Postmaster filters in OTOBO, as well as setting up specific settings for these filters.

Managing Postmaster Filters

• To add a new Postmaster filter, select the Add PostMaster Filter option from the sidebar and fill in the required fields.
• To edit, open an existing filter from the list and modify the fields as needed.
• To delete a filter, select the corresponding trash can icon next to the filter and confirm your action.

INFO

For effective filtering and management, it is helpful to use the filter function to search for specific Postmaster filters.

Settings for Postmaster Filters

The main components of a Postmaster filter are its name, the "Stop after match" option, and the defined filter condition.

• Name: The unique name of the filter that describes its functionality. Keep in mind that filters are executed in alphabetical order, which should be considered when naming them.
• Stop after match: Specifies whether to stop evaluating further Postmaster filters after this filter has been successfully applied. This is useful to ensure that an email is not processed by multiple, possibly conflicting, filters.

Defining the Filter Condition

The power of the Postmaster filter lies in its conditions. These conditions check specific mail headers or content for certain values or patterns using regular expressions.

• Search header field for value: Here you define the specific criteria in the mail header or body to filter by. For example, emails with a specific subject line could be assigned directly to a team.

In addition to the standard header, it is possible to use X-OTOBO headers as a filter condition. These offer special functionalities, such as counting attachments ("X-OTOBO-AttachmentCount"), which enables flexible and customized filtering.

With these configuration options, Postmaster filters in OTOBO can be used specifically to efficiently control and organize email traffic. By precisely pre-sorting and assigning emails, you can ensure that your team can react quickly and effectively to customer inquiries, leading to improved customer service.

Managing Email X-OTOBO-Headers

The X-OTOBO headers offer a flexible solution for advanced management and automation of emails in OTOBO. By specifically setting these headers in your emails, you can directly control a variety of ticket properties before they are processed in the system. This enables efficient and automated processing of incoming emails, leading to a significant increase in productivity.

Some of the most useful X-OTOBO headers include:

• X-OTOBO-AttachmentCount and X-OTOBO-AttachmentExists: Determines if attachments are present and how many. This can be useful for optimizing the handling process for requests with and without attachments.

• X-OTOBO-CustomerNo and X-OTOBO-CustomerUser: Allows the direct assignment of a ticket to a specific customer or customer account, enabling fast and direct support.

• X-OTOBO-DynamicField-<DynamicFieldName>: Uses dynamic fields to store specific information of the ticket, thus enabling deeper personalization and categorization of ticket management.

• X-OTOBO-Ignore: Provides the ability to completely ignore certain emails and not deliver them to the system. This can be particularly helpful with auto-reply loops or irrelevant email traffic.

• X-OTOBO-Queue: Determines in which queue a ticket should be sorted. This allows for direct and efficient assignment of tickets based on the content or purpose of the email.

• X-OTOBO-State and X-OTOBO-Priority: Controls the initial state and priority of a ticket upon its creation, making the workflow for subsequent processing customizable.

• X-OTOBO-Loop: Prevents an automatic reply and thus offers protection against looping in email communication.

WARNING

These headers provide powerful control within OTOBO but require a certain degree of care. They should only be used from trusted sources to avoid unintended effects on ticket management. The trust level for processing these headers is defined within the mail account settings and should be configured accordingly.

The X-OTOBO headers transform email-based communication within OTOBO by providing precise and automated control over the entire workflow. By configuring these headers, companies can optimize their processes and achieve improved customer satisfaction.

S/MIME and PGP in OTOBO

Secure communication is essential in today's digital world, especially when it comes to protecting sensitive data. OTOBO supports the use of S/MIME certificates and PGP keys to secure email communication. These features are particularly relevant for meeting data protection and security requirements—such as those prescribed by the GDPR.

Managing S/MIME Certificates

The management of S/MIME certificates in OTOBO is accessible through the S/MIME Certificates module under the Communication & Notifications group. S/MIME certificates allow you to sign and encrypt emails, which ensures the authenticity and confidentiality of the communication.

To use S/MIME in OTOBO, it is first necessary to enable S/MIME support. Then you can add certificates and associated private keys to complete the setup requirements for secure email communication.

PGP Keys

Similar to S/MIME, OTOBO also supports the use of PGP keys to encrypt email communication. PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) is a widely used encryption program that supports privacy-friendly communication by ensuring both the authentication of the sender and the integrity and confidentiality of the message.

Management Process

1. Add S/MIME Certificate/PGP Key: You can add new certificates/keys by selecting the corresponding files from your file system. This enables digital signing and encryption of outgoing emails.

2. Add Private Keys: For decrypting incoming emails, it is necessary to store the corresponding private keys for your S/MIME certificates/PGP keys in OTOBO.

3. Delete Certificates/Keys: If necessary, you can remove inserted certificates or keys from the system. This might be necessary if certificates expire or need to be replaced.

Please Note

• For both S/MIME and PGP, it is important to ensure proper handling of the certificates/keys to guarantee the security of the communication.
• The use of S/MIME and PGP can help meet compliance requirements and strengthen customer trust by improving the security and privacy of communication.
• The setup and management of encryption (both S/MIME and PGP) should be done by an expert to ensure that the measures are implemented effectively and securely.

The integration of encryption capabilities into OTOBO offers a robust solution for companies to manage their communication securely and minimize the risks associated with data breaches.

OTOBO Email Log

The communication log in OTOBO is a powerful tool that allows you to track, analyze, and monitor all communication processed by the system. This module is particularly useful for managers, system administrators, and support teams to gain insights into email processing and to diagnose potential disruptions or errors in communication.

Overview

The communication log overview screen provides a dashboard-like interface that gives you a quick overview of the health of your communication system:

Key Widgets and Their Functions

1. Account Status: Identifies potential problems with email accounts used for sending or receiving messages. Problems could range from incorrect login credentials to connection issues.

2. Communication Status: Informs about the presence of errors in account connections or message processing. This can be an indicator of problems with the mail server or configuration.

3. Communication State: Shows whether there is currently activity in the system, i.e., whether emails are being sent, received, or processed.

4. Average Processing Time: Provides a statistic on how long it takes on average to complete a communication. This metric helps to evaluate the efficiency of the system.

Filtering and Analyzing Data

You have the option to filter communication based on its creation time and to search for keywords. This allows for a targeted analysis of communication that meets specific criteria. Additionally, you can sort the results of the overview table by columns to organize the data according to your needs.

Detailed View

By clicking on a row in the overview table, you will be taken to the detailed view for the respective communication:

In the detailed view, you get an insight into the specific parameters and the history of the communication. This includes information such as sender, recipient, the time of the communication, and any error messages that occurred during the process.

Advantages of the Communication Log

• Transparency: The communication log contributes to transparency by providing a detailed insight into the internal communication flows.
• Troubleshooting: It enables efficient troubleshooting and diagnosis of communication problems.
• Optimization: Based on the insights gained, processes can be optimized and system performance improved.

The communication log is a fundamental component in OTOBO that enables proactive monitoring and management of communication. It helps to ensure a highly available and efficient support system, thereby supporting excellent service quality.

Analysis/Management of the Email Log

The collection and analysis of detailed logs of communication processes is essential for any system administrator or manager responsible for monitoring the smooth operation of a helpdesk system like OTOBO. The communication log in OTOBO provides a granular view of all communication activities, divided into two main types: Connection and Message. This structure allows for precise tracking and analysis of the flow and processing of incoming and outgoing messages.

Connection

Logs of the Connection type record all interactions related to connecting to email accounts, mail servers, or other communication services. These logs provide information about the success or failure of connection attempts, including error messages and other diagnostic information. This type of log is very important when investigating connection problems, for example, when difficulties arise in fetching emails from an external server.

Message

In contrast, the Message log type deals with all operations concerning the processing of specific messages. This includes reading, interpreting, and forwarding messages based on defined rules or filters, adding tickets, and applying X-OTOBO -headers. These logs give administrators and support staff deep insight into the system's workings and help to identify and resolve problems at the individual message level.

Priority-driven Log Filtering

An important aspect of using the communication log in OTOBO is the ability to filter log entries by their priority. This is particularly useful when you are specifically looking for errors or critical events that require immediate attention. The priority system ranges from the informational level to critical errors, with Error being the highest priority level. By selecting a specific priority in the filter, you get all log entries of that and any higher priority level, which significantly facilitates troubleshooting and general system monitoring.

The effective use of the communication log in OTOBO allows for an excellent level of transparency and control over the entire communication flow. You not only gain insights into the processing status and potential communication problems but also have the opportunity to proactively take measures for troubleshooting and system optimization. This is a crucial factor for maintaining an efficient and reliable support service and contributes significantly to customer satisfaction.