Creating an email alias/forwarder
Overview
This article explains how to create email aliases and forwarders.
Requirements
You can create an alias or forwarder on its own. In this case, you just need to create the alias. This is explained below.
You can also create an alias for an existing address with its own mailbox. If you want the alias or forwarder to have its own mailbox, please first add the email user.
Instructions
- Sign into the AccountCenter.
- Click on your primary domain.
- Click on the Email Aliases tool.
- Click the option to Add new email alias.
Alternately, if you want to edit an existing alias, click on edit next to it.
- Enter the name for your new alias, and select the domain. This example shows how to create alias@mt-example.com.
- Special option: Leave the address blank to receive all email for the chosen domain (excluding existing email addresses). Note that you will receive increased amounts of spam if you do this.
- Then, choose the addresses to which you want it to forward. You can choose internal addresses in the first box, and type external addresses in the second box. Hold down Control (Windows) or Command (Mac) to be able to click on multiple addresses.
If you are creating an alias or forwarder that already has its own mailbox, you MUST make it forward to itself. Otherwise, messages will skip the original inbox and go only to the other email addresses on the list.
Of course, if you do want mail to skip the original inbox, you don't need to select it.
- Special option: Choose (trashcan/blackhole) to automatically delete mail that comes to this address.
- If desired, you can set up an auto-reply for this email alias.
- Click save to create this alias.
Your new alias will now begin forwarding email as specified.
Testing
Your new forwarder should begin working immediately.
GMail will not send messages to an alias that forwards back to itself. e.g., if you set up an alias that forwards to username@gmail.com, you will not be able to test the forwarder FROM username@gmail.com, although it will work for other GMail accounts.
Forwarding loops
Make sure that you don't have two email addresses set up to forward to each other, either on this server or elsewhere. If you have an alias forwarding to a large group of people, and one of those people is also an alias that forwards back to the original address (or to a third address that then forwards to the original!), this can cause such a loop.
Instructions
- Log into your Plesk Control Panel, see Figure 1:
Figure 1: Control Panel - Click "Mail."
- Click "Create Email Address."
- Fill in the email address information.
- Click the "Forwarding" tab.
- Check "Switch on mail forwarding."
- Fill in the addresses you want these emails to go to.
- Click "OK."
Results
Create an alias for your email address, or turn it into a forwarder for another email address. Or, create an entire mail group to set up a multi-user forwarder.
Instructions for your (dv) 3.5
- Log into Plesk.
- Click on Domains on the left.
- Click on your domain.
- Click on Mail.
- Select the email address.
- To add an alias (this sends mail from a different address on the domain to this inbox):
- Click Add New Mail Alias.
- Enter the desired email address in Mail alias name.
- Click OK.
- Click Add New Mail Alias.
- To make this address a forwarder (this will redirect email from this account to a different email address):
- Click on Redirect.
- Check the Redirect box at the top.
- Enter your desired email address, then click OK.
- Click on Redirect.
- To create a mail group (this will allow messages sent to this account to be forwarded to multiple other accounts):
- Click on Mail Group.
- Click Add New Member.
- Type in an email address, or select one from the list, and click OK. Repeat as needed to add all of the desired addresses.
- Click Switch On.
- Click on Mail Group.
