(Delphi DLL) IMAP Find Emails by Date

See more IMAP Examples

Note: This example requires Chilkat v11.0.0 or greater.

Chilkat for Delphi Downloads Chilkat non-ActiveX DLL for Delphi Chilkat ActiveX DLL for Delphi * The examples here use the non-ActiveX DLL.

uses
    Winapi.Windows, Winapi.Messages, System.SysUtils, System.Variants, System.Classes, Vcl.Graphics,
    Vcl.Controls, Vcl.Forms, Vcl.Dialogs, Vcl.StdCtrls, Imap, Email, MessageSet;

...

procedure TForm1.Button1Click(Sender: TObject);
var
success: Boolean;
imap: HCkImap;
onDate: PWideChar;
betweenDates: PWideChar;
fetchUids: Boolean;
messageSet: HCkMessageSet;
email: HCkEmail;
messageCount: Integer;
i: Integer;

begin
success := False;

// This example requires the Chilkat API to have been previously unlocked.
// See Global Unlock Sample for sample code.

imap := CkImap_Create();

// Connect to an IMAP server.
CkImap_putSsl(imap,True);
CkImap_putPort(imap,993);
success := CkImap_Connect(imap,'imap.example.com');
if (success = False) then
  begin
    Memo1.Lines.Add(CkImap__lastErrorText(imap));
    Exit;
  end;

// Login
success := CkImap_Login(imap,'myLogin','myPassword');
if (success = False) then
  begin
    Memo1.Lines.Add(CkImap__lastErrorText(imap));
    Exit;
  end;

// Select an IMAP mailbox
success := CkImap_SelectMailbox(imap,'Inbox');
if (success = False) then
  begin
    Memo1.Lines.Add(CkImap__lastErrorText(imap));
    Exit;
  end;

// In the IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) protocol, criteria strings are used to search for emails matching specific criteria on the mail server. 
// When searching for emails by date, you can use criteria strings to specify the date range you're interested in.
// 
// IMAP provides several options for searching emails by date using criteria strings. Here are the commonly used ones:
// 
// 1. BEFORE: Searches for emails sent before a specific date.
//    Example: BEFORE 01-Apr-2022
// 
// 2. ON: Searches for emails sent on a specific date.
//    Example: ON 01-Apr-2022
// 
// 3. SINCE: Searches for emails sent after a specific date.
//    Example: SINCE 01-Apr-2022
// 
// 4. SENTBEFORE: Searches for emails whose date header (sent date) is before a specific date.
//    Example: SENTBEFORE 01-Apr-2022
// 
// 5. SENTON: Searches for emails whose date header (sent date) is on a specific date.
//    Example: SENTON 01-Apr-2022
// 
// 6. SENTSINCE: Searches for emails whose date header (sent date) is after a specific date.
//    Example: SENTSINCE 01-Apr-2022
// 

// 
// The date format used in IMAP criteria strings is typically a specific format like "DD-Mon-YYYY" (e.g., "01-Apr-2022"), but some servers may also accept other formats 
// such as "YYYY-MM-DD". It's essential to check the documentation or specifications of the IMAP server you're working with to ensure compatibility with the 
// date format you're using.
// 
// By combining these date criteria strings with other search criteria (such as sender, recipient, subject, etc.), 
// you can effectively filter and retrieve emails based on various conditions.
// 

// Search for messages on a specific date.
// The date string is DD-Month-YYYY where Month is
// Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, or Dec.
onDate := 'SENTON 15-Apr-2024';

// Search for messages between two dates.  SENTBEFORE
// finds emails sent before a date, and SENTSINCE finds
// email sent on or after a date.  The "AND" operation
// is implied by joining criteria, separated by spaces.
betweenDates := 'SENTSINCE 12-Apr-2024 SENTBEFORE 15-Apr-2024';

// We can choose to fetch UIDs or sequence numbers.
fetchUids := True;

messageSet := CkMessageSet_Create();
success := CkImap_QueryMbx(imap,betweenDates,fetchUids,messageSet);
if (success = False) then
  begin
    Memo1.Lines.Add(CkImap__lastErrorText(imap));
    Exit;
  end;

Memo1.Lines.Add(CkMessageSet__toCompactString(messageSet));

// Download each email in the message set.
email := CkEmail_Create();
messageCount := CkMessageSet_getCount(messageSet);
i := 0;
while i < messageCount do
  begin
    success := CkImap_FetchEmail(imap,False,CkMessageSet_GetId(messageSet,i),fetchUids,email);
    if (success = False) then
      begin
        Memo1.Lines.Add(CkImap__lastErrorText(imap));
        Exit;
      end;

    Memo1.Lines.Add(CkEmail__subject(email));
    // ...

    i := i + 1;
  end;

// Disconnect from the IMAP server.
success := CkImap_Disconnect(imap);

CkImap_Dispose(imap);
CkMessageSet_Dispose(messageSet);
CkEmail_Dispose(email);

end;