PHP ActiveX Requires Chilkat v11.0.0+

IMAP Find Emails by Date

See more IMAP Examples

Explains how to find emails by date using the IMAP protocol. PHP ActiveX

<?php

$success = 0;

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

$imap = new COM("Chilkat.Imap");

//  Connect to an IMAP server.
$imap->Ssl = 1;
$imap->Port = 993;
$success = $imap->Connect('imap.example.com');
if ($success == 0) {
    print $imap->LastErrorText . "\n";
    exit;
}

//  Login
$success = $imap->Login('myLogin','myPassword');
if ($success == 0) {
    print $imap->LastErrorText . "\n";
    exit;
}

//  Select an IMAP mailbox
$success = $imap->SelectMailbox('Inbox');
if ($success == 0) {
    print $imap->LastErrorText . "\n";
    exit;
}

//  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 = 1;

$messageSet = new COM("Chilkat.MessageSet");
$success = $imap->QueryMbx($betweenDates,$fetchUids,$messageSet);
if ($success == 0) {
    print $imap->LastErrorText . "\n";
    exit;
}

print $messageSet->toCompactString() . "\n";

//  Download each email in the message set.
$email = new COM("Chilkat.Email");
$messageCount = $messageSet->Count;
$i = 0;
while ($i < $messageCount) {
    $success = $imap->FetchEmail(0,$messageSet->GetId($i),$fetchUids,$email);
    if ($success == 0) {
        print $imap->LastErrorText . "\n";
        exit;
    }

    print $email->Subject . "\n";
    //  ...

    $i = $i + 1;
}

//  Disconnect from the IMAP server.
$success = $imap->Disconnect();

?>