(PureBasic) IMAP Find Emails by Date

See more IMAP Examples

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

Chilkat PureBasic Module Download Chilkat PureBasic Module

IncludeFile "CkImap.pb"
IncludeFile "CkMessageSet.pb"
IncludeFile "CkEmail.pb"

Procedure ChilkatExample()

    success.i = 0

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

    imap.i = CkImap::ckCreate()
    If imap.i = 0
        Debug "Failed to create object."
        ProcedureReturn
    EndIf

    ; Connect to an IMAP server.
    CkImap::setCkSsl(imap, 1)
    CkImap::setCkPort(imap, 993)
    success = CkImap::ckConnect(imap,"imap.example.com")
    If success = 0
        Debug CkImap::ckLastErrorText(imap)
        CkImap::ckDispose(imap)
        ProcedureReturn
    EndIf

    ; Login
    success = CkImap::ckLogin(imap,"myLogin","myPassword")
    If success = 0
        Debug CkImap::ckLastErrorText(imap)
        CkImap::ckDispose(imap)
        ProcedureReturn
    EndIf

    ; Select an IMAP mailbox
    success = CkImap::ckSelectMailbox(imap,"Inbox")
    If success = 0
        Debug CkImap::ckLastErrorText(imap)
        CkImap::ckDispose(imap)
        ProcedureReturn
    EndIf

    ; 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.s = "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.s = "SENTSINCE 12-Apr-2024 SENTBEFORE 15-Apr-2024"

    ; We can choose to fetch UIDs or sequence numbers.
    fetchUids.i = 1

    messageSet.i = CkMessageSet::ckCreate()
    If messageSet.i = 0
        Debug "Failed to create object."
        ProcedureReturn
    EndIf

    success = CkImap::ckQueryMbx(imap,betweenDates,fetchUids,messageSet)
    If success = 0
        Debug CkImap::ckLastErrorText(imap)
        CkImap::ckDispose(imap)
        CkMessageSet::ckDispose(messageSet)
        ProcedureReturn
    EndIf

    Debug CkMessageSet::ckToCompactString(messageSet)

    ; Download each email in the message set.
    email.i = CkEmail::ckCreate()
    If email.i = 0
        Debug "Failed to create object."
        ProcedureReturn
    EndIf

    messageCount.i = CkMessageSet::ckCount(messageSet)
    i.i = 0
    While i < messageCount
        success = CkImap::ckFetchEmail(imap,0,CkMessageSet::ckGetId(messageSet,i),fetchUids,email)
        If success = 0
            Debug CkImap::ckLastErrorText(imap)
            CkImap::ckDispose(imap)
            CkMessageSet::ckDispose(messageSet)
            CkEmail::ckDispose(email)
            ProcedureReturn
        EndIf

        Debug CkEmail::ckSubject(email)
        ; ...

        i = i + 1
    Wend

    ; Disconnect from the IMAP server.
    success = CkImap::ckDisconnect(imap)


    CkImap::ckDispose(imap)
    CkMessageSet::ckDispose(messageSet)
    CkEmail::ckDispose(email)


    ProcedureReturn
EndProcedure