For an overview of the JavaMail API, read the JavaMail specification included in the download bundle or available on the JavaMail web site.

The code to send a plain text message can be as simple as the following:

    Properties props = new Properties();
    props.put("mail.smtp.host", "my-mail-server");
    Session session = Session.getInstance(props, null);

    try {
	MimeMessage msg = new MimeMessage(session);
	msg.setFrom("me@example.com");
	msg.setRecipients(Message.RecipientType.TO,
			  "you@example.com");
	msg.setSubject("JavaMail hello world example");
	msg.setSentDate(new Date());
	msg.setText("Hello, world!\n");
	Transport.send(msg, "me@example.com", "my-password");
    } catch (MessagingException mex) {
	System.out.println("send failed, exception: " + mex);
    }

Don't forget to see the JavaMail API FAQ for answers to the most common questions. The JavaMail web site contains many additional resources.

The JavaMail API supports the following standard properties, which may be set in the Session object, or in the Properties object used to create the Session object. The properties are always set as strings; the Type column describes how the string is interpreted. For example, use

	props.put("mail.debug", "true");

Name	Type	Description
mail.debug	boolean	The initial debug mode. Default is false.
mail.from	String	The return email address of the current user, used by the InternetAddress method getLocalAddress.
mail.mime.address.strict	boolean	The MimeMessage class uses the InternetAddress method parseHeader to parse headers in messages. This property controls the strict flag passed to the parseHeader method. The default is true.
mail.host	String	The default host name of the mail server for both Stores and Transports. Used if the mail.protocol.host property isn't set.
mail.store.protocol	String	Specifies the default message access protocol. The Session method getStore() returns a Store object that implements this protocol. By default the first Store provider in the configuration files is returned.
mail.transport.protocol	String	Specifies the default message transport protocol. The Session method getTransport() returns a Transport object that implements this protocol. By default the first Transport provider in the configuration files is returned.
mail.user	String	The default user name to use when connecting to the mail server. Used if the mail.protocol.user property isn't set.
mail.protocol.class	String	Specifies the fully qualified class name of the provider for the specified protocol. Used in cases where more than one provider for a given protocol exists; this property can be used to specify which provider to use by default. The provider must still be listed in a configuration file.
mail.protocol.host	String	The host name of the mail server for the specified protocol. Overrides the mail.host property.
mail.protocol.port	int	The port number of the mail server for the specified protocol. If not specified the protocol's default port number is used.
mail.protocol.user	String	The user name to use when connecting to mail servers using the specified protocol. Overrides the mail.user property.

The following properties are supported by the reference implementation (RI) of JavaMail, but are not currently a required part of the specification. The names, types, defaults, and semantics of these properties may change in future releases.

Name	Type	Description
mail.debug.auth	boolean	Include protocol authentication commands (including usernames and passwords) in the debug output. Default is false.
mail.transport.protocol.address-type	String	Specifies the default message transport protocol for the specified address type. The Session method getTransport(Address) returns a Transport object that implements this protocol when the address is of the specified type (e.g., "rfc822" for standard internet addresses). By default the first Transport configured for that address type is used. This property can be used to override the behavior of the {@link javax.mail.Transport#send send} method of the {@link javax.mail.Transport Transport} class so that (for example) the "smtps" protocol is used instead of the "smtp" protocol by setting the property mail.transport.protocol.rfc822 to "smtps".

The JavaMail API also supports several System properties; see the {@link javax.mail.internet} package documentation for details.

The JavaMail reference implementation includes protocol providers in subpackages of com.sun.mail. Note that the APIs to these protocol providers are not part of the standard JavaMail API. Portable programs will not use these APIs.

Nonportable programs may use the APIs of the protocol providers by (for example) casting a returned Folder object to a com.sun.mail.imap.IMAPFolder object. Similarly for Store and Message objects returned from the standard JavaMail APIs.

The protocol providers also support properties that are specific to those providers. The package documentation for the {@link com.sun.mail.imap IMAP}, {@link com.sun.mail.pop3 POP3}, and {@link com.sun.mail.smtp SMTP} packages provide details.