---
last_review: "2026-04-15"
last_reviewer: "Florian Spreckelsen"
documented_code: [ ]
---

```{tags} how-to, linkahead, administrator
```

# Test Email Setup

:::{note}
This new page has not yet been fully revised.
There might be inconsistencies or errors when using with current LinkAhead versions.
:::
% TODO: Issue: https://gitlab.indiscale.com/caosdb/src/linkahead-docs/-/work_items/92

## Overview

We will

* Start an SMTP server which will receive our emails.
* Run tests from the command line.

## Prerequisites

* You need to have pylinkahead installed
* You need docker

## Steps

We run [Mailpit](https://mailpit.axllent.org/) as a local SMTP server which does actually send the
mails.

1. Create a docker compose file:
    ```yaml
    # ./docker-compose.yml
    services:
      mailpit:
        image: axllent/mailpit:v1.29
        command:
          - "--smtp-tls-cert"
          - "sans:localhost"
          - "--smtp-tls-key"
          - "sans:localhost"
        ports:
          - 8025:8025
          - 1025:1025
        environment:
          MP_SMTP_REQUIRE_STARTTLS: true
          #MP_SMTP_REQUIRE_TLS: true
          #MP_SMTP_AUTH_ACCEPT_ANY: 1
          MP_SMTP_AUTH_ALLOW_INSECURE: 0
          MP_SMTP_AUTH: "user1:password"
    ```
2. Start the STMP server:
    ```shell
    docker compose up -d
    ```
3. Configure pylinkahead, add an `[Email]` section to your pylinkahead.ini:
    ```
    # ./pylinkahead.ini
    [Email]
    smtp_server=localhost
    smtp_starttls=yes
    smtp_tls_verify=no
    smtp_port=1025
    smtp_username=user1
    smtp_password=password
    smtp_timeout=1.0
    from_address="Test" <test@example.com>
    bcc_append=logger@example.com
    ```
4. Run interactive tests from the python REPL:
    ```shell
    >>> from linkahead.utils.email import send_email
    >>> send_email(message="test", subject="subj", to="to@example.com", cc="cc@example.com", bcc="bcc@example.com")
    ```
5. Check mails, browse to `http://localhost:8025`.
6. Finally, shut down Mailpit with `docker compose down`. This also deletes all test mails.