Documentation · Connect email

Connect email

Customer email to your business address (e.g. [email protected]) arrives in Interaction as conversations and is answered from Onix through your own mail server — so replies are sent from your address, not from Onix.

An email conversation in Interaction: thread, attachments, and formatted replies.
An email conversation in Interaction: thread, attachments, and formatted replies.

What is supported

ProviderHow to sign in
Gmail & Google WorkspaceApp Password: turn on 2-Step Verification in your Google account, then create an App Password at myaccount.google.com/apppasswords.
Yahoo MailApp password: Account Info → Account security → Generate app password.
Zoho MailRegular password (make sure IMAP is on in Zoho settings); an app-specific password when two-factor authentication is on.
iCloud MailAn app-specific password from appleid.apple.com.
Email hosting / cPanel / otherThe mailbox password. Server & port are in your hosting settings (cPanel: Email Accounts → Connect Devices), usually mail.yourdomain.com.
Microsoft 365 / Outlook.com / HotmailNot supported yet: Microsoft requires OAuth sign-in for IMAP & SMTP. Coming later.

How to connect

  1. Open Manage → Channels, click Add channel, then choose Email (requires access to manage channels).
  2. Enter the email address and password / App Password. The IMAP (incoming) and SMTP (outgoing) servers are filled in automatically when the provider is recognized; change them under Server settings if needed (SSL/TLS or STARTTLS security).
  3. Click Test connection. Onix tries to sign in to IMAP & SMTP (without sending anything) and explains what went wrong, e.g. "this account needs an App Password".
  4. Choose the folders to read, the Sent folder, how much older email to fetch, the sender name, and the signature, then click Connect.

One email address uses one channel slot; the quota is shared with every channel type — WhatsApp, livechat, API channels (Free 1, Pro 4 channels). An address can be connected to only one workspace. The password is stored encrypted and never shown again.

Incoming email

  • Onix checks the mailbox every minute, so new email appears within about a minute. The Check button on the channel card checks right away.
  • Onix only reads: emails in the mailbox are not deleted, moved, or marked as read. Spam is still filtered by your email provider.
  • Folders: Inbox is always read; other folders (e.g. a Gmail label "Orders") can be added. Drafts, Trash, and "All Mail" can't be selected.
  • Older email: when connecting, choose the last 0, 3, 7, or 30 days. Threads whose last activity is more than 3 days old arrive as Solved; older email doesn't add unread markers.
  • One email thread = one conversation. Customer replies in the same thread go to that conversation; an email with a new subject becomes a new conversation. Email to a Solved/Closed conversation opens a new one (new INT number), just like WhatsApp.
  • Contacts are matched by email address. If a WhatsApp contact already has the same email in their profile, the email goes to that contact; otherwise a new contact is created. Duplicate contacts can be merged.
  • Not turned into conversations: automatic replies (out-of-office), bounces, email from the channel's own address, and senders on the ignore list (e.g. noreply@, @promo.com).
  • Sent folder: replies sent straight from Gmail/Outlook/your phone are shown in the conversation as "Sent from the mailbox", stop the waiting time, and count toward no one's KPIs.

In Interaction

  • Every conversation shows a channel icon: the WhatsApp logo, an envelope for email, a chat bubble for livechat, or an icon uploaded in the channel settings. Email goes to the Chat tab; the list shows "Subject — snippet".
  • Email cards show From, To, Cc, and the clean body without the quoted history (open it with Show quoted text), attachments, and View original email — the formatted version in a safe frame without scripts. Images from the internet are blocked until you click Show images, so the sender can't tell the email was opened.
  • Interaction search also searches subjects and email addresses.

Replying

  • The email reply box is larger and supports bold, italic, underline, lists, and links. Pasted text becomes plain text. Ctrl/⌘ + Enter sends; Enter adds a new line. Templates (/) and knowledge base articles can still be inserted.
  • To is filled in automatically (the customer's reply address). Add Cc (up to 10) or tick Reply all when the customer's email had other recipients. The subject is "Re: …" automatically so the thread isn't split in the customer's mailbox.
  • Attach several files at once (up to 10 files, 20 MB in total).
  • The previous email is quoted below the reply like in a regular email app, and the channel signature is added automatically.
  • If sending fails (e.g. the recipient address is rejected) the message is marked Failed with the reason; click Resend after fixing it. If the email bounces later, that reply is marked Failed too.
  • New email to a contact: open the contact profile → Start chat → choose the email channel, enter a subject & body. A new email always starts a new conversation.

Email channel settings

  • Sender name: defaults to the workspace name, e.g. "Toko Mame". Tick Add the agent's name for "Budi – Toko Mame".
  • Signature: the same minimal formatting as the reply box; {nama_agen} (agent name) and {nama_workspace} (workspace name) are replaced when sending.
  • Folders to read, the Sent folder (read it / save a copy of Onix replies there — not needed for Gmail, which saves them itself), and the ignore list.
  • Change password or server: tested again before saving.
  • Business hours & auto replies: follow the workspace business hours or this address's own hours, then turn on the greeting and/or the after-hours message. They're sent as a reply email in the same thread (marked as an auto-reply), never in reply to auto-replies or bounces. See Livechat → Business hours & auto replies.
  • Channel icon: an envelope by default; replace it with your own image (square PNG/JPG/WebP, up to 512 KB).
  • Delete the channel: Onix stops reading the mailbox and deletes its password; email in the mailbox isn't touched. Conversation history stays viewable (archived) and the address can be connected again.

Problems

StatusMeaningWhat to do
ConnectedIncoming & outgoing email works normally.—
ProblemSign-in was rejected (password changed / App Password revoked) or the server couldn't be reached several times. The reason is shown on the channel card.Open Settings → Change password or server. Onix retries with pauses (5, 15, 30, 60 minutes) so the provider doesn't lock the account.
PausedThe plan dropped to Free and this channel is over the quota.Upgrade to Pro or pick this channel in Plan & Billing.

When a channel gets a problem, people with Channel access get a notification (and an email when enabled in Settings → General).

Email KPIs

Email has its own targets: Email first response and Email follow-up reply time (4 business hours by default), set in Settings → KPI targets; the business hours are in Settings → General or the channel's own hours. See KPIs & SLA.