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Sending Email Using PHP

• PHP provides the built-in mail() function to send email messages from scripts.
• The Simple Mail Transfer Protocol, or SMTP , is the protocol used to send and receive email messages on the Internet. It is implemented by mail servers .
• php.ini can be configured so that mail() will work in either a Windows or Linux/UNIX environment.
• When in a Windows environment, the configuration directive SMTP is typically set. When in a Linux/UNIX environment, the configuration directive sendmail_path is typically set.
• Mail servers typically require an email client to authenticate themselves before they will relay their email message to the recipient.
• fake sendmail for Windows is an application included with XAMPP that allows the sending of emails using mail() with mail servers requiring authentication.
• sendmail.ini is the fake sendmail configuration file used to specify a username and password to use for authentication.
• The additional_headers argument of mail() is used to specify who an email is from by specifying a ‘From’ header that takes on the form: 'From: email@domain.com' .
• Additional Resources:
  • Function Reference - mail()
  • PHP Manual - mail() Configuration Directives
  • fake sendmail for Windows Application