CHOOSE A PRODUCT · BUILD WITH YOUR AGENT
Gmail
Gmail is Google’s hosted email service: IMAP/POP/SMTP mail with a web client, search, spam filtering and tight Workspace integration.
At a glance
Gmail is Google’s hosted email service: IMAP/POP/SMTP mail with a web client, search, spam filtering and tight Workspace integration.
Catalog categories: productivity.
Catalogued capability areas: - IMAP/POP/SMTP mail delivery and storage - Webmail client, search, labelling - Spam and phishing filtering, filtering rules
This summary reflects the catalog record, not a complete product specification. Verify intended users, end-to-end workflows, supported platforms, edge cases, data handling, and constraints against cited sources. Treat capability labels as research leads until that verification is complete.
- IMAP/POP/SMTP mail delivery and storage
- Webmail client, search, labelling
- Spam and phishing filtering, filtering rules
Open-source alternative
4 candidate projects in the landscape. A candidate may cover all, part, or none of what Gmail does — read the coverage and gaps below.
Mailcow
GPL-3.0Dockerised full mail server (Postfix, Dovecot, Rspamd, SOGo).
Self-hosted; you own deliverability and DNS.
Mail-in-a-Box
CC0-1.0One-command personal mail server bundle.
Opinionated, single-box.
Mox / Stalwart
MITModern all-in-one mail servers.
Newer entrants in the same space.
Roundcube
GPL-3.0Mature webmail client.
Client only; pair with a server.
Coverage and gaps
Alternative coverage
Available. The full mail stack is open source and widely self-hosted.
The gap
Deliverability and anti-abuse at Gmail’s scale are operational, not software, gaps.
Build this product with your agent
This Markdown file is the coding-agent skill for Gmail. Give it to your agent in your project; it guides research, reuse decisions, implementation and verification.
- agent-kit.mdDownloadable Markdown skill with product-specific instructions for your coding agent.available
- skill.mdGenerated copy of the same product skill — rae gmail --out ./gmail-agent.in kit
- mcp.jsonOptional MCP server config — rae gmail --out ./gmail-agent.in kit
- Product workspaceOptional starting workspace for your agent — rae build product gmail --out ./gmail.
- ChoosePick the product you want to build.
- ReviewAsk your agent to check the product skill, evidence and alternatives.
- BuildGive the skill to your coding agent and build in your own project.
- VerifyRun the checks for your implementation and review the result.
Evidence
Sources
- https://mailinabox.email/
- https://opensource.com/alternatives/gmail
- https://github.com/Mindbaz/awesome-opensource-email
Provenance
- Catalog record — catalog/products.jsonl
- Research dossier — research/companies/google/products/gmail.md
- REA web-surface report — catalog/rea/google/gmail.md
- Open-source skill file — catalog/skills/google/gmail.md
Next step
Give the Gmail skill to your coding agent in your project. Ask it to evaluate Mailcow ↗ against your needs, reuse what fits, then follow the skill's build and verification instructions.
Give the product skill to your coding agent in the project where you want to build. Optional starter workspace: rae build product gmail --out ./gmail. CLI reference.