Updated: 22 October 2026 · Applies to: cPanel & WHM, Dovecot
IMAP syncs your mailbox in real time across multiple devices, since messages, folders and read/unread status stay on the server. cPanel provides both IMAP and POP3 through the Dovecot mail server.
Prerequisites
- A cPanel account with email enabled.
- WHM access, if you need to check the service itself, or your hosting provider's help if you do not have it.
- An email client that supports IMAP, such as Outlook, Thunderbird or Apple Mail.
1. Confirm Dovecot is running, in WHM
- Log in to WHM.
- Go to Service Configuration > Service Manager.
- Confirm dovecot is checked and set to start on boot.
- Click Save if you changed anything.
2. Default IMAP ports
cPanel's Dovecot listens on:
- 143: plain IMAP (unencrypted, or upgraded to TLS via STARTTLS).
- 993: IMAPS, encrypted from the start of the connection.
Use 993 wherever your email client supports it; 143 without STARTTLS sends your password in the clear. Make sure your server's firewall allows both ports.
3. Configure your email client
- Incoming server: mail.yourdomain.com
- Protocol: IMAP
- Port: 993 (SSL/TLS), or 143 if your client needs plain IMAP with STARTTLS
- Username: your full email address
- Password: your email account's password
4. Use a valid SSL certificate
cPanel issues certificates automatically through AutoSSL. In cPanel's Email Accounts > Connect Devices, you can copy the exact recommended secure settings for your mailbox, which saves typing the server name and port by hand.
5. Troubleshooting
If you cannot connect, check whether Dovecot is actually running:
systemctl status dovecot
Confirm ports 993 and 143 are open in the firewall, and check the mail log for the actual rejection reason:
tail -n 50 /var/log/maillog
