Source code:Lib/poplib.py
This module defines a class,POP3, which encapsulates a connection to aPOP3 server and implements the protocol as defined inRFC 1725. ThePOP3 class supports both the minimal and optional command sets.Additionally, this module provides a classPOP3_SSL, which providessupport for connecting to POP3 servers that use SSL as an underlying protocollayer.
Note that POP3, though widely supported, is obsolescent. The implementationquality of POP3 servers varies widely, and too many are quite poor. If yourmailserver supports IMAP, you would be better off using theimaplib.IMAP4 class, as IMAP servers tend to be better implemented.
Thepoplib module provides two classes:
This class implements the actual POP3 protocol. The connection is created whenthe instance is initialized. Ifport is omitted, the standard POP3 port (110)is used. The optionaltimeout parameter specifies a timeout in seconds for theconnection attempt (if not specified, the global default timeout setting willbe used).
This is a subclass ofPOP3 that connects to the server over an SSLencrypted socket. Ifport is not specified, 995, the standard POP3-over-SSLport is used.keyfile andcertfile are also optional - they can contain aPEM formatted private key and certificate chain file for the SSL connection.timeout works as in thePOP3 constructor.context parameter is assl.SSLContext object which allows bundling SSL configurationoptions, certificates and private keys into a single (potentially long-lived)structure.
Changed in version 3.2:context parameter added.
One exception is defined as an attribute of thepoplib module:
Exception raised on any errors from this module (errors fromsocketmodule are not caught). The reason for the exception is passed to theconstructor as a string.
See also
All POP3 commands are represented by methods of the same name, in lower-case;most return the response text sent by the server.
AnPOP3 instance has the following methods:
Set the instance’s debugging level. This controls the amount of debuggingoutput printed. The default,0, produces no debugging output. A value of1 produces a moderate amount of debugging output, generally a single lineper request. A value of2 or higher produces the maximum amount ofdebugging output, logging each line sent and received on the control connection.
Returns the greeting string sent by the POP3 server.
Send user command, response should indicate that a password is required.
Send password, response includes message count and mailbox size. Note: themailbox on the server is locked untilquit() is called.
Use the more secure APOP authentication to log into the POP3 server.
Use RPOP authentication (similar to UNIX r-commands) to log into POP3 server.
Get mailbox status. The result is a tuple of 2 integers:(messagecount,mailboxsize).
Request message list, result is in the form(response,['mesg_numoctets',...],octets). Ifwhich is set, it is the message to list.
Retrieve whole message numberwhich, and set its seen flag. Result is in form(response,['line',...],octets).
Flag message numberwhich for deletion. On most servers deletions are notactually performed until QUIT (the major exception is Eudora QPOP, whichdeliberately violates the RFCs by doing pending deletes on any disconnect).
Remove any deletion marks for the mailbox.
Do nothing. Might be used as a keep-alive.
Signoff: commit changes, unlock mailbox, drop connection.
Retrieves the message header plushowmuch lines of the message after theheader of message numberwhich. Result is in form(response,['line',...],octets).
The POP3 TOP command this method uses, unlike the RETR command, doesn’t set themessage’s seen flag; unfortunately, TOP is poorly specified in the RFCs and isfrequently broken in off-brand servers. Test this method by hand against thePOP3 servers you will use before trusting it.
Return message digest (unique id) list. Ifwhich is specified, result containsthe unique id for that message in the form'responsemesgnumuid, otherwiseresult is list(response,['mesgnumuid',...],octets).
Instances ofPOP3_SSL have no additional methods. The interface of thissubclass is identical to its parent.
Here is a minimal example (without error checking) that opens a mailbox andretrieves and prints all messages:
importgetpass,poplibM=poplib.POP3('localhost')M.user(getpass.getuser())M.pass_(getpass.getpass())numMessages=len(M.list()[1])foriinrange(numMessages):forjinM.retr(i+1)[1]:print(j)
At the end of the module, there is a test section that contains a more extensiveexample of usage.
21.13.ftplib — FTP protocol client
21.15.imaplib — IMAP4 protocol client
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