Which email forwarding should you choose?

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Email forwarding allows you to automatically transfer messages received at one address to another email address.

There are however several ways to forward emails. The right choice depends on your needs: create a simple forwarding address, forward an existing mailbox, keep a copy of messages, or send emails to multiple recipients.

This help article will help you understand the differences between the main forwarding methods available at LWS, so you can choose the appropriate procedure.

The main types of email forwarding

At LWS, you may encounter several types of forwarding:

• simple forwarding from the LWS Panel;
• forwarding an existing mailbox or to multiple recipients from Roundcube;
• the mailing list, when several people need to receive the same messages.

These solutions do not all work in the same way. Some create a simple forwarding address, while others rely on a real mailbox.

Simple forwarding from the LWS Panel

Simple forwarding lets you create an email forwarding address, for example contact@votredomaine.fr, which automatically forwards messages to another address.

This method is suitable if you want to receive messages at an already existing address, without creating a new mailbox at LWS.

Example:
you create contact@votredomaine.fr, and all messages sent to this address are forwarded to monadresse@gmail.com.

This solution is recommended if:

• you want a professional address that is easy to share;
• you already check your emails at another address;
• you do not need to keep messages in an LWS mailbox.

It is not suitable if:

• the address already exists as a mailbox;
• you want to keep a copy of messages at LWS;
• you want to forward messages to several people.

To set up this solution, see: How do I create a simple email forwarding with the LWS Panel?

Forwarding an existing mailbox from Roundcube

Forwarding from Roundcube is used when a real mailbox already exists.

In this case, forwarding is created from the mailbox itself, using a filter. Messages first arrive in the mailbox, then are forwarded to one or more addresses according to the configured rule.

This method is suitable if you want to forward messages received by an existing address, while still managing that address from webmail.

Examples:

• you already have the mailbox contact@votredomaine.fr and want to forward its messages to monadresse@gmail.com;
• you want messages received at contact@votredomaine.fr to be sent to several people in your team.

Depending on the configured filter, it may be possible to keep a copy of messages in the original mailbox.

This solution is recommended if:

• the email address already exists as a mailbox;
• you want to keep a real inbox;
• you want to manage forwarding from webmail;
• you want to forward messages to one or more addresses;
• you may want to keep a copy of messages.

It is not suitable if:

• you simply want to create a forwarding address without a mailbox;
• you do not need an LWS inbox;
• you need advanced management of a recipient group, with regular addition and removal of members.

To set up this solution, see: How do I create an email forwarding from Roundcube?

Mailing list

A mailing list allows you to send a message to several recipients from a single address.

It can be useful when several people need to receive the same messages, for example for a sales team, an administrative department, or a workgroup.

For example, you can create an address such as equipe@votredomaine.fr that forwards messages to several members of your team.

This solution is recommended if:

• several people need to receive the same messages;
• you want to centralize messages sent to a group address;
• you need to manage a recipient list;
• the need concerns broadcasting to a group of people.

It is not suitable if:

• you only want to forward messages to a single address;
• you want to keep messages in an LWS mailbox;
• you want to read messages from Roundcube;
• you need a standard mailbox with receiving and sending capabilities.

To set up this solution, see: How do I manage a mailing list with the LWS Panel?

Comparison of the different forwarding options

The table above also compares certain technical elements that can influence the proper delivery of forwarded emails.

You do not need to configure them manually in most cases, but they help explain why some types of forwarding are more reliable than others depending on the destination provider, such as Gmail, Outlook, or Yahoo.

SPF and DKIM

SPF and DKIM are two systems that help email services verify that an email is legitimate.

• SPF checks that the server sending the email is authorized to do so for the domain used.
• DKIM adds a signature to the email to prove that it was not modified during sending.

When SPF and DKIM remain valid, emails are less likely to be considered spam.

SRS

SRS stands for Sender Rewriting Scheme. This mechanism is used to improve the reliability of email forwarding.

When an email is forwarded, some providers may reject the message because it no longer comes directly from the original server. SRS makes it possible to properly rewrite the technical sender address so that the forwarding is better accepted.

In practice, this reduces the risk of rejection or spam classification when forwarding.

ARC

ARC stands for Authenticated Received Chain. This mechanism helps preserve a reliable record of the checks performed on an email before it is forwarded.

It allows the provider receiving the message to better understand that the email has been forwarded, without necessarily considering it suspicious.

ARC can therefore improve the deliverability of forwarded emails, especially when several servers are involved between the sender and the final recipient.

Special case of mailing lists used as forwarding

A mailing list can be used to forward emails to several recipients, but it should not replace a standard forwarding rule in all cases.

It is mainly suitable when messages are sent to a clearly identified group.

Before using a mailing list as forwarding, always send a test email from an external address and make sure each recipient actually receives the message.

What to know about receiving forwarded emails

An email forwarding may sometimes be filtered by the provider of the destination address.

For example, if you forward your emails to Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, or another external service, some messages may be classified as junk or rejected depending on the provider’s anti-spam checks.

This behavior does not always mean that the forwarding is misconfigured on the LWS side. It may come from the security rules applied by the service receiving the message.

Common issues

I don’t know whether I should create a forwarding address or a mailbox

Create a simple forwarding address if you only want to forward messages to another address, without keeping them at LWS.

Create a mailbox if you want to read messages from Roundcube, keep a copy at LWS, or configure a forwarding filter from webmail.

I want to keep a copy of emails at LWS

Do not use simple forwarding.

Create or use a real mailbox, then configure forwarding from Roundcube. Depending on the filter chosen, messages can be kept in the original mailbox.

I want to send emails to several people

If the mailbox already exists, you can use forwarding from Roundcube to multiple recipients.

If you need to manage a group of recipients on a regular basis, a mailing list may be more suitable.

I already created a mailbox with this address

You must not create a simple forwarding address with the same address.

If you want to keep this mailbox, configure forwarding from Roundcube.

If you do not want to keep the mailbox, you must first delete the existing mailbox, then create a simple forwarding address with this address.

I can’t view my forwarding in Roundcube

This is normal if you created a simple forwarding address from the LWS Panel.

A simple forwarding address is not a mailbox. It forwards messages to the destination address, but it does not allow you to log in to webmail.

My forwarding to Gmail, Outlook, or Yahoo is not working

First check that the destination address is correct.

Then send a test message from an external address, and check the inbox and spam folder.

If the message still does not arrive, the destination provider may filter or reject some forwarded emails. In that case, test with another destination address to check whether the issue comes from the forwarding or from the service receiving the messages.