PHP Webmail Application

[aymanrb]

I am trying to build a PHP web Based Email client like Outlook express for example where the client selects either to leave a copy of the message on the server when receiving the mail or delete it...

 

I figured out how to do most of the job using some of the php IMAP functions. Unfortunately I can't think about the logic to follow in order to reduce the mail check time and at the same time leave a copy of the message on the server. The current procedure opens the mail account, fetches the first message deletes it and goes to the next message and so on. No this is fine for those who selected to remove the message.

 

Now regarding those clients who selected to leave a copy of the message on the server, I thought of saving the message UID into my database and keep looping through the whole mail account for the first time, and the next time I try to fetch that account I search for the message UID in my tables first if i get  match of that record I stop the fetch and go to another account, if not then i fetch that message and go to the next until I get a match in my old fetched messages.

 

But then this seems to be a very slow procedure and not the most accurate, does anyone here have a better Idea ?!