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Version: 5.7

Filtering emails

Filters are used to apply rules that sort and apply actions to incoming messages automatically.

They can, for example, classify all messages from the same sender in a sub-folder, delete messages according to their subject or act on replies to invitations, without the user having to perform this action himself.

Filters are managed in the mail settings: Preferences > Webmail > Message Filters

Creating an automatic filter​

Automatic filters can be created from a blank form in the preferences, or for a specific contact or sender from the mail app.

From Preferences​

Create a filter in Preferences allows you to set rules or actions on incoming messages from a blank form.
To do this, click on "Add a filter".

If a filter already exists, it is possible to create a new filter before or after it by clicking on the desired action in the menu. For further information on the order of filters, see see paragraph Ordering and moving filters.

Then fill in the form to specify the conditions and actions to be applied to incoming messages. For further information see paragraph Set filter parameters.

From the mailbox​

Create a filter from a message or contact allows you to quickly set up rules or actions for all messages from the message sender or selected contact. The filter name and the "Sender is" condition (see paragraph Conditions for details) are filled in automatically.

From a message​

To create a filter from a message :

  • open the desired message
  • go to the "Others" menu in the action bar or in the message itself
  • click on "Create a filter from the message"

The "Name" field of the filter form is automatically filled with the name of the message sender and the "Sender is" condition with the sender's e-mail address.

conversation mode

When conversation mode is activated, the sender of the last message is taken into account, even if the message is sent by the user himself.
To create a filter for a specific sender:

  • select the desired email in the conversation
  • click "Create a filter from this email" in the email menu

For further information in conversation mode, see the page Moving, Flagging and Marking Conversations.

From a contact​

To create a filter from a contact :

  • click on the desired contact to open his/her file
  • click on "Create filter from contact"

The "Name" field of the filter form is automatically filled with the contact name and the "Sender is" condition with the e-mail address.

Pre-filled fields remain entirely modifiable when filter parameters are set (see below).

Setting filter​

When creating a filter from Preferences or Mail App, a popup window opens to specify the name of the filter and the conditions and actions to be taken on messages.

Name​

Give the filter a name for easy recognition.
For example: "Internal questions ".

Conditions​

Conditions may apply to content, sender, object, recipients and the header of messages.

"The header..." conditions

The header of an email is technical data that can be consulted in the source code. Each header is identified by a name (e.g. X-Bm-Lmpt-Location).
This name must be specified in the "Header Name" field:

The condition L'entête est allows you to filter all emails where the specified header has a specific value.
The condition L'entête contient filters messages whose specified header contains the defined value.
The condition L'entête existe filters all messages with the specified header, regardless of its value. This allows you to create a filter for manage notifications related to invitations

Each condition, except message content, can be :

  • partial ("contains"): the filter is applied if the indicated value is part of the field content. For example, with the condition "Subject contains" "doc", the filter will apply to all messages containing "doc" in their subject, whether "doc" "docs" "documentation", ...
  • exact ("is"): for the filter to apply, the content of the field must be exactly the same as the indicated value. For example, with the condition "Subject is" "doc", the filter will only apply to messages whose subject is "doc"; if the subject is "doc update", the filter will not apply.

You can add as many conditions as you like.

Conflicting criteria

The exact conditions ("The sender is" or "The object is") may conflict if you choose to apply all conditions: the same condition cannot apply to two different contents.
In such a case, BlueMind alerts the user with a banner and an icon highlighting where the problem lies:

For reasons of compatibility with external systems, the filter can still be created, but it is strongly advised to correct it before validating its creation, as it will have no effect.
The correction can be of two kinds: choose "Validate at least one of the conditions" or remove superfluous conditions.

To specify filter conditions :

  1. Indicate whether filtered messages must validate all conditions or at least one of them.
  2. Select one or more conditions from the list and enter the required information.
    For example, choose L'objet contient and specify "[Doc]" then choose L'expéditeur contient and specify "bluemind.loc"..

Actions​

Possible actions are:

  • Delete: automatically and permanently deletes messages
    ↳ For further information on trash can, see Creating and editing folders

    ⚠️ The Supprimer action corresponds to the SERVER's "delete permanently" action, so the message is not received and is not retrievable from the trash can or its double-bottom

  • Move to: automatically moves messages to a folder
    ↳ For further information on folders, see Creating and editing folders

  • Redirect to: allows messages to be automatically forwarded to a user, shared mailbox or other contact
    ↳ For further information on message forwarding, see Replying to or forwarding an email

    💡 You can keep a copy of the message in your inbox by checking the box

    ❗ To avoid an infinite loop, a redirection is only applied once. If :

    • User A forwards their emails to user B,
    • User B forwards their emails to user C,
      so an email sent to user A is received by user B but not by user C.

  • Mark as read: allows you to limit the number of unread messages by automatically marking as read certain messages considered, for example, to be of lesser importance
    ↳ For further information on message following, see Flagging and marking messages

  • Mark as flagged: automatically adds a follow flag to certain messages
    ↳ For further information on message following, see Flagging and marking messages

  • Add tag: automatically classifies messages by tag
    ↳ For further information , on the use of tags, see Tagging an email

    💡 New tags can be created directly from the filter

  • Send an automatic reply: allows you to automatically send a predefined reply, with subject and content, to certain messages
    ↳ For further information about automatic replies, see also the page Managing out of the office

You can add as many actions as you like.

To specify filter actions :

  • Select one or more actions from the list and provide the necessary information
    For example: choose Déplacer vers then select an existing folder.

All actions will apply to messages validating the conditions defined above.

Exceptions​

Exceptions are used to indicate conditions under which the filter should not be applied.

Also, the possible exceptions are the same as the conditions (see paragraph Conditions above).

You can add as many exceptions as you like.

To specify filter exceptions :

  1. Indicate whether filtered messages should validate all exceptions or at least one of them.
  2. Choose one or more exceptions from the list and enter the necessary information.
    For example: choose L'expéditeur est then specify "John Smith"

Terminal filter​

Check the Terminal filter option to make this filter the last in the list of created filters to be applied.
For further details, see Use a terminal filter below.

example

In the example above, thanks to the "Internal questions" filter, all e-mails containing "[Doc]" in their subject and originating from an address in the domain, will go directly to the "Internal questions" folder, unless they are sent by John Smith.

Managing automatic filters​

You can create as many filters as you need. The display allows up to 10 filters per page.

Modifying and removing filters​

Once filters are created, click to modify them and to delete them.

Find a filter​

To facilitate filter management, users can perform a search by typing the first few letters of a word or name in the "Search" box. Autocomplete then displays filters containing matching names or terms, whatever the field.

Ordering and moving filters​

Filter classification is important. Indeed, filters are applied in the defined order.

To move a filter, choose the desired action from the menu. You can move a filter up or down one level, and position it at the top or bottom of the list.

Using a "terminal filter​

Checking the terminal filter option ensures that no other filter will interfere with it.
All filters located below a terminal filter do not apply to the message even if the conditions match.

For example, here the "Urgent" filter is a terminal filter:

⇒ When we receive an e-mail with the subject "Urgent - BlueMind Documentation", it will be "marked as important" but will not be filed in the "Documentation" folder.
If the "Documentation" filter had been placed above the terminal filter, the message would have been classified in the "Documentation" folder and marked as important.

Find out more​

Related BlueMind documentation pages

Related BlueMind videos