With the help of an SMTP server, you can send emails. You can follow the procedure given to configure a local SMTP server on your computer.
- Step 1:Go to the Start menu and type Control Panel.
- Step 2:Click Programs or Programs and Features. Then, select the Turn Windows Features On or Off option.
- Step 3:When prompted for confirmation, click Allow.
- Step 4:Open Internet Information Service and ensure that the SMTP server is installed.
- Step 5:If it is not selected, checkmark the SMTP Server box and restart your computer.
- Step 6:Press the Windows and R keys together to launch the Run dialog box.
- Step 7:Type inetmgr in the Search section, and hit the Enter key.
- Step 8:When the IIS Manager window appears, right-click on the Default SMTP Virtual Server option and click New. Then, select Virtual Server.
- Step 9:Enter the SMTP settings in the New Virtual Server wizard.
- Step 10:The SMTP server is now configured using the IIS SMTP server setup.
- Step 11:You can now configure your email clients with the new SMTP server.
You also have the option of using third-party email servers to set up your SMTP server. In the below section, we shall see the steps to set up a local SMTP server on your Windows computer using the MailServer, which is a free mail server software for Windows computers.
- Step 1:Firstly, download the hMailServer software from the official site.
- Step 2:After downloading the software, double click the installer file and follow the instructions displayed on the screen to complete the installation.
- Step 3:Make sure not to forget the default administrative password that you enter during the installation setup.
- Step 4:Now, launch the hMailServer software, click the Connect button, enter the default administrative password in the pop-up window and click OK.
- Step 5:In the Getting Started window, click the Add domain button, enter your domain and click the Save button.
- Step 6:Go to the left pane and click on the Domain folder.
- Step 7:Select your domain, click on the Accounts folder, and then create an account and save it.
- Step 8:Following that, click on Settings > Protocols in the left pane and select the SMTP protocol in the main window.
- Step 9:Under Settings in the left pane, click the Advanced option and enter localhost in the Default domain name field.
- Step 10:Now, select the Auto-ban feature under the Settings option and enable it.
- Step 11:Similarly, set up the IP ranges and TCP/IP ports.
- Step 12:Finally, click Utilities followed by Diagnostics and test the domain configuration you have set. Now your local SMTP server is configured succesfully.