Email piping allows AlgoSphere to automatically create support tickets from inbound emails. When a customer emails your support address, a ticket is created automatically and the customer is notified of their ticket ID.
How It Works
AlgoSphere polls your support inbox at a set interval (via cron job) and processes new emails:
- A new email from a known contact email is linked to that customer's account
- A new email from an unknown email address creates an anonymous ticket (depending on settings)
- Replies to existing ticket notification emails are appended as ticket replies
IMAP Polling Method (Recommended)
- Go to Setup → Support → Departments and open the department you want email piping on.
- Enable Email Integration.
- Choose protocol: IMAP or POP3.
- Enter the mail server, username (email address), and password.
- Set port and encryption (993 / SSL for IMAP is standard).
- Save and ensure your cron job is running — it will poll this inbox every minute.
Contact emails must be unique in AlgoSphere. If the same email is associated with multiple contacts, the system cannot determine which customer to link the ticket to.
Gmail / Google Workspace Setup
If using Gmail or Google Workspace, use OAuth 2.0 instead of IMAP with a password. Set the protocol to IMAP and authenticate via the Google OAuth button in the department settings.
Testing Email Piping
After setup, send a test email from an address that exists as a customer contact in AlgoSphere. Within a minute, a new ticket should appear in Support → Tickets assigned to the correct department.