chandraratnam/mutt_mbsync_multipleaccounts.md

## mutt_mbsync_multipleaccounts.md

      
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              mutt_mbsync_multipleaccounts.md
            
          
    Mutt + isync multiple accounts Unfinished

This is the setup that I use for mutt, I have two google domain account (read as gmail) and an institution where I work and study account. This means I have two gmail accounts and one outlook 365 account that i want to sync and read via mutt.
I want to store all my email locally as I travel a lot and will be in countries without easy internet access. For this I use mbsync (iSync). As it can handle multiple account types easily and efficently.
The setup works this way
[Remote Mail Servers] <= mbsync => [Local Mail Folders]
Mutt (to read mail)
xxxx (to send mail)
This setup will create a mutt instance with multiple gmail mailboxes sorted nicely into different folders, easy to browse in just one keypress.
~/
|── .mutt/
|   ├── muttrc
|   ├── work
|   └── work/
└── .mbsyncrc

Alternatives

   Synchronize mail   <->   manipulate mail   ->   send mail
   [    mbsync    ]                                [ msmtp ]
   [     mutt     ]         [     mutt    ]        [ mutt  ]

This guide will use iSync (aka mbsync) to sync mail via IMAP, and mutt to do the rest. If you want just mutt, see this guide. If you want mbsync + mutt + msmtp, follow this guide, delete mutt's SMTP settings, and tack on smtp in another guide.
Configure


Install isync and mutt through brew or equivalent.
If on Gmail, enable IMAP.
If on Gmail 2FA, make an App Password.
If on Gmail non-2FA, enable less secure apps.

~/.mbsyncrc
Create Both
Expunge Both
SyncState *

# IMAPAccount personal
# ...

IMAPAccount work
Host imap.gmail.com
User work@gmail.com
Pass 
SSLType IMAPS
AuthMechs LOGIN

IMAPStore work-remote
Account work

MaildirStore work-local
Path ~/.mutt/mailbox/work/
Inbox ~/.mutt/mailbox/work/inbox

Channel work-inbox
Master :work-remote:
Slave :work-local:
Patterns "INBOX"

Channel work-sent
Master :work-remote:"[Gmail]/Sent Mail"
Slave :work-local:sent

Channel work-trash
Master :work-remote:"[Gmail]/Trash"
Slave :work-local:trash

Group work
Channel work-inbox
Channel work-sent
Channel work-trash

# Gmail mailboxes:
# "All Mail"
# "Drafts"
# "Important"
# "Sent Mail"
# "Spam"
# "Starred"
# "Trash"
~/.mutt/muttrc
set smtp_authenticators = "login"
set ssl_force_tls = yes

folder-hook 'work' 'source ~/.mutt/work'
# folder-hook 'personal'
macro index 1 "<change-folder> =../work/inbox/<enter>"
# macro index 2 
macro index G "!mbsync -a^M" "Update through mbsync"
set move = no

source ~/.mutt/work
~/.mutt/work
set smtp_url = "smtp://work@smtp.gmail.com:587"
set smtp_pass = 

set folder = "~/.mutt/mailbox/work"
set spoolfile = "~/.mutt/mailbox/work/inbox"
set postponed = "~/.mutt/mailbox/work/drafts"
set trash = "+/trash"
set record = ""

set from = "work@gmail.com"
set realname = "First Last"
Go!

Start mutt in a terminal. Press Shift+g to sync, and c ? to change mailboxes.
Tweaks

Here are tweaks I find useful.
~/.mutt/muttrc
# Use mousewheel
bind pager <down> next-line
bind pager <up> previous-line

# Dont add a '+' to urls that wrap
unset markers

# Don't ask to confirm deletions
set delete

# Don't move read mail to All Mail
set move = no

# Don't show help bar
set help = no

# Don't wait to switch mailboxes
set sleep_time = 0

# Read top-down mail instead of bottom-up
set sort = reverse-threads

# Simplify UI
set status_format = "%f"
set date_format = "%m%d"
set index_format = "%Z %D %-15.15n %s"

# Keep a list of contacts ('aliases')
set alias_file = ~/.mutt/alias
source $alias_file

~/.mutt/work
# Append a signature to mail
set signature = ~/.mutt/work.signature
Read html mail

Mutt reads all mail as plain text by default. Use a terminal web browser to render html mail. lynx is our choice.
~/.mutt/muttrc
auto_view text/html
~/.mailcap
text/html; lynx -dump %s; nametemplate=%s.html; copiousoutput;
Troubleshooting

No issues as of July 2017. Please comment your feedback!