Quick Start: From Sign-Up to First Email

Go from sign-up to sending your first email in a single comfortable sitting. This guide walks you through the mandatory setup steps using the exact labels you'll see in your dashboard.

Who this is for

• New account owners setting up their first domain.
• Admins configuring TrekMail for a client.

What you’ll achieve

• Verify your domain ownership via DNS.
• Create a secure mailbox for yourself or your team.
• Send and receive a test email to confirm everything works.

Before you start

• Have access to your DNS provider (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, etc.) to add records.
• If you are on the Nano Plan, you will need your own SMTP credentials (like AWS SES or SendGrid) to send outbound mail. (Receiving is always free and managed by us).
• Use a real email address when registering. Disposable or throwaway email services are blocked. You will need to verify your email before the 7-day grace period ends, or outbound sending will be paused.

1. Verify your email

After you sign up, TrekMail sends a verification email to the address you registered with.

1. Check your inbox (and spam folder) for an email from TrekMail with the subject "Verify Email Address."
2. Click the Verify Email Address button.
3. You have 7 days to complete this step. After that, outbound sending is blocked until you verify.

Tip: If you signed up with Google, your email is verified automatically — skip this step.

2. Add your domain

1. Log in and go to the Domains page from the sidebar.
2. Click Add domain in the top right.
3. Enter your root domain (e.g., example.com) and click Add Domain.
4. You will land on the DNS & Health tab for your new domain.

3. Configure DNS

TrekMail needs permission to handle your email. We do this via DNS records.

1. In the DNS & Health tab, you will see a list of Required Records (MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC).
2. Log in to your DNS provider’s dashboard in a separate tab.
3. Copy each record’s Type, Host/Name, and Value from TrekMail and paste them into your DNS provider.
4. Once added, come back to TrekMail and click Verify DNS.
   • Note: It may take a few minutes for changes to propagate. If it fails, wait 5 minutes and try again.
   • Look for the Green Checkmarks next to each record.

4. Create a mailbox

Once your DNS is active (or at least the MX record is verified), you can create a mailbox.

1. Go to Mailboxes in the sidebar.
2. Click Create New Mailbox.
3. Select your Domain from the dropdown.
4. Enter the Local part (e.g., support for support@example.com).
5. Generate or type a strong Password.
6. Click Create Mailbox.

5. Send and receive a test

You can use our built-in webmail to test immediately.

1. Click the Webmail ↗ link in the top header.
2. Log in using the full email address and password you just created.
3. Send a test email to a personal address (like a Gmail account).
4. Reply to that email from Gmail and verify it appears in your TrekMail inbox.

Common mistakes & quick fixes

• Symptom: Verification fails with "Record not found"
  • Likely Cause: DNS caching or incorrect Host name (e.g., entering example.com instead of @).
  • Fix: Check if your DNS provider requires @ for the root domain. Wait 10 minutes and click Verify DNS again.
• Symptom: "Authentication failed" when logging into Webmail
  • Likely Cause: Using the account username instead of the mailbox address.
  • Fix: Use the full email address (e.g., alice@example.com) as the username.
• Symptom: Outbound emails fail on Nano Plan
  • Likely Cause: Missing Custom SMTP configuration.
  • Fix: Nano plans require BYO SMTP. Go to SMTP Settings and add your SMTP provider to configure it.