paperlessimap: Browse your Paperless-ngx documents as emails via IMAP (Public Alpha)
Hello everyone!
For the past year, I’ve been working on a bridge to bring my Paperless-ngx library into my daily email workflow. I’m happy to announce the public alpha of paperlessimap.
What is it?
It’s an IMAP server bridge that allows you to access your Paperless-ngx documents from any mail client (Thunderbird, Outlook, etc.). It currently provides read-only access, where your documents are presented as emails with the original PDFs attached.
The Tech Stack
- Backend: PHP (Symfony)
- Mail Core: Dovecot
- Deployment: Docker-ready (Compose setup included)
Why use this?
As a heavy Thunderbird user, I found that I could often find and navigate my documents faster using a mail client's native search and folder (tag) structure than through the WebUI. It’s about integrating document management into the tools I already use all day.
Current Status
- Alpha version: Stable enough for daily private use.
- Authentication: Currently via a fixed password in
.env(direct Paperless-ngx credential login is planned). - Easy Setup: A pre-configured
docker-compose.yamlis available in the/docker/composedirectory. - Localization: Currently in German, but the codebase is prepared for translations.
Feedback & Ideas
I'd love to get some feedback from the community!
- Does an IMAP interface fit your workflow?
- What would be your priority: "Move to folder" for tagging or full write-access?
- Any specific ideas for the development roadmap?
Repository:https://codeberg.org/lindesbs/paperlessImap
Note: Developed with the assistance of LLM (Cursor.com) for documentation, testing, and planning.
Looking forward to your thoughts!
