TTL Settings

CloakMail automatically deletes emails after a configurable time-to-live (TTL) period. This ensures privacy and keeps the system clean.

Basic Configuration

Set the TTL using the EMAIL_TTL_SECONDS environment variable:

# 1 hour (default)
EMAIL_TTL_SECONDS=3600

On Inbox Creation — An expiration timestamp is set based on the current time + TTL
Background Cleanup — A background process periodically removes expired emails
On Access — Expired emails are also cleaned up when the inbox is accessed

Created At: 2024-01-15 10:00:00
TTL: 3600 seconds (1 hour)
Expires At: 2024-01-15 11:00:00

The TTL applies to the entire inbox, not individual emails. When the inbox expires, all emails within it are deleted.

For one-time verification codes:

EMAIL_TTL_SECONDS=300  # 5 minutes

For development and testing workflows:

EMAIL_TTL_SECONDS=3600  # 1 hour

For signing up to services you might need to verify later:

EMAIL_TTL_SECONDS=86400  # 24 hours

For longer-term temporary email needs:

EMAIL_TTL_SECONDS=604800  # 7 days

Longer TTL values mean:

For high-traffic deployments, consider using shorter TTL values to keep resource usage low.

Use the health endpoint to check service status:

curl http://localhost:3000/api/health

Response:

{
  "status": "ok",
  "smtp": "connected",
  "redis": "connected",
  "uptime": 3600
}