public abstract class

Message

extends Object
implements Part
java.lang.Object
   ↳ com.google.code.javax.mail.Message
Known Direct Subclasses
Known Indirect Subclasses

Class Overview

This class models an email message. This is an abstract class. Subclasses provide actual implementations.

Message implements the Part interface. Message contains a set of attributes and a "content". Messages within a folder also have a set of flags that describe its state within the folder.

Message defines some new attributes in addition to those defined in the Part interface. These attributes specify meta-data for the message - i.e., addressing and descriptive information about the message.

Message objects are obtained either from a GmailFolder or by constructing a new Message object of the appropriate subclass. Messages that have been received are normally retrieved from a folder named "INBOX".

A Message object obtained from a folder is just a lightweight reference to the actual message. The Message is 'lazily' filled up (on demand) when each item is requested from the message. Note that certain folder implementations may return Message objects that are pre-filled with certain user-specified items. To send a message, an appropriate subclass of Message (e.g., MimeMessage) is instantiated, the attributes and content are filled in, and the message is sent using the Transport.send method.

See Also
  • javax.mail.Part

Summary

Nested Classes
class Message.RecipientType This inner class defines the types of recipients allowed by the Message class. 
[Expand]
Inherited Constants
From interface com.google.code.javax.mail.Part
Fields
protected boolean expunged True if this message has been expunged.
protected Folder folder The containing folder, if this message is obtained from a folder
protected int msgnum The number of this message within its folder, or zero if the message was not retrieved from a folder.
protected Session session The Session object for this Message
Protected Constructors
Message()
No-arg version of the constructor.
Message(Folder folder, int msgnum)
Constructor that takes a GmailFolder and a message number.
Message(Session session)
Constructor that takes a Session.
Public Methods
abstract void addFrom(Address[] addresses)
Add these addresses to the existing "From" attribute
void addRecipient(Message.RecipientType type, Address address)
Add this recipient address to the existing ones of the given type.
abstract void addRecipients(Message.RecipientType type, Address[] addresses)
Add these recipient addresses to the existing ones of the given type.
Address[] getAllRecipients()
Get all the recipient addresses for the message.
abstract Flags getFlags()
Returns a Flags object containing the flags for this message.
Folder getFolder()
Get the folder from which this message was obtained.
abstract Address[] getFrom()
Returns the "From" attribute.
int getMessageNumber()
Get the Message number for this Message.
abstract Date getReceivedDate()
Get the date this message was received.
abstract Address[] getRecipients(Message.RecipientType type)
Get all the recipient addresses of the given type.
Address[] getReplyTo()
Get the addresses to which replies should be directed.
abstract Date getSentDate()
Get the date this message was sent.
abstract String getSubject()
Get the subject of this message.
boolean isExpunged()
Checks whether this message is expunged.
boolean isSet(Flags.Flag flag)
Check whether the flag specified in the flag argument is set in this message.
boolean match(SearchTerm term)
Apply the specified Search criterion to this message.
abstract Message reply(boolean replyToAll)
Get a new Message suitable for a reply to this message.
abstract void saveChanges()
Save any changes made to this message into the message-store when the containing folder is closed, if the message is contained in a folder.
void setFlag(Flags.Flag flag, boolean set)
Set the specified flag on this message to the specified value.
abstract void setFlags(Flags flag, boolean set)
Set the specified flags on this message to the specified value.
abstract void setFrom()
Set the "From" attribute in this Message.
abstract void setFrom(Address address)
Set the "From" attribute in this Message.
void setRecipient(Message.RecipientType type, Address address)
Set the recipient address.
abstract void setRecipients(Message.RecipientType type, Address[] addresses)
Set the recipient addresses.
void setReplyTo(Address[] addresses)
Set the addresses to which replies should be directed.
abstract void setSentDate(Date date)
Set the sent date of this message.
abstract void setSubject(String subject)
Set the subject of this message.
Protected Methods
void setExpunged(boolean expunged)
Sets the expunged flag for this Message.
void setMessageNumber(int msgnum)
Set the Message number for this Message.
[Expand]
Inherited Methods
From class java.lang.Object
From interface com.google.code.javax.mail.Part

Fields

protected boolean expunged

True if this message has been expunged.

protected Folder folder

The containing folder, if this message is obtained from a folder

protected int msgnum

The number of this message within its folder, or zero if the message was not retrieved from a folder.

protected Session session

The Session object for this Message

Protected Constructors

protected Message ()

No-arg version of the constructor.

protected Message (Folder folder, int msgnum)

Constructor that takes a GmailFolder and a message number. Used by GmailFolder implementations.

Parameters
folder Containing folder
msgnum This message's sequence number within this folder

protected Message (Session session)

Constructor that takes a Session. Used for client created Message objects.

Parameters
session A Session object

Public Methods

public abstract void addFrom (Address[] addresses)

Add these addresses to the existing "From" attribute

Parameters
addresses The senders
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
MessagingException

public void addRecipient (Message.RecipientType type, Address address)

Add this recipient address to the existing ones of the given type.

The default implementation uses the addRecipients method.

Parameters
type The recipient type
address The address
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values
MessagingException

public abstract void addRecipients (Message.RecipientType type, Address[] addresses)

Add these recipient addresses to the existing ones of the given type.

Parameters
type The recipient type
addresses The addresses
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
MessagingException

public Address[] getAllRecipients ()

Get all the recipient addresses for the message. The default implementation extracts the TO, CC, and BCC recipients using the getRecipients method.

This method returns null if none of the recipient headers are present in this message. It may Return an empty array if any recipient header is present, but contains no addresses.

Returns
  • array of Address objects
Throws
MessagingException
See Also

public abstract Flags getFlags ()

Returns a Flags object containing the flags for this message.

Modifying any of the flags in this returned Flags object will not affect the flags of this message. Use setFlags() to do that.

Returns
  • Flags object containing the flags for this message
Throws
MessagingException
See Also

public Folder getFolder ()

Get the folder from which this message was obtained. If this is a new message or nested message, this method returns null.

Returns
  • the containing folder

public abstract Address[] getFrom ()

Returns the "From" attribute. The "From" attribute contains the identity of the person(s) who wished this message to be sent.

In certain implementations, this may be different from the entity that actually sent the message.

This method returns null if this attribute is not present in this message. Returns an empty array if this attribute is present, but contains no addresses.

Returns
  • array of Address objects
Throws
MessagingException

public int getMessageNumber ()

Get the Message number for this Message. A Message object's message number is the relative position of this Message in its GmailFolder. Note that the message number for a particular Message can change during a session if other messages in the GmailFolder are deleted and expunged.

Valid message numbers start at 1. Messages that do not belong to any folder (like newly composed or derived messages) have 0 as their message number.

Returns
  • the message number

public abstract Date getReceivedDate ()

Get the date this message was received.

Returns
  • the date this message was received
Throws
MessagingException

public abstract Address[] getRecipients (Message.RecipientType type)

Get all the recipient addresses of the given type.

This method returns null if no recipients of the given type are present in this message. It may return an empty array if the header is present, but contains no addresses.

Parameters
type The recipient type
Returns
  • array of Address objects
Throws
MessagingException
See Also

public Address[] getReplyTo ()

Get the addresses to which replies should be directed. This will usually be the sender of the message, but some messages may direct replies to a different address.

The default implementation simply calls the getFrom method.

This method returns null if the corresponding header is not present. Returns an empty array if the header is present, but contains no addresses.

Returns
  • addresses to which replies should be directed
Throws
MessagingException
See Also

public abstract Date getSentDate ()

Get the date this message was sent.

Returns
  • the date this message was sent
Throws
MessagingException

public abstract String getSubject ()

Get the subject of this message.

Returns
  • the subject
Throws
MessagingException

public boolean isExpunged ()

Checks whether this message is expunged. All other methods except getMessageNumber() are invalid on an expunged Message object.

Messages that are expunged due to an explict expunge() request on the containing GmailFolder are removed from the GmailFolder immediately. Messages that are externally expunged by another source are marked "expunged" and return true for the isExpunged() method, but they are not removed from the GmailFolder until an explicit expunge() is done on the GmailFolder.

See the description of expunge() for more details on expunge handling.

See Also
  • GmailFolder#expunge

public boolean isSet (Flags.Flag flag)

Check whether the flag specified in the flag argument is set in this message.

The default implementation uses getFlags.

Parameters
flag The flag
Returns
  • value of the specified flag for this message
Throws
MessagingException
See Also
  • org.mule.module.gmail.search.mail.Flags.Flag
  • org.mule.module.gmail.search.mail.Flags.Flag#ANSWERED
  • org.mule.module.gmail.search.mail.Flags.Flag#DELETED
  • org.mule.module.gmail.search.mail.Flags.Flag#DRAFT
  • org.mule.module.gmail.search.mail.Flags.Flag#FLAGGED
  • org.mule.module.gmail.search.mail.Flags.Flag#RECENT
  • org.mule.module.gmail.search.mail.Flags.Flag#SEEN

public boolean match (SearchTerm term)

Apply the specified Search criterion to this message.

Parameters
term The Search criterion
Returns
  • true if the Message matches this search criterion, false otherwise.
Throws
MessagingException
See Also
  • javax.mail.search.SearchTerm

public abstract Message reply (boolean replyToAll)

Get a new Message suitable for a reply to this message. The new Message will have its attributes and headers set up appropriately. Note that this new message object will be empty, that is, it will not have a "content". These will have to be suitably filled in by the client.

If replyToAll is set, the new Message will be addressed to all recipients of this message. Otherwise, the reply will be addressed to only the sender of this message (using the value of the getReplyTo method).

The "Subject" field is filled in with the original subject prefixed with "Re:" (unless it already starts with "Re:").

The reply message will use the same session as this message.

Parameters
replyToAll Reply should be sent to all recipients of this message
Returns
  • the reply Message
Throws
MessagingException

public abstract void saveChanges ()

Save any changes made to this message into the message-store when the containing folder is closed, if the message is contained in a folder. (Some implementations may save the changes immediately.) Update any header fields to be consistent with the changed message contents. If any part of a message's headers or contents are changed, saveChanges must be called to ensure that those changes are permanent. If saveChanges is not called, any such modifications may or may not be saved, depending on the message store and folder implementation.

Messages obtained from folders opened READ_ONLY should not be modified and saveChanges should not be called on such messages.

Throws
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values.
MessagingException

public void setFlag (Flags.Flag flag, boolean set)

Set the specified flag on this message to the specified value. This will result in a MessageChangedEvent being delivered to any MessageChangedListener registered on this Message's containing folder.

The default implementation uses the setFlags method.

Parameters
flag Flags.Flag object containing the flag to be set
set The value to be set
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values.
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
MessagingException
See Also
  • javax.mail.event.MessageChangedEvent

public abstract void setFlags (Flags flag, boolean set)

Set the specified flags on this message to the specified value. Note that any flags in this message that are not specified in the given Flags object are unaffected.

This will result in a MessageChangedEvent being delivered to any MessageChangedListener registered on this Message's containing folder.

Parameters
flag Flags object containing the flags to be set
set The value to be set
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values.
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
MessagingException
See Also
  • javax.mail.event.MessageChangedEvent

public abstract void setFrom ()

Set the "From" attribute in this Message. The value of this attribute is obtained from the property "mail.user". If this property is absent, the system property "user.name" is used.

Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
MessagingException

public abstract void setFrom (Address address)

Set the "From" attribute in this Message.

Parameters
address The sender
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
MessagingException

public void setRecipient (Message.RecipientType type, Address address)

Set the recipient address. All addresses of the specified type are replaced by the address parameter.

The default implementation uses the setRecipients method.

Parameters
type The recipient type
address The address
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values
MessagingException

public abstract void setRecipients (Message.RecipientType type, Address[] addresses)

Set the recipient addresses. All addresses of the specified type are replaced by the addresses parameter.

Parameters
type The recipient type
addresses The addresses
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
MessagingException

public void setReplyTo (Address[] addresses)

Set the addresses to which replies should be directed. (Normally only a single address will be specified.) Not all message types allow this to be specified separately from the sender of the message.

The default implementation provided here just throws the MethodNotSupportedException.

Parameters
addresses Addresses to which replies should be directed
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
MethodNotSupportedException if the underlying implementation does not support setting this attribute
MessagingException

public abstract void setSentDate (Date date)

Set the sent date of this message.

Parameters
date The sent date of this message
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
MessagingException

public abstract void setSubject (String subject)

Set the subject of this message.

Parameters
subject The subject
Throws
IllegalWriteException if the underlying implementation does not support modification of existing values
IllegalStateException if this message is obtained from a READ_ONLY folder.
MessagingException

Protected Methods

protected void setExpunged (boolean expunged)

Sets the expunged flag for this Message. This method is to be used only by the implementation classes.

Parameters
expunged The expunged flag

protected void setMessageNumber (int msgnum)

Set the Message number for this Message. This method is invoked only by the implementation classes.

Parameters
msgnum