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shiftcraft/.claude/skills/pocketbase-best-practices/rules/ext-mailer.md
2026-04-17 23:26:01 +00:00

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---
title: Send Email via app.NewMailClient, Never the Default example.com Sender
impact: HIGH
impactDescription: Default sender is no-reply@example.com; shipping it bounces every email and damages your SMTP reputation
tags: mailer, email, smtp, $mails, extending, templates
---
## Send Email via app.NewMailClient, Never the Default example.com Sender
PocketBase ships with a mailer accessible through `app.NewMailClient()` (Go) or `$app.newMailClient()` (JS). It reads the SMTP settings configured in **Admin UI → Settings → Mail settings**, or falls back to a local `sendmail`-like client if SMTP is not configured. Two things bite people: (1) the default `Meta.senderAddress` is `no-reply@example.com` - shipping with that bounces every email and poisons your sender reputation; (2) there is no connection pooling, so long-lived mail client handles are **not** safe to share across requests - create one per send.
**Incorrect (default sender, shared client, no error handling):**
```go
// ❌ Default sender is example.com, and this mailer instance is captured
// for the process lifetime - SMTP connections go stale
var mailer = app.NewMailClient()
app.OnRecordAfterCreateSuccess("orders").BindFunc(func(e *core.RecordEvent) error {
msg := &mailer.Message{
From: mail.Address{Address: "no-reply@example.com"}, // ❌
To: []mail.Address{{Address: e.Record.GetString("email")}},
Subject: "Order confirmed",
HTML: "<p>Thanks</p>",
}
mailer.Send(msg) // ❌ error swallowed
return e.Next()
})
```
**Correct (sender from settings, per-send client, explicit error path):**
```go
import (
"net/mail"
pbmail "github.com/pocketbase/pocketbase/tools/mailer"
)
app.OnRecordAfterCreateSuccess("orders").BindFunc(func(e *core.RecordEvent) error {
// IMPORTANT: resolve the sender from settings at send-time, not at
// startup - an admin can change it live from the UI
meta := e.App.Settings().Meta
from := mail.Address{
Name: meta.SenderName,
Address: meta.SenderAddress,
}
msg := &pbmail.Message{
From: from,
To: []mail.Address{{Address: e.Record.GetString("email")}},
Subject: "Order confirmed",
HTML: renderOrderEmail(e.Record), // your template function
}
// Create the client per send - avoids stale TCP sessions
if err := e.App.NewMailClient().Send(msg); err != nil {
e.App.Logger().Error("order email send failed",
"err", err,
"recordId", e.Record.Id,
)
// Do NOT return the error - a failed email should not roll back the order
}
return e.Next()
})
```
```javascript
// JSVM - $mails global exposes message factories
onRecordAfterCreateSuccess((e) => {
const meta = $app.settings().meta;
const message = new MailerMessage({
from: {
address: meta.senderAddress,
name: meta.senderName,
},
to: [{ address: e.record.get("email") }],
subject: "Order confirmed",
html: `<p>Thanks for order ${e.record.id}</p>`,
});
try {
$app.newMailClient().send(message);
} catch (err) {
$app.logger().error("order email send failed", "err", err, "id", e.record.id);
// swallow - do not rollback the order
}
e.next();
}, "orders");
```
**Templated emails via the built-in verification/reset templates:**
```go
// PocketBase has baked-in templates for verification, password reset, and
// email change. Trigger them via apis.*Request helpers rather than building
// your own message:
// apis.RecordRequestPasswordReset(app, authRecord)
// apis.RecordRequestVerification(app, authRecord)
// apis.RecordRequestEmailChange(app, authRecord, newEmail)
//
// These use the templates configured in Admin UI → Settings → Mail templates.
```
**Rules:**
- **Always change `Meta.SenderAddress`** before shipping. In development, use Mailpit or MailHog; in production, use a verified domain that matches your SPF/DKIM records.
- **Resolve the sender from `app.Settings().Meta` at send-time**, not at startup. Settings are mutable from the admin UI.
- **Create the client per send** (`app.NewMailClient()` / `$app.newMailClient()`). It is cheap - it re-reads the SMTP settings each time, so config changes take effect without a restart.
- **Never return a send error from a hook** unless the user's action genuinely depends on the email going out. Email failure is common (transient SMTP, address typo) and should not roll back a business transaction.
- **Log failures with context** (record id, recipient domain) so you can grep them later. PocketBase does not retry failed sends.
- **For bulk sending, queue it**. The mailer is synchronous - looping `Send()` over 10k records blocks the request. Push to a cron-drained queue collection instead.
- **Template rendering**: Go users should use `html/template`; JS users can use template literals or pull in a tiny template lib. PocketBase itself only renders templates for its baked-in flows.
Reference: [Go Mailer](https://pocketbase.io/docs/go-sending-emails/) · [JS Mailer](https://pocketbase.io/docs/js-sending-emails/)