The INBOX, Sent, Trash, Drafts, and Junk folders are fairly standard from a naming perspective in the IMAP world

The INBOX folder is where most email is initially delivered. Emails are eventually moved automatically to the corresponding Archives folder.

The Drafts folder is where emails live while they are being composed. Most IMAP client software (including our IMAP webmail) will automatically save to this folder periodically during the composition process as a convenience.

Emails are copied to the Sent folder once they are successfully sent. As with the INBOX, emails are eventually moved automatically to the corresponding Archives folder.

Emails are moved to the Trash folder when they are deleted. Emails older than 30 days are automatically purged from the Trash folder.

The Junk folder is one of two places where the system sends email that it considers "junk" (aka spam). Emails older than 30 days are automatically purged from the Junk folder. Moving a message from the INBOX or some other "normal" folder to the Junk folder automatically generates an abuse report. Conversely, moving a message from the Junk folder to the INBOX or some other "normal" folder informs our filtering system that you believe the email is legitimate. These semantics provide a relatively intuitive and universal (works on all IMAP clients) way of reporting spam or designating emails as legitimate.

The Pending folder is where messages live from sources that have not yet been classified. While this represents an infinitesimal percentage of all emails, this folder allows for expeditious feedback to assist in classifying those sources. Moving a message from the Pending folder to the INBOX or some other normal folder designates the source as good. Moving a message from the Pending folder to the Junk folder or simply deleting it designates the source as bad.

The Blocked folder is similar to the Junk folder. Messages in the this folder are sent there by the filtering system for one of several reasons. The message could have come from a source that is on an active public blacklist. The message could contain a known virus signature. The message could contain a URL that links to known (usually publicly blacklisted) scam site. The message SMTP envelope could have been invalid. Emails older than 30 days are automatically purged from the Blocked folder. Moving messages in and out of the Blocked folder has the same effects as moving them in and out of the Junk folder.

The Archives folder is not intended to contain messages itself. Rather, it is the parent directory for the actual Archives folders whose names are based upon the year the messages were received. So, under the Archives folder, you might find subordinate folder names like 2014, 2015, etc. The subordinate folders will be automatically created by the system as needed to move older messages from the INBOX or Sent folders.

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