Import email addresses and forwarders in cPanel

With the function Address import In cPanel, you can import multiple email accounts or email forwarders in bulk. This is particularly practical if you need to set up many addresses and do not want to create each account or forwarder individually.

The data is saved for this purpose in a prepared file and then imported via cPanel. During the import, you map the included columns to the corresponding fields.

In this guide, we will show you step by step how to prepare an import file, import email accounts or forwarders, and then check whether all entries have been created correctly.

Important: Email accounts and forwarders are different entities. Decide before importing what you actually want to create, and check your import file carefully.

When is the address import useful? #

If you only need a single email account, the normal creation via Email accounts usually faster.

Importing addresses is particularly worthwhile if multiple accounts or forwardings are to be set up according to a uniform scheme.

Typical use cases include setting up multiple employee accounts or importing a larger list of email addresses.

What can be created via the address import? #

When importing, cPanel fundamentally distinguishes between:

• Email accounts - real mailboxes with login credentials and storage space
• Redirects – Addresses whose messages are forwarded to another destination

For example, if you:

max@deine-domain.ch

if you need it as a separate mailbox with a password, you have to create an email account.

Target versus:

verkauf@deine-domain.ch

all messages to:

info@deine-domain.ch

pass on, it is a forwarding.

We show how to create individual accounts manually at Create an email account in cPanel. You handle individual redirects via Set up email forwarding in cPanel.

Which file formats can be used? #

For the import, cPanel uses structured text files in which the individual values are separated from each other by a delimiter.

Typically, CSV files or files separated by commas or tabs are used for this.

You can create such files, for example, with a spreadsheet program and then save or export them in the appropriate format.

Practical Tip: Open an exported CSV file once more before importing it and check whether columns and special characters have been preserved correctly.

Prepare import file for email accounts #

When importing email accounts, you need the information that cPanel can use to create the new mailboxes.

This includes in particular the email address or username and a password. Additionally, a storage space limit can be specified.

For example, a simple table could conceptually contain the following columns:

Email address,Password,Storage space
anna@deine-domain.ch,SicheresPasswort1,1024
max@deine-domain.ch,SicheresPasswort2,1024

The specific columns will be mapped during the import into cPanel. Therefore, it is helpful to use the first row as clear column headers.

Safety: An email account import file may contain passwords in plain text. Therefore, do not store it permanently in a publicly accessible or shared location, and delete it after a successful import when it is no longer needed.

Use secure passwords #

Use a strong and as individual a password as possible for every newly created email account.

Do not use the same simple password for all imported mailboxes.

A compromised password should not automatically allow access to other email accounts.

Plan storage space for imported accounts #

When creating email accounts, a storage limit can be set depending on the cPanel configuration.

Think before importing about which accounts actually need which storage.

The storage allocation should match your hosting account and the intended use.

We show you how to control the later consumption in the next article under Check and clean up email storage in cPanel.

Prepare import file for redirects #

On the other hand, you don't need a mailbox password for a forwarding.

Crucial are the address to be forwarded and the desired destination.

An import file could logically be structured like this:

Source,Destination
verkauf@deine-domain.ch,info@deine-domain.ch
rechnung@deine-domain.ch,buchhaltung@deine-domain.ch

With that, for example, you describe:

verkauf@deine-domain.ch → info@deine-domain.ch

and

rechnung@deine-domain.ch → buchhaltung@deine-domain.ch

Important: Check the destination addresses very carefully. A typo can cause forwarded messages not to reach their intended destination.

1. Open Address Import in cPanel #

Log in to your CURIAWEB cPanel.

Scroll to the section Email and click on Address import.

cPanel will then open the assistant for importing email accounts or forwarders.

2. Select email accounts or forwards #

First, select the type of data you want to import.

Make a decision Email accounts, if real mailboxes are to be created.

Choose Redirects, if the imported addresses are merely intended to forward incoming messages to other addresses.

Attention: An imported email account and an imported forwarder do not serve the same purpose. Check this selection before proceeding with the assistant.

3. Select import file #

Select the previously prepared file on your computer.

Use the file that belongs exactly to the currently selected import type.

If you want to import email accounts, you must not accidentally select the file containing the forwarders.

4. Define separator #

cPanel must be able to recognize what separates the individual fields in your file.

Depending on the file, this can be, for example, a comma or a tab.

Select the delimiter actually used in your import file.

If the preview or mapping subsequently looks incorrect, an incorrectly selected separator is one of the primary potential causes.

5. Consider header #

If the first line of your file contains column headers, this must be taken into account accordingly during the import.

For example:

E-mail address,password,storage space

is not an email address to be created as an account, but merely the description of the columns below.

Therefore, make sure that cPanel treats the first line accordingly as a header if you use such a header.

6. Assign columns correctly #

In the next step, cPanel displays the data recognized from the file and lets you map the columns to the required fields.

Check this assignment carefully.

For an email account, for example, the user or address, password, and, if applicable, storage space must correspond to the correct columns.

For redirects, the source address and target address must be correctly mapped.

Important: Do not rely solely on cPanel automatically interpreting the columns correctly. Check every mapping before the import.

7. Ignore unneeded columns #

If your file contains additional columns that are not required for the import, they do not necessarily have to be included.

Only map the data that cPanel requires for the desired import type.

For example, a table list from another system might still contain names, departments, or internal comments. Such information does not automatically belong in the cPanel email configuration.

8. Check domain #

When you have multiple domains within a hosting account, you should check very carefully which domain the accounts or forwards are being created for.

From:

anna@firma-a.ch

must not accidentally:

anna@firma-b.ch

become.

Therefore, check both the import data and the domain mapping displayed in the wizard.

9. Check preview before importing #

Before you start the actual import, check the recognized data again.

Pay special attention to:

• correct email addresses
• correct domains
• correct column mapping
• correct forwarding destinations
• plausible storage capacity values

Practical Tip: For a very large import file, a small test import with just a few entries is often more sensible than immediately importing an extensive list and having to correct many errors afterwards.

10. Start import #

If all information is correct, start the import.

cPanel then processes the data records and attempts to create the corresponding email accounts or forwarders.

Wait until the process is complete and pay attention to the feedback displayed.

11. Check import result #

After the import, you should check which entries were successfully created and whether cPanel reports any errors.

Do not assume solely based on that an uploaded file has been completely processed automatically.

In the case of faulty data records, it can happen that individual entries are not created.

12. Check imported email accounts #

Once you have imported the mailboxes, then open:

Email -> Email accounts

Check whether the expected accounts appear in the overview.

Check in particular:

username@domain

and, if applicable, the configured storage limits.

We will show you how to manage existing accounts afterwards at Manage or delete email account in cPanel.

13. Test login to an imported account #

For imported email accounts, you should practically test at least some of them.

For example, log in via webmail using one of the newly created addresses and the corresponding password.

This allows you to determine whether the account actually exists and the imported access credentials work.

Practical Tip: During a larger import, you should not only check whether the account names appear in cPanel. Test the actual login as well, at least by taking random samples.

14. Check imported redirects #

If you have imported redirects, then open:

Email → Forwarders

Check whether source and destination addresses are displayed correctly.

Compare the cPanel configuration with your original import list.

15. Practical testing of redirects #

Send a test message from an external email address to one of the newly imported forwards.

For example:

verkauf@deine-domain.ch

Then check whether the message arrives at its intended destination.

If the forwarding does not work, check the source and destination addresses first.

In case of ambiguous behavior, you can then Track email delivery in cPanel.

Why a successful import does not guarantee every delivery #

When an account or a forwarder has been successfully created, this initially means that the corresponding cPanel configuration has been created.

Whether a specific message is subsequently delivered successfully also depends on the actual mail route and further settings.

With external forwarding destinations, for example, the rules of the receiving mail provider can also play a role.

Import failed: Check file #

If cPanel cannot read the file correctly, you should first check its structure.

Typical causes are:

• wrong separator
• inconsistent number of columns
• invalid email addresses
• incorrectly handled header
• unsuitable or incorrectly exported file

Open the file in a text editor if necessary. There, you can often better see which delimiter is actually used between the values.

Umlauts and special characters in the file #

If a file contains additional names or other text fields with umlauts and special characters, the character encoding can also be relevant.

If such characters are displayed incorrectly in the import preview, export the file with a suitable Unicode character encoding such as UTF-8, if possible.

For the actual email addresses, you should use only addresses that are supported in your specific mail and domain configuration anyway.

Import reports already existing e-mail account #

If an account already exists, cPanel cannot simply treat the corresponding record like a new account.

Therefore, check which addresses are already set up before a large import.

Do not hastily remove existing accounts just so an import runs through cleanly. An existing mailbox may already contain emails and a productive configuration.

Attention: Never delete an existing email account just because of an import conflict without first checking if it still contains needed messages.

Import does not replace email migration #

The address import creates email accounts or forwards. It does not automatically transfer the contents of existing mailboxes from another mail server.

For example, if an old mailbox already contains thousands of messages, these messages will not be migrated simply by importing the same email address in cPanel.

Important: Creating a mailbox and migrating its existing emails are two different processes.

Passwords from the old system #

During a migration, you should not assume that existing passwords from another system can always be exported and then imported unchanged.

Passwords are usually not simply stored on servers as readable plaintext.

If the original passwords are not known, new passwords may need to be set for the new email accounts.

Notify users about new passwords #

If new passwords were assigned during the import, users must subsequently configure their email programs with the new access credentials.

Share passwords via a suitable secure channel and do not send a complete list of all accounts and passwords unprotected to multiple people.

Safely handling the import file after the import #

In particular, an import file for email accounts is security-relevant if it contains plain text passwords.

After a successful import and completion of the check, you should check whether the file is still needed.

If this is not the case, delete unnecessary copies from local computers, shared folders, and other storage locations.

Safety: A CSV file with email addresses and passwords is practically a credential list. Handle it with corresponding confidentiality.

Perform a test import first for many accounts #

For example, if you want to import 50 email accounts, it can make sense to use only two or three representative records first.

Then check:

1. Was the account created correctly?
2. Is the correct domain assigned?
3. Does the password work?
4. Is the storage limit correct?
5. Are sending and receiving working?

Only when this test is successful can you import the remaining datasets with the same structure.

Test redirects as well with a small test #

The same procedure is recommended for an extensive list of redirects.

First, import some test entries and then send real messages to these addresses.

This is how you can spot errors in column mapping or target addresses before a large number of incorrect redirects are set up.

Imported redirect leads to wrong destination #

If a message ends up with the wrong recipient after import, check the forwarding under:

Email → Forwarders

Compare source and target with your original import file.

A swapped column mapping during import or an error in the source file can lead to incorrect assignment.

We explain how redirects work in general under Set up email forwarding in cPanel.

Imported mailbox is not receiving messages #

If there is an imported account and the login works, but no messages arrive, the import itself is not automatically the cause.

First, check whether the domain actually receives emails via the CURIAWEB mail server and whether the email routing matches the mail environment being used.

We explain the routing configuration at How to properly set up email routing in cPanel.

For a specific message, you can also use delivery tracking.

Back up existing configuration before a bulk import #

In a larger productive mail setup, you should document which accounts and forwards already exist before making extensive changes.

This makes it easier for you to check after the import which entries are new and whether any conflicts have arisen.

A clean starting list is especially helpful when multiple domains or many email addresses are managed within the same cPanel account.

Do not repeat imports unchecked multiple times #

When an import reports an error, you should not simply re-import the same file multiple times.

Some of the records may have already been successfully created while others failed.

Therefore, check the import result and the existing accounts or redirects first. Then, correct only the data records that are still faulty.

Practical Tip: After a partially successful import, check the current state first. Repeated blind retries make troubleshooting unnecessarily complicated.

When is manual setup better? #

For a few email addresses, the import is not necessarily the simplest solution.

For example, if you only need two new mailboxes, you can create them faster directly via Email accounts create.

The import unfolds its advantage primarily with larger, structured quantities.

Recommended procedure for a safe import #

For a larger import, you should proceed in a structured manner:

1. Decide whether you are importing email accounts or forwarding addresses.
2. Create a clean import file.
3. Check email addresses, domains, and destination addresses.
4. Use secure, unique passwords for accounts.
5. First, perform a small test import.
6. Carefully map the columns in cPanel.
7. Check the import result.
8. Test some accounts or redirections practically.
9. Only after that, import the complete list.
10. Securely remove unneeded files containing plaintext passwords.

Basic rule: During a bulk import, a five-minute check before starting often saves significantly more time than subsequently correcting many incorrectly created accounts or redirects.

Summary #

Den Address import can you find in your CURIAWEB cPanel under Email Address Import.

With this function, you can create multiple email accounts or forwards using a structured import file. Prepare the file carefully, select the correct import type, and check the delimiter, header, and column mapping in particular.

For email accounts, you should use secure, individual passwords and subsequently treat the import file confidentially. In the case of forwarding, the source and destination addresses in particular must be correct.

For extensive lists, first perform a small test import and then check the actually created accounts or forwards. Furthermore, a successful address import does not replace the migration of already existing emails from old mailboxes.

After the import, you should practically test some accounts or forwarding addresses before considering the setup complete.