Email queue

OpenBioMaps places supported outgoing email notifications in a project-scoped queue. The central background task worker sends them using the project’s mail configuration. An email can remain queued until the worker runs; queueing alone does not confirm delivery.

Project administrators with access to Profile > Project administration > Email queue can inspect the queue for their project. The page shows counts by status, the age of the oldest waiting email, and a table of recipients, subjects, creation and next-attempt times, attempt counts, SMTP codes, and last errors. Filter and sort the table to find a message. Use Attempts to inspect its delivery history.

Statuses and actions

queued

Waiting for the first delivery attempt. Cancel is available.

processing

Claimed by a worker. Wait for the outcome; no manual action is available.

retry

A temporary failure is waiting for its next attempt. Cancel is available. The next-attempt time and last error help diagnose it.

sent

The worker recorded a successful send. This does not prove that the recipient’s mailbox accepted the email.

failed

Delivery failed permanently or retries were exhausted. Retry is available only when the email is linked to a stored project message whose content can be restored.

cancelled

The pending email was cancelled and will not be sent by the worker.

Retry requeues an eligible failed email and starts a new retry sequence. Cancel applies only to queued and retry emails. Both actions affect the selected email only. Message content is cleared after a terminal result; old terminal task records are removed after the retention period.

Troubleshooting

If email remains queued or retry, check the background-worker service and its logs. Check the project’s SMTP settings if attempts report connection or authentication errors. Inspect Attempts and Last error before using Retry. A worker interruption can lead to a repeated send, so verify the recipient and message history when investigating duplicates.