How to set up email forwarders and autoresponders

Email · 3 min read · updated Oct 2026

Forwarders

A forwarder sends a copy of every message that arrives at one address to another address. The other address can be on the same domain or anywhere else.

Two kinds:

Address forwarder: sales@example.co.za → jane@example.co.za
Domain forwarder: everything sent to @example.co.za → the same address at another domain. Rarely needed.

Does a copy stay in the original mailbox?

If a mailbox exists for the address, the message is delivered there and forwarded.
If no mailbox exists, the address is forward-only. Nothing is stored.

Create a forwarder in cPanel

Go to Email → Forwarders.
Click Add Forwarder.
In Address to Forward, type the part before the @ and choose the domain.
In Forward to Email Address, type the destination.
Click Add Forwarder.

Create a forwarder in DirectAdmin

Go to E-mail Manager → Forwarders.
Click Create Forwarder.
Enter the address name and the destination address. Separate several destinations with commas.
Click Create.

Forwarding to Gmail, Outlook.com or Yahoo: read this first

Big providers are strict with forwarded email. The message arrives from our server but claims to be from the original sender, so it can fail the receiver's checks and land in spam, or bounce. Spam that was sent to your address gets forwarded too, which can hurt your domain's reputation.

Better options:

In Gmail or Outlook.com, add your Webway mailbox as an account they fetch from or connect to (Gmail: Settings → Accounts → Check mail from other accounts). Your mail is pulled in, not pushed.
Or add the Webway mailbox to your phone and computer directly. See Email server settings: IMAP, POP3 and SMTP.

If you must forward, keep a mailbox on the original address as well, so nothing is lost if the forward fails, and set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC for your domain.

Autoresponders

An autoresponder sends an automatic reply to anyone who emails an address: out-of-office notices, "we've received your enquiry" confirmations, or a note that an address has changed.

Create an autoresponder in cPanel

Go to Email → Autoresponders.
Click Add Autoresponder.
Fill in:

Field	What to enter
Character Set	Leave as `utf-8`
Interval	Hours to wait before replying to the same sender again. `24` stops one person getting a reply for every message they send
Email	The address the reply is for
From	The name and address the reply comes from, usually the same address
Subject	For example `Out of office until 12 October`
Body	Your message. Use `%subject%` to include the sender's subject line
Start / Stop	Immediately and Never, or set dates so it switches itself off

Click Create.

Create an autoresponder in DirectAdmin

Go to E-mail Manager → Autoresponders. For an out-of-office reply with start and end dates, use E-mail Manager → Vacation Messages instead.
Click Create Autoresponder.
Enter the address name, the reply subject and message, and how often to reply to the same sender.
Choose whether to also keep a copy of incoming mail in the mailbox, if the option is shown.
Click Create.

Tips

Set an end date, or make a note to remove it. Forgotten out-of-office replies are the most common "why did a customer get this" ticket.
Don't put the autoresponder on an address that receives newsletters or automated mail. It will reply to those systems, and some reply back, filling your mailbox.
Keep the reply short: when you're back, who to contact meanwhile, and whether the message will be read.
Don't include personal details such as travel plans.
An autoresponder still delivers the original message to the mailbox. It replies as well; it doesn't replace delivery.

Email server settings: IMAP, POP3 and SMTP
I can't send or receive email: what to check, step by step

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