How do (SSL + MTA + pop-client) fit together?

From	no.top.post@gmail.com
Newsgroups	comp.os.linux.misc, comp.mail.misc, comp.os.linux.networking
Subject	How do (SSL + MTA + pop-client) fit together?
Date	2015-05-06 01:46 +0000
Organization	A noiseless patient Spider
Message-ID	<mibrqe$ul$1@dont-email.me> (permalink)

Cross-posted to 3 groups.

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Considering the original RFC spec. which is easily testable by telnet,
one step at a time. From memory [correct me where I'm wrong] it's:

= contact sever: IP & port = an MTA action
  and negotiate <User & Password>.
= send <show me my dir> [STAT ? LIST IIRC]
= send <send me entry #N>
= send <delete entry #M>
= send <BYE>

For the mail-client that I patched to add Tx-authorisation, the
MTA part was simply called from the mail-client in a 2-instruction:
 Send(TextS); Receive(TextR) sequence; which you can simulate/test 
manually by telnet.

Apparently SSL would be called by MTA?
But does the SSL initial-dialogue need to be catered for in the
client? Apparently not. That's the whole idea of 'layering': MTA
is a layer between the client and SSL.

When I did [in a terminal]:
  openssl  s_client -host smtp.gmail.com -port 587 -starttls smtp 
I got some 80 lines, including <Server certificate>.
Is this Server certificate handled automatically by `openssl` on
my side?

With the old system, where you could manually test each step, you
knew what has happeneing.  With increased hidden complexity, you
lose control, and get-screwed-behind-your-back.

I want to add SSL to a known/proven client+MTA, to escape the 
restricted web-access to gmail.
Using a browser, I can't see how to do eg.:
* fetch mail-3
* fetch mail-7
* fetch mail-6
* copy-paste from mail-6 to mail-3 and edit mail-3
* send-as-reply mail-3
 all on one screen, i.e. without changing workspaces.

If you've got the diagrams and the descriptions on different
pages of the book, it becomes difficult?

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How do (SSL + MTA + pop-client) fit together? no.top.post@gmail.com - 2015-05-06 01:46 +0000
  Re: How do (SSL + MTA + pop-client) fit together? Bill Marcum <bill.marcum57@gmail.com> - 2015-05-06 03:31 -0400

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