Email Trigger (SMTP)

The Email trigger sends a notification email after your automation completes. This is one of the most popular triggers because it gives you instant feedback: the moment your scraping run finishes, you get an email telling you the results, alerting you to errors, or delivering a summary of what was extracted.

Think of it as a “mission report” delivered straight to your inbox. You don’t need to check RTILA X manually — the email comes to you.

When to Use the Email Trigger

Use Case	Example
Run completion alerts	Get an email when your daily scraper finishes
Error notifications	Get alerted immediately when a run fails
Data summaries	Receive a summary of how many records were extracted
Scheduled reports	Combine with the Task Scheduler for daily/weekly email reports
Client notifications	Notify clients when their data delivery is complete
Multi-step pipeline alerts	Alert different team members at different stages

How the Email Trigger Works

When your automation completes (or fails), RTILA X:

1. Reads the email trigger configuration.
2. Connects to your SMTP server using the credentials you provided.
3. Composes an email with your subject, body, and optional attachment.
4. Sends the email to the specified recipient.
5. Logs the result (success or failure) in the execution logs.

The email is sent after the project run completes, not during it. This means the email body can reference variables that were set during the run, such as the number of records extracted or the final page URL.

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Default	Description
smtp_server	string	✅ Yes	—	The address of your SMTP (email sending) server. This is provided by your email provider. Example: smtp.gmail.com
smtp_port	integer	✅ Yes	587	The port number your SMTP server listens on. Most providers use 587 (with TLS) or 465 (with SSL).
use_tls	boolean	✅ Yes	true	Whether to encrypt the connection using TLS. Always enable this for security.
username	string	✅ Yes	—	Your email account username. For most providers, this is your full email address.
password	string	✅ Yes	—	Your email account password or app-specific password. Never use your main password — use an app password instead.
sender_email	string	✅ Yes	—	The email address that appears in the “From” field. Must be an address you own.
recipient_email	string	✅ Yes	—	The email address that will receive the notification.
subject	string	✅ Yes	—	The subject line of the email. Supports ${variable} substitution.
body	string	✅ Yes	—	The main text content of the email. Supports ${variable} substitution.
attachment_path	string	No	—	The file path of a file to attach to the email. Leave empty for no attachment.

Common SMTP Servers

Here are the SMTP settings for the most popular email providers:

Provider	SMTP Server	Port	TLS	Notes
Gmail	smtp.gmail.com	587	Yes	Requires an App Password (not your regular password). Enable 2FA first.
Outlook / Hotmail	smtp.office365.com	587	Yes	Use your Microsoft account password.
Yahoo Mail	smtp.mail.yahoo.com	587	Yes	Requires an app password if 2FA is enabled.
iCloud Mail	smtp.mail.me.com	587	Yes	Use an app-specific password from Apple ID settings.
Zoho Mail	smtp.zoho.com	587	Yes	Requires an app-specific password.
ProtonMail	127.0.0.1	1025	Yes	Requires ProtonMail Bridge running locally.
FastMail	smtp.fastmail.com	587	Yes	Use an app password from FastMail settings.
Mailgun	smtp.mailgun.org	587	Yes	Use your Mailgun SMTP credentials from the dashboard.
SendGrid	smtp.sendgrid.net	587	Yes	Use apikey as username and your SendGrid API key as password.
Amazon SES	email-smtp.us-east-1.amazonaws.com	587	Yes	Use your SES SMTP credentials. Replace region as needed.
Custom / Self-hosted	Your server address	Varies	Varies	Contact your IT department for settings.

Tip: If your email provider is not listed, search for “[Provider Name] SMTP settings” to find the correct server address and port.

Example Configuration

Example 1: Gmail Notification

This example sends a completion notification via Gmail:

{
  "smtp_server": "smtp.gmail.com",
  "smtp_port": 587,
  "use_tls": true,
  "username": "your-email@gmail.com",
  "password": "abcd efgh ijkl mnop",
  "sender_email": "your-email@gmail.com",
  "recipient_email": "team@company.com",
  "subject": "Scrape Complete: ${project_name}",
  "body": "Your automation has finished.\n\nRecords extracted: ${record_count}\nTarget URL: ${target_url}\nCompleted at: ${completion_time}",
  "attachment_path": ""
}

Important: For Gmail, you must use an App Password, not your regular Gmail password. To create one:

1. Go to your Google Account settings.
2. Enable 2-Step Verification if not already enabled.
3. Go to Security → App Passwords.
4. Generate a new app password for “Mail”.
5. Use the 16-character password (spaces included) in the password field.

Example 2: Error Alert with Attachment

This example sends an error report with the execution log attached:

{
  "smtp_server": "smtp.office365.com",
  "smtp_port": 587,
  "use_tls": true,
  "username": "alerts@company.com",
  "password": "your-app-password",
  "sender_email": "alerts@company.com",
  "recipient_email": "devops@company.com",
  "subject": "⚠️ AUTOMATION FAILED: ${project_name}",
  "body": "The automation '${project_name}' failed.\n\nError: ${last_error}\nURL: ${target_url}\nTime: ${completion_time}\n\nPlease check the attached log file for details.",
  "attachment_path": "logs/execution_log.txt"
}

Example 3: SendGrid for High-Volume Notifications

{
  "smtp_server": "smtp.sendgrid.net",
  "smtp_port": 587,
  "use_tls": true,
  "username": "apikey",
  "password": "SG.xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx",
  "sender_email": "noreply@company.com",
  "recipient_email": "data-team@company.com",
  "subject": "Daily Scrape Report - ${date}",
  "body": "Daily scrape completed.\n\nTotal records: ${record_count}\nNew records: ${new_records}\nDuplicates skipped: ${duplicates_skipped}",
  "attachment_path": "output/daily_report.csv"
}

Variable Substitution in Emails

You can use ${variable_name} in both the subject and body fields. Common variables you might use:

Variable	Description	Example Value
${project_name}	The name of the project that ran	“Amazon Product Scraper”
${record_count}	Number of records extracted	“247”
${target_url}	The URL that was scraped	“https://example.com/products”
${completion_time}	When the run finished	“2025-01-15 14:32:00”
${last_error}	Error message (if the run failed)	“Element not found: css=.price”
${date}	Current date	“2025-01-15”
${session_id}	The session ID for this run	“abc123def456”

Tip: You can also use any runtime variable you created with set_variable during your automation. For example, if you stored a product count with set_variable, you can reference it as ${my_count} in the email body.

Attachments

The attachment_path parameter lets you attach a file to the email. This is useful for sending exported data files, logs, or reports.

Scenario	attachment_path Value
Attach an exported CSV	"output/products_export.csv"
Attach an execution log	"logs/execution_log.txt"
Attach a PDF report	"reports/monthly_report.pdf"
Attach a screenshot	"screenshots/final_page.png"
No attachment	"" (leave empty)

Note: The file path is relative to RTILA X’s output directory. The file must exist at the time the email is sent. If the file doesn’t exist, the email will still be sent but without the attachment, and a warning will appear in the logs.

TLS and Security

Setting	Recommendation	Why
use_tls: true	Always enable	Encrypts your email credentials during transmission. Without TLS, your password is sent in plain text.
App passwords	Always use	Never use your main email password. App passwords can be revoked without changing your main password.
Port 587	Recommended	This is the standard port for TLS-encrypted SMTP.
Port 465	Alternative	Some providers use this for SSL. Check your provider’s documentation.
Port 25	Avoid	This is the unencrypted SMTP port. Most providers block it.

Troubleshooting

Problem	Cause	Solution
“Authentication failed”	Wrong username or password	Double-check your credentials. Use an app password, not your main password.
“Connection timed out”	Wrong SMTP server or port	Verify the server address and port with your email provider.
“TLS handshake failed”	TLS is disabled or port is wrong	Enable use_tls and use port 587.
“Sender address rejected”	Sender email doesn’t match username	Make sure sender_email matches the email account you’re sending from.
Email goes to spam	Recipient’s spam filter	Add the sender address to the recipient’s contacts.
Attachment not included	File doesn’t exist	Check that the file path is correct and the file was created before the email trigger runs.
Gmail rejects login	Using regular password	Gmail requires an App Password. Enable 2FA and generate one.
Rate limited	Sending too many emails	Most providers limit emails per day. Spread notifications across time.

Tips and Best Practices

Tip	Why It Matters
Use app passwords, never main passwords	App passwords can be revoked without changing your main password.
Always enable TLS	Protects your credentials from interception.
Keep email bodies concise	Long emails are harder to read. Include only key information.
Use variables in subjects	Makes it easy to identify which run the email is about.
Test with a personal email first	Verify the configuration works before sending to team addresses.
Use a dedicated sending address	Don’t send from your personal inbox. Use something like alerts@company.com.
Check spam folders	New sender addresses often land in spam initially.
Use SendGrid or Mailgun for high volume	These services are designed for automated email and have better deliverability.
Set up different triggers for success and failure	Use separate triggers so you get different notifications for success vs. failure.
Don’t attach very large files	Files over 25 MB may be rejected by most email providers.