ProtonMail Bridge
Container
This is an unofficial Docker container of the ProtonMail Bridge. Some of the scripts are based on Hendrik Meyer's work.
Image details
Configuration
TypeContainerlinuxshenxn/protonmail-bridge:latest143/tcp25/tcp/root : /portainer/Files/AppData/ProtonMail-Bridgeunless-stoppedTemplate by mikestraney
Notes
Standalone Install
Select an install method, to see config/commands for deploying ProtonMail Bridge
Install on Portainer
Import all app templates into your Portainer instance, for easy 1-click deploys
- Ensure both Docker and Portainer are installed, and up-to-date
- Log into your Portainer web UI
- Under Settings → App Templates, paste the below URL
- Head to Home → App Templates, and the list of apps will show up
- Select ProtonMail Bridge, fill in any config options, and hit Deploy
Template Import URL
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Lissy93/portainer-templates/main/templates.json
Show Me
More install options in our documentation.
ProtonMail IMAP/SMTP Bridge Docker Container
This is an unofficial Docker container of the ProtonMail Bridge. Some of the scripts are based on Hendrik Meyer's work.
Docker Hub: https://hub.docker.com/r/shenxn/protonmail-bridge
GitHub: https://github.com/shenxn/protonmail-bridge-docker
ARMv7 Builds
Currently there is a problem building the new parser targeting 32-bit architectures (i.e.arm/v7). The latest working build is 1.4.5-build. Therefore, if you are using an arm/v7 device like Raspberry Pi, do not upgrade to newer version. More information about the problem can be found here. If you have any idea on how to fix this, a PR is welcome.ARM Support
We now support ARM devices (arm64 and arm/v7)! Use the images tagged with build. See next section for details.Tags
There are two types of images. -deb: Images based on the official .deb release. It only supports the amd64 architecture.
- build: Images based on the source code. It supports amd64, arm64, and arm/v7. Supporting to more architectures is possible. PRs are welcome.tag | description -- | --
latest | latest deb image
[version] | deb images
build | latest build image
[version]-build | build imagesInitialization
To initialize and add account to the bridge, run the following command.docker run --rm -it -v protonmail:/root shenxn/protonmail-bridge initWait for the bridge to startup, use
login command and follow the instructions to add your account into the bridge. Then use info to see the configuration information (username and password). After that, use exit to exit the bridge. You may need CTRL+C to exit the docker entirely.Run
To run the container, use the following command.docker run -d --name=protonmail-bridge -v protonmail:/root -p 1025:25/tcp -p 1143:143/tcp --restart=unless-stopped shenxn/protonmail-bridgeSecurity
Please be aware that running the command above will expose your bridge to the network. Remember to use firewall if you are going to run this in an untrusted network or on a machine that has public IP address. You can also use the following command to publish the port to only localhost, which is the same behavior as the official bridge package.docker run -d --name=protonmail-bridge -v protonmail:/root -p 127.0.0.1:1025:25/tcp -p 127.0.0.1:1143:143/tcp --restart=unless-stopped shenxn/protonmail-bridgeBesides, you can publish only port 25 (SMTP) if you don't need to receive any email (e.g. as a email notification service).
Kubernetes
If you want to run this image in a Kubernetes environment, #6 can be helpful.Compatibility
The bridge currently only supports some of the email clients. More details can be found on the official website. I've tested this on a Synology DiskStation and it runs well. However, you may need ssh onto it to run the interactive docker command to add your account. The main reason of using this instead of environment variables is that it seems to be the best way to support two-factor authentication.Bridge CLI Guide
The initialization step exposes the bridge CLI so you can do things like switch between combined and split mode, change proxy, etc. The official guide gives more information on to use the CLI.Build
For anyone who want to build this container on your own (for development or security concerns), here is the guide to do so. First, you need tocd into the directory (deb or build, depending on which type of image you want). Then just run the docker build command
docker build .That's it. The
Dockerfile and bash scripts handle all the downloading, building, and packing. You can also add tags, push to your favorite docker registry, or use buildx to build multi architecture images.Serve ProtonMail Bridge on your own domain behind Caddy, Nginx or Traefik. Fill in your domain and copy the result. It's a starting point, some apps need their own base URL or extra headers set too.
Proxying protonmail-bridge.example.com to http://protonmail-bridge:143
Add this to your Caddyfile
protonmail-bridge.example.com {
reverse_proxy http://protonmail-bridge:143
}Check the logs first
Nine times out of ten the logs tell you exactly what went wrong.
- In Portainer, go to Containers, click the container, then Logs. Or run
docker logs protonmail-bridge - Exit codes help too:
137means killed, usually out of memory.126or127means the command inside the image is broken.
Published on a random port
This template exposes 143/tcp without setting a host port,
so Docker picks a random free one on every deploy.
- Find it in the Ports column of Portainer's container list, or with
docker port protonmail-bridge
Permission denied on volumes
If the logs show "permission denied", the app can't write to its data folder on the host.
- Fix the ownership:
sudo chown -R 1000:1000 /portainer/Files/AppData/ProtonMail-Bridge
Image won't pull
Test the pull directly on the host: docker pull shenxn/protonmail-bridge:latest
- "manifest unknown" means the tag no longer exists. This template uses
latest, so try pinning a specific version instead. - "toomanyrequests" is the Docker Hub rate limit. Log in with
docker loginto raise it. - "no space left on device" means a full disk. Reclaim space with
docker system prune
"exec format error"
This means the image was built for a different CPU architecture than your server.
- This image supports:
amd64, arm64, arm/v7, riscv64 - Check yours with
uname -m: x86_64 is amd64, aarch64 is arm64. Raspberry Pi and other ARM boards are the usual culprits.
Container keeps restarting
The unless-stopped restart policy relaunches the app after every crash, so the real error can scroll past.
- Check the logs right after a restart, the last few lines before it died are the useful ones.
- Get the exit code with
docker inspect protonmail-bridge --format '{{.State.ExitCode}}' - Still stuck? Redeploy once with the restart policy set to
noso the failure stays visible.
Raise an issue
Found something which isn't working as it should? Here's how to report it.
- Bug within the app: Open an issue within protonmail-bridge's repo
- Template not working: Open an issue on mikestraney/portainer-templates
- This website not working: Open an issue on lissy93/portainer-templates
A single container
ProtonMail Bridge runs as one container, the simplest kind of app here. Just the one image to pull and nothing else wired up alongside it.
The app image
An image is the app packed up ready to go, everything ProtonMail Bridge needs bundled into one download. This template pulls shenxn/protonmail-bridge:latest, which Docker fetches once (about 79 MB) and then starts your own copy from.
Where the image comes from
Docker pulls its images from registries, public libraries of ready-built apps. ProtonMail Bridge's comes from Docker Hub, published by shenxn.
Version tags
The bit after the colon in the image name is the version tag. Here it's latest, which always points at the newest build, so a redeploy can bump you to a newer release without you asking. Newest right now is 3.19.0-build. Pin a specific tag if you would rather stay on one version.
Which machines it runs on
Every image is built for particular CPU types. This one ships for amd64, arm64, arm/v7, riscv64, so it runs on both regular x86 servers and ARM boards like a Raspberry Pi.
Ports
A port is the door the app answers on. Here the app exposes a port but leaves the host side blank, so Docker picks a free one for you. It opens:
143, published on a random host port25, published on a random host port
Volumes
A volume is where ProtonMail Bridge keeps its files so they survive an update or a restart. Without one, anything it saves would sit inside the container and vanish the moment it's recreated. This template mounts:
/rootfrom/portainer/Files/AppData/ProtonMail-Bridgeon the host
Restart policy
The restart policy here is unless-stopped, so Docker restarts ProtonMail Bridge after a crash or reboot, but leaves it off when you stop it on purpose. You can change this on the deploy screen. The choices are no (never restart), on-failure (only after a crash), unless-stopped (restart unless you stop it), and always (bring it back no matter what).
Networking
Nothing custom is set, so ProtonMail Bridge sits on Docker's default bridge network: its own private space that reaches the outside world only through the ports it publishes.
Container name
Once it's deployed, Portainer names the container protonmail-bridge. That's what you'll spot in the containers list and use in commands like docker logs protonmail-bridge.
Platform
The platform is linux, the kind of system the container is built to run on. Docker and Portainer handle this on a normal Linux server.
Portainer app templates
Zooming out, this whole page comes from a Portainer app template: a short recipe telling Portainer how to set ProtonMail Bridge up. Add the template list to Portainer once, then deploying ProtonMail Bridge is a click rather than a wall of config.