This guide walks you through creating an autoresponder for your HOSTDOG email account using your hosting control panel. You can set it up in under a minute — define your message, set the interval, and the server handles the rest.
Prerequisites
- An active HOSTDOG hosting plan with at least one email account created
- Access to your hosting control panel
Create an autoresponder
Follow these steps to set up an automatic reply for any email address on your hosting.
Navigate to the HOSTDOG homepage and click the Log in button in the top right corner. Once in the Client Area, go to Services, select your hosting plan, and click Log in to Control Panel.
In your control panel, find the Email section and click Autoresponders.
Click the Add Autoresponder button.
Fill in the following fields:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Interval | Number of hours to wait before sending the same person another auto-reply (e.g., 8 means each sender receives one reply every 8 hours) |
Select the email address for the autoresponder (e.g., info@yourdomain.com) |
|
| From | The name shown as the sender of the auto-reply (e.g., HOSTDOG Support) |
| Subject | The subject line of the auto-reply (e.g., Thank you for your email) |
| Body | The message content. You can use HTML for formatting if needed. |
| Start | When the autoresponder should activate (leave blank for immediately) |
| Stop | When the autoresponder should stop (leave blank for no end date) |
Click Create (or Save) to activate the autoresponder. It takes effect immediately unless you set a future start date.
Example autoresponder messages
Out-of-office:
Thank you for your email. I am currently out of the office and will return on [date]. I will respond to your message as soon as possible upon my return. For urgent matters, please contact [alternative email].
General acknowledgement:
Thank you for contacting us. We have received your message and will get back to you within 24 hours during business days.
Disable or edit an autoresponder
To modify or remove an existing autoresponder:
- Go to Autoresponders in your control panel
- Find the autoresponder in the list
- Click Edit to change settings, or Delete to remove it
The change takes effect immediately. If you only need to temporarily disable it, you can set a past date in the Stop field instead of deleting it — that way you can re-enable it later by updating the date.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, unless the sender has already received an auto-reply within the interval you set. For example, if the interval is 8 hours, a sender who emails you three times in one hour will only receive one auto-reply. The autoresponder also skips messages from mailing lists and other autoresponders to prevent reply loops.
Yes. In Roundcube, go to Settings → Filters and create a vacation filter. However, the control panel method offers more control over timing (start/stop dates and reply interval). Both methods work equally well.
No. Incoming emails are still delivered to your mailbox as normal. The autoresponder simply sends an additional reply to the sender. You will still see all incoming messages when you check your email via webmail or an email client.