Hey everyone! I’m new to SQL and ASP.NET and I’m working on a website project. I’ve got a contact us page with four text boxes (name, email, subject, and message). Right now, whatever users type gets stored in my SQL database table. But I’m stuck on the next step. How can I take that info from the database and send it as an email to a Gmail account? I know it probably involves some kind of SQL Server to Gmail connection, but I’m not sure where to start. Any tips or code examples would be super helpful! Thanks in advance for your help with this email sending puzzle.
hey bellagarcia, try using a small c# app instead to check your db for new records then use system.net.mail to send them via gmail. run it as a scheduled task and flag sent emails so you dont resend them. hope its useful!
In a project I worked on recently, I solved a similar challenge by using a C# console application as a bridge between SQL Server and Gmail rather than relying on SQL Server to send emails directly. This approach allowed me to query the database for new contact form submissions and then use the System.Net.Mail namespace to send the emails via Gmail’s SMTP server. I scheduled the app to run at regular intervals and ensured that after sending an email, the record was marked as processed. Credentials were stored securely in environment variables, which made maintenance and debugging much simpler.
Sending emails from SQL Server to Gmail is possible by using SQL Server Database Mail in conjunction with a Gmail SMTP server. First, configure Database Mail in your SQL Server environment and set up an appropriate profile with an account that uses the Gmail SMTP settings. Then, develop a stored procedure that retrieves the form data from your database table and constructs the email message. The sp_send_dbmail procedure can be used to send the email from within SQL Server.
Keep in mind that you may need to adjust your Gmail security settings by enabling less secure app access or using an app password if two-factor authentication is enabled. Be cautious with storing credentials, and I recommend consulting SQL Server’s Database Mail documentation for detailed instructions and comprehensive testing before deployment.