In case you have a cloud web hosting plan and you create an e-mail address, you may consider the option to send and receive emails for granted, however, this is not always the case. Sending e-mail messages isn't necessarily a part of the website hosting packages that providers will offer you and an SMTP service is required to be capable to do that. The acronym signifies Simple Mail Transfer Protocol and this is the piece of software that allows you to send out e-mail messages. If you use an email program, it creates a connection to the SMTP server. The latter then looks up the DNS records of the domain, that is a part of the receiving address to find out what email server manages its e-mails. After system information is exchanged, your SMTP server delivers the message to the remote IMAP or POP server and then the email is finally delivered in the related mailbox. An SMTP server is needed if you use some kind of contact page also, so in case you have a free hosting plan, for example, it's probable that you will not have the ability to make use of such a form as most cost-free website hosting service providers don't allow outgoing emails.