Email Notifications

Overview

SMAF implements a comprehensive email notification system using SMTP through Gmail’s servers. The clsMail.cs class handles all email operations, sending notifications for expense report submissions, approvals, rejections, reimbursements, and administrative events.

SMTP Configuration

The email system uses Gmail’s SMTP server with TLS encryption:

SmtpClient smtp = new SmtpClient();
smtp.Host = "smtp.gmail.com";
smtp.Port = 587;
smtp.UseDefaultCredentials = false;
smtp.Credentials = new System.Net.NetworkCredential(
    "[email protected]", 
    Dictionary.pass  // Password from configuration
);
smtp.EnableSsl = true;

Email Configuration Parameters

Parameter	Value	Description
Host	smtp.gmail.com	Gmail SMTP server
Port	587	TLS/STARTTLS port
EnableSsl	true	Required for Gmail
From	[email protected]	System sender address
UseDefaultCredentials	false	Use custom credentials

The system password is stored securely in the clsDictionary class configuration. Never hardcode credentials in the source code.

Notification Triggers

Expense Report Closure Notification

Sent to the validator when a user closes their expense report:

public static Boolean Mail_Cierre_Comprobacion(Comision poComision, string psFolio)
{
    Boolean mail = false;
    SmtpClient smtp;
    string lsMail;
    string lsBody = "";
    
    MailMessage Correo4 = new MailMessage();
    Correo4.IsBodyHtml = true;
    Correo4.Priority = MailPriority.Normal;
    Correo4.From = new MailAddress("[email protected]");
    Correo4.Subject = "Notificacion por cierre de comprobación";
    
    // Get validator user data
    Usuario objUsuario4 = new Usuario();
    objUsuario4 = MngNegocioUsuarios.Obten_Datos(Dictionary.USUARIO_VALIDADOR, true);
    
    // Build notification message
    Entidades.Mail objMail = new Mail();
    objMail.Notificacion = "Estimad@ " + objUsuario4.Nombre + " " 
        + objUsuario4.ApPat + " " + objUsuario4.ApMat + ",";
    objMail.Notificacion += "se le notifica que el Usuario : <b>" 
        + MngNegocioUsuarios.Obtiene_Nombre(poComision.Comisionado) + " </b>";
    objMail.Notificacion += " <br> Acaba de cerrar la comprobacion de la comision con oficio numero :" 
        + poComision.Archivo;
    objMail.Notificacion += " <br> y se le ha asignado el siguiente número de folio: " + psFolio;
    
    // Send email
    // ... (email sending code)
}

Reimbursement Notification

Sent when a user uploads reimbursement documentation:

public static Boolean Mail_Reintegro(Comision poComision, string psImporte)
{
    Boolean mail = false;
    MailMessage Correo4 = new MailMessage();
    
    Correo4.IsBodyHtml = true;
    Correo4.Priority = MailPriority.Normal;
    Correo4.From = new MailAddress("[email protected]");
    Correo4.Subject = "Notificacion de Comprobación por reintegro";
    
    // Get reimbursement reviewer data
    Usuario objUsuario4 = new Usuario();
    objUsuario4 = MngNegocioUsuarios.Obten_Datos(Dictionary.USUARIO_REINTEGROS, true);
    
    // Build notification message
    Entidades.Mail objMail = new Mail();
    objMail.Notificacion = "Estimad@ " + objUsuario4.Nombre + " ,";
    objMail.Notificacion += "se le notifica que el Usuario : <b>" 
        + MngNegocioUsuarios.Obtiene_Nombre(poComision.Comisionado) + " </b>";
    objMail.Notificacion += " <br> Acaba de cargar el monto de un reintegro por " 
        + psImporte + ", para complementar la comprobacion de la comision con oficio numero :" 
        + poComision.Archivo;
    
    // Send email
    // ... (email sending code)
}

Email Templates

HTML Email Structure

All emails use responsive HTML templates with the INAPESCA branding:

lsBody = "<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC '-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN' 'http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd'>";
lsBody += "<html xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'>";
lsBody += "<head>";
lsBody += "  <meta http-equiv='Content-Type' content='text/html; charset=UTF-8' />";
lsBody += "  <title>" + emailSubject + "</title>";
lsBody += "  <style type='text/css'>";
lsBody += "    body { margin: 0; padding: 0; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; }";
lsBody += "    #templateContainer { width: 600px; background-color: #F4F4F4; }";
lsBody += "    .headerContent { color: #505050; font-size: 20px; font-weight: bold; }";
lsBody += "    .bodyContent { color: #505050; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%; }";
lsBody += "  </style>";
lsBody += "</head>";
lsBody += "<body>";
lsBody += "  <!-- Email content -->";
lsBody += "</body>";
lsBody += "</html>";

Template Components

Header with Logo

lsBody += "<table border='0' cellpadding='0' cellspacing='0' width='100%' id='templateHeader'>";
lsBody += "  <tr>";
lsBody += "    <td width='35%'></td>";
lsBody += "    <td valign='top' width='30%' class='headerContent'>";
lsBody += "      <img align='center' src='http://inapesca.sytes.net/contratos/imgs/INAPESCA.png' ";
lsBody += "           style='max-width:600px;' id='headerImage'/>";
lsBody += "    </td>";
lsBody += "    <td width='35%'></td>";
lsBody += "  </tr>";
lsBody += "</table>";

Body with Expense Report Details

string psBody = "";
psBody += "<table id='tabla_datos' style='font-size: 12px; color: #007CA4; font-family: verdana;' ";
psBody += "       border='0' width='100%'>";

// Location
psBody += "<tr>";
psBody += "  <td>Lugar de la comision:</td>";
psBody += "  <td>" + poComision.Lugar + "</td>";
psBody += "</tr>";

// Dates
psBody += "<tr>";
psBody += "  <td>Fecha (s)</td>";
psBody += "  <td>";
if (poComision.Fecha_Inicio == poComision.Fecha_Final)
{
    psBody += poComision.Fecha_Inicio;
}
else
{
    psBody += "del " + poComision.Fecha_Inicio + " al " + poComision.Fecha_Final;
}
psBody += "  </td>";
psBody += "</tr>";

// Days
psBody += "<tr>";
psBody += "  <td>Dias de la comision</td>";
psBody += "  <td>" + poComision.Dias_Reales + "</td>";
psBody += "</tr>";

// Per diem amount
psBody += "<tr>";
psBody += "  <td>Total de Viaticos Otorgados</td>";
psBody += "  <td>$ " + clsFuncionesGral.Convert_Decimales(poComision.Total_Viaticos) + "</td>";
psBody += "</tr>";

// Fuel allowance
psBody += "<tr>";
psBody += "  <td>Total de Combustible Otorgado</td>";
psBody += "  <td>$ " + clsFuncionesGral.Convert_Decimales(poComision.Combustible_Autorizado) + "</td>";
psBody += "</tr>";

// Toll fees
psBody += "<tr>";
psBody += "  <td>Total de Peaje Otorgado</td>";
psBody += "  <td>$ " + clsFuncionesGral.Convert_Decimales(poComision.Peaje) + "</td>";
psBody += "</tr>";

// Transportation
psBody += "<tr>";
psBody += "  <td>Total de Pasaje Otrogado</td>";
psBody += "  <td>$ " + clsFuncionesGral.Convert_Decimales(poComision.Pasaje) + "</td>";
psBody += "</tr>";

// Suggestion
psBody += "<tr>";
psBody += "  <td colspan='2'>Se le sugiere revisar y validar comprobantes.</td>";
psBody += "</tr>";

psBody += "</table>";

lsBody += "<table border='0' cellpadding='0' cellspacing='0' width='100%' id='templateFooter'>";
lsBody += "  <tr>";
lsBody += "    <td align='center'>";
lsBody += "      <a href='https://www.facebook.com/INAPESCA-128465750669274/?fref=ts'>";
lsBody += "        <img src='[Facebook Icon URL]' height='24' width='24'/>";
lsBody += "      </a>";
lsBody += "      <a href='https://twitter.com/inapescamx?lang=es'>";
lsBody += "        <img src='[Twitter Icon URL]' height='24' width='24'/>";
lsBody += "      </a>";
lsBody += "      <a href='http://www.gob.mx/inapesca/'>";
lsBody += "        <img src='[Website Icon URL]' height='24' width='24'/>";
lsBody += "      </a>";
lsBody += "    </td>";
lsBody += "  </tr>";
lsBody += "  <tr>";
lsBody += "    <td align='center'>";
lsBody += "      <em>Copyright &copy; Instituto Nacional de Pesca, All rights reserved.</em><br/>";
lsBody += "      Pitagoras 1320, Santa Cruz Atoyac, Ciudad de México. C.P. 03310";
lsBody += "    </td>";
lsBody += "  </tr>";
lsBody += "</table>";

Recipient Management

Single Recipient

Correo4.To.Clear();
lsMail = objUsuario4.Email;
Correo4.To.Add(lsMail);

Multiple Recipients (CC)

try
{
    // Add CC recipient
    Correo4.CC.Add("[email protected]");
    smtp.Send(Correo4);
}
catch (Exception ex)
{
    // Handle error
    mail = false;
}

Attachment Handling

The system supports attaching files to notifications:

public static Stream GetStreamFile(string filePath)
{
    using (FileStream fileStream = File.OpenRead(filePath))
    {
        MemoryStream memStream = new MemoryStream();
        memStream.SetLength(fileStream.Length);
        fileStream.Read(memStream.GetBuffer(), 0, (int)fileStream.Length);
        return memStream;
    }
}

// Attach file to email
string attachmentPath = "path/to/document.pdf";
Attachment attachment = new Attachment(GetStreamFile(attachmentPath), "document.pdf");
Correo4.Attachments.Add(attachment);

Workflow Notifications

Notification Types

Request Submitted

Sent to the immediate supervisor when an employee submits a travel request or expense report.Recipients: Direct supervisor, department head
Trigger: User clicks “Submit” on expense form
Template: Includes travel dates, destination, estimated costs

Request Approved

Sent to the employee when their request is approved.Recipients: Requesting employee
Trigger: Supervisor/reviewer approves request
Template: Includes approval details, authorized amounts

Request Rejected

Sent to the employee when their request is rejected.Recipients: Requesting employee
Trigger: Supervisor/reviewer rejects request
Template: Includes rejection reason, next steps

Expense Report Closed

Sent to the validator when an expense report is closed and ready for review.Recipients: Designated validator (Dictionary.USUARIO_VALIDADOR)
Trigger: User closes expense report
Template: Expense summary with all amounts

Reimbursement Uploaded

Sent to the reimbursement team when a user uploads reimbursement documentation.Recipients: Reimbursement officer (Dictionary.USUARIO_REINTEGROS)
Trigger: User uploads reimbursement scan
Template: Reimbursement amount, expense report reference

Email Sending Workflow

Error Handling

try
{
    smtp.Send(Correo4);
    
    // Clean up
    Correo4 = null;
    smtp = null;
    mail = true;
    objMail = null;
    objUsuario = null;
}
catch (Exception ex)
{
    // Log error (implement logging)
    // LogError("Email send failed: " + ex.Message);
    mail = false;
}

return mail;

Common Email Errors

Error	Cause	Solution
Authentication Failed	Invalid credentials	Verify Gmail account password
SMTP Timeout	Network/firewall issue	Check port 587 is accessible
Invalid Recipient	User email not found	Validate user has email in database
Attachment Too Large	File exceeds size limit	Compress or split large files

Email Logging

All email operations should be logged for audit purposes:

public static void LogEmail(
    string recipient, 
    string subject, 
    bool success, 
    string errorMessage = "")
{
    string Query = "INSERT INTO crip_email_log (";
    Query += " RECIPIENT, SUBJECT, FECHA, SUCCESS, ERROR_MESSAGE";
    Query += ") VALUES (";
    Query += " '" + recipient + "',";
    Query += " '" + subject + "',";
    Query += " NOW(),";
    Query += " " + (success ? "1" : "0") + ",";
    Query += " '" + errorMessage + "'";
    Query += ")";
    // Execute query...
}

Gmail has sending limits:

500 emails per day for standard Gmail accounts
2,000 emails per day for Google Workspace accounts

Monitor daily email volume to avoid hitting these limits.

Best Practices

HTML Formatting: Always set IsBodyHtml = true for rich email content
Priority: Use MailPriority.Normal unless urgent (MailPriority.High)
Character Encoding: Use UTF-8 to support Spanish characters (á, é, í, ó, ú, ñ)
Responsive Design: Email templates are mobile-friendly with max-width constraints
Unsubscribe: System notifications don’t require unsubscribe (transactional emails)
Testing: Test emails in multiple clients (Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail)
Cleanup: Always dispose of MailMessage and SmtpClient objects after sending

Security Considerations

Credentials: Store SMTP password in encrypted configuration, never in code
SSL/TLS: Always use EnableSsl = true for encrypted transmission
Input Validation: Sanitize all user input before including in email body
Recipient Verification: Validate email addresses exist before sending
Rate Limiting: Implement throttling to prevent email bombing

User Management - User email configuration
Workflow Engine - Approval workflow triggers
SAT Validation - Validation status notifications

Architecture

Business Logic Layer

Data Access Layer

Entities

Integration

Email Notifications

Overview

SMTP Configuration

Email Configuration Parameters

Notification Triggers

Expense Report Closure Notification

Reimbursement Notification

Email Templates

HTML Email Structure

Template Components

Header with Logo

Body with Expense Report Details

Recipient Management

Single Recipient

Multiple Recipients (CC)

Attachment Handling

Workflow Notifications

Notification Types

Email Sending Workflow

Error Handling

Common Email Errors

Email Logging

Best Practices

Security Considerations

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Architecture

Business Logic Layer

Data Access Layer

Entities

Integration

​Overview

​SMTP Configuration

​Email Configuration Parameters

​Notification Triggers

​Expense Report Closure Notification

​Reimbursement Notification

​Email Templates

​HTML Email Structure

​Template Components

​Header with Logo

​Body with Expense Report Details

​Footer with Social Links

​Recipient Management

​Single Recipient

​Multiple Recipients (CC)

​Attachment Handling

​Workflow Notifications

​Notification Types

​Email Sending Workflow

​Error Handling

​Common Email Errors

​Email Logging

​Best Practices

​Security Considerations

​Related Documentation

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Overview

SMTP Configuration

Email Configuration Parameters

Notification Triggers

Expense Report Closure Notification

Reimbursement Notification

Email Templates

HTML Email Structure

Template Components

Header with Logo

Body with Expense Report Details

Footer with Social Links

Recipient Management

Single Recipient

Multiple Recipients (CC)

Attachment Handling

Workflow Notifications

Notification Types

Email Sending Workflow

Error Handling

Common Email Errors

Email Logging

Best Practices

Security Considerations

Related Documentation