---
sourceDocument: Yokohama ServiceNow AI Platform Administration
sourceDocumentLink: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/yokohama/platform-administration

 Release :

    - yokohama

ft:locale :

    - en-US

ft:publication_title :

    - Yokohama ServiceNow AI Platform Administration

ft:clusterId :

    - platadm

bundleId :

    - platadm

workflow :

    - Platform


---

# Multiple email readers

# Multiple email readers {#ariaid-title1}

* Release version: Yokohama
* 
* Updated January 30, 2025
* 
* ![](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ico-clock) 2 minutes to read

Summarize  
![AI sparkle icon](https://servicenow.com/docs/portal-asset/ai-sparkle-icon) Summarized using AI  
This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.  

## Summary of Multiple email readers

This feature allows ServiceNow customers to organize POP3/IMAP email accounts into groups that can be processed by multiple email reader jobs concurrently.
This approach improves inbound email processing performance by reducing the time taken to handle multiple email accounts and helps isolate problematic accounts that slow down processing.
Show full answer Show less  

## How Email Account Group Processing Works

* By default, the email reader processes email accounts serially, which can be slow with many accounts.
* Customers can create email account groups (subsets of email accounts) to enable concurrent processing.
* The system property **glide.email.inbound.accountgroupprocessing** must be enabled to activate this feature.
* Email account groups are stored in the **Email Account Groups \[sysemailaccountgroup\]** table.
* The default email reader job runs every two minutes and selects account groups based on their processing state (claimed or unclaimed) and last processed time.
* **Claimed state:** an account group currently being processed by a reader job, blocking other jobs from claiming it.
* **Unclaimed state:** an account group available for processing.
* Multiple email reader jobs can be created to process different groups concurrently, improving throughput.

## Setting Up Email Account Group Processing

1. **Create email account groups:** Define groups containing subsets of your POP3/IMAP email accounts. Accounts not assigned to any group are processed by the default group.
2. **Enable group processing:** Set the system property `glide.email.inbound.accountgroupprocessing` to true to activate processing of account groups.
3. **Monitor processing:** Use the **Email Account Groups \[sysemailaccountgroup\]** table to track processing duration per group and evaluate performance improvements.
4. **Fine-tune by adding reader jobs:** Create additional email reader jobs (configured via the **Schedule \[systrigger\]** table) to process account groups in parallel and further reduce processing time.

## Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

* Improved inbound email processing speed by parallelizing account handling.
* Better visibility into email account group processing performance and identification of slow or problematic accounts.
* Scalable processing as email volumes grow by incrementally adding groups and reader jobs.
* Flexibility to optimize email processing based on actual workload and performance metrics.  
Organize POP3/IMAP email accounts into email account groups (subsets of email accounts)
that can be processed by multiple email reader jobs. To improve the performance of inbound email
account processing, you can incrementally add email account groups and if needed, email reader
jobs to process email account groups concurrently.

## How email account group processing works {#email-account-groups__section_bpp_dk3_nfb}

By default, the email reader job processes POP3/IMAP email accounts serially, which can
result in longer processing times when you have many email accounts. It can also be
difficult to identify any problematic email accounts that might contribute to slower
processing times.

To reduce email account processing time, you can create one or more email account groups
that contain subsets of your email accounts. Organizing your email accounts into groups
enables the default email reader job to process each email account group separately. After
creating one or more email account groups, you can then add another email reader job to
process account groups concurrently.

Use the glide.email.inbound.account_group_processing system property
to activate email account group processing.  
During email account group processing:

* The system stores the email accounts in the Email Account Groups \[sys_email_account_group\] table.
* The default email reader job runs every two minutes. The email reader chooses the account group to be processed based on the account group processing state and the date and time that the group was last processed.
  * Claimed state: If an account group has a claimed state, the email reader is processing the account group. If you defined other email reader jobs, no other email reader job can claim the group for processing.
  * Unclaimed state: If an account group is unclaimed, the account group is available for processing by the email reader.
  {#email-account-groups__ul_wyf_5y2_fgb}
* The email reader job processes the email accounts contained in the selected account group.
* The email reader job chooses the next available account group for processing and continues processing that account group.
{#email-account-groups__ul_e5g_qnp_nfb}You can monitor the processing of each email account group by using the Email Account Groups \[\[sys_email_account_group\]\] table. Each account group record includes the processing duration (how long it takes for the email reader to process all the accounts in the group).

After you review the processing times for your email account groups, determine whether to
make further adjustments in email account group processing. For example, you can create
another email account group or create another email reader job to process your email account
groups in parallel. You define additional email reader jobs using the Schedule \[sys_trigger\]
table.

## Set up email account group processing {#email-account-groups__section_icx_mgp_nfb}

To set up email account group processing, you must have the email_account_admin or admin
role.

1. [Create email account groups](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/pQeKkjYaZ5OLfUJYUZlRNg "Define an email account group that contains a subset of your POP3/IMAP email accounts. The email reader job automatically processes each email account group as scheduled.").
:   Define one or more email account groups that contain a subset of your POP3/IMAP email
    accounts. Your base system includes a default email account group. Any POP3/IMAP
    accounts not contained in an email account group are processed as part of the default
    email account group.

2. [Enable email account group processing](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/chDh0jrB_~bdFiwc5EDdJg "Enable the email reader job to start processing your email account groups so that you can reduce the time it takes to process inbound email accounts.")
:   Navigate to sys_properties.list and locate the
    glide.email.inbound.account_group_processing system property. Set
    the Value to true. The email reader job
    starts processing the email account groups that you created.

3. [Monitor email account group processing.](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/3vwJwFt~~1qsU7p_BNKRaw "Use the Email Account Groups [sys_email_account] table to check the status of email account groups processed by email reader jobs.")
:   Check the status of your email account groups to see if processing time has been
    reduced. Determine whether the additional groups sufficiently reduce account processing
    time or consider adding another email reader job to further reduce processing time.

4. [Create an
email reader job](https://www.servicenow.com/docs/6~3FR1QJ3mSXGoLK1mOyjA "If you created email account groups to fine-tune inbound email account processing, you can create an email reader job to process those account groups concurrently, in addition to the default email reader job.").
:   As part of fine-tuning email account group processing, create an email reader job to
    process email account groups concurrently, in addition to the default email reader
    job.