Standard email setup for Gmail / Google Workspace

Connect your Gmail or Google Workspace email to Commslayer using the recommended Standard setup. This gives you unlimited sending with no daily caps.

Time required: About 10 minutes

Note: This is different from Gmail quick setup. Standard setup needs two DNS records and email forwarding, and it has no sending limits.

Already connected with Gmail quick setup? Don't create a second inbox, and don't delete the one you have. Contact support from the chat inside the app and our team enables the switch on your account. Then go to Settings → Inboxes, click Manage on the inbox, click Switch to Postmark, and add the DNS records and forwarding from steps 2 and 3 below. The inbox keeps its conversations and settings. Switch a Gmail quick setup inbox to Standard setup →

Before you start#

You'll need:

• Access to your domain's DNS settings (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, Google Domains, Shopify, etc.)

• An email address on your domain (like support@yourstore.com) with a mailbox you can forward from

Don't use personal Gmail addresses. Free @gmail.com addresses like yourname@gmail.com or yourstorename@gmail.com won't work with Standard setup. You need a Google Workspace email on your own domain.

Step 1: Create your inbox in Commslayer#

1. Go to Settings → Inboxes and click Add inbox

2. Select **Email **
   

3. Choose Standard setup (the recommended option)
   

   If you see an Access restricted banner, our team needs to review your account before you can add an email inbox with Standard setup. See Access restricted when adding an email inbox.

4. Enter your support email address (e.g., support@yourstore.com)

5. Give your inbox a name (e.g., "Support" or your store name). Customers see this name as the sender of your emails unless you add a business name later. Change the sender name →

6. Click **Create inbox **
   

Step 2: Add DNS records#

Commslayer will show you two DNS records to add. These let us send emails on your behalf.

Add the DKIM record#

1. Log in to your domain registrar (where you manage your domain's DNS)

2. Find DNS settings or DNS management

3. Add a new TXT record:

   • Name/Host: Copy from Commslayer (looks like xxxxxxxx._domainkey)

   • Value: Copy the long string from Commslayer

   • TTL: Leave as default

4. Save the record

Add the Return-Path record#

1. Add a new CNAME record:

   • Name/Host: Copy from Commslayer (looks like pm-bounces)

   • Value: Copy from Commslayer

   • TTL: Leave as default

2. Save the record

Verify your records#

Click Verify in Commslayer. Records usually verify within a few minutes, but can take up to 48 hours to propagate.

Tip: If you're using Cloudflare, make sure the proxy is set to "DNS only" (gray cloud) for these records.

Step 3: Set up email forwarding in Gmail#

1. Open Gmail and click the gear icon → See all settings

2. Go to the Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab

3. Click Add a forwarding address

4. Paste the forwarding address from Commslayer

5. Click Next, then Proceed

6. Important: Google sends a confirmation email to Commslayer. Open your Commslayer inbox, find the email from Google, and click the confirmation link. Forwarding won't work until you do this.

7. Back in Gmail settings, select Forward a copy of incoming mail to and choose your Commslayer address

8. Choose keep Gmail's copy in the Inbox (recommended)

9. Click Save Changes

Step 4: Test your setup#

Send a test email to your support address from a different email account. It should appear in your Commslayer inbox within a minute or two.

Only email that arrives after forwarding is switched on appears in Commslayer. Email already in your Gmail mailbox isn't imported, and there is no way to import it.

A customer's new reply to an older thread still arrives. It comes in as a new conversation, and the earlier messages stay in Gmail.

What changes with Standard setup#

With Standard setup, your replies go out through our email provider instead of Gmail. Commslayer becomes the place where you read and answer customer email.

• Replies you send from Commslayer don't appear in Gmail's Sent folder, and there is no setting that copies them there. Every reply is in the conversation in Commslayer.

• Incoming email stays in Gmail too. With keep Gmail's copy in the Inbox (Step 3), it shows in your Gmail inbox as before.

• Read status doesn't sync. Replying to or resolving a conversation in Commslayer doesn't mark the email as read in Gmail, and reading it in Gmail changes nothing in Commslayer.

• Reply from Commslayer, not from Gmail. A reply you write in Gmail doesn't reach Commslayer, so the conversation there still looks unanswered.

Want a tidy Gmail inbox? The forwarding setting in Step 3 also decides what Gmail does with its own copy. You can have Gmail archive its copy or mark it as read. Email is still forwarded to Commslayer.

Common issues#

DNS records not verifying#

• Wait up to 48 hours for propagation (usually much faster)

• Check whatsmydns.net to see if your records have propagated

• Make sure you didn't include your domain twice in the Name field

• If using Cloudflare, ensure proxy is off (gray cloud)

Forwarding not working#

• Check your Commslayer inbox for the Google confirmation email. You must click the link before forwarding activates

• If you can't find the confirmation email, look in the AI agent and Spam views in the sidebar. More checks in Email troubleshooting

• Verify forwarding is enabled in Gmail settings (not just added)

• Check that the correct forwarding address is selected

Emails not appearing in Commslayer#

• Make sure no Gmail filters are intercepting emails before forwarding

• Gmail doesn't forward the mail it files under Spam. A customer email that sits in Gmail's Spam folder never reaches Commslayer. What to do →

Need help?#

Contact support from the chat inside the app. It's the chat bubble in the bottom right corner.