Mailbox counts grow over time — when 5 mailboxes become 10, or the storage pool gets tight, you need a bigger plan. Here’s how the switch works, what changes for end users (nothing) and what we do.
The plan ladder
Our Mailhosting plans differ only in mailbox count and storage pool — the feature set is the same everywhere:
- Solo and Pro: 1 mailbox (Pro with considerably more storage)
- Family: 5 mailboxes, shared storage pool
- Team: 25 mailboxes
- Club: 100 mailboxes
- Business: unlimited mailboxes
From the Family plan upward, a .de domain is included. The exact quotas, pool sizes and prices are on the mail hosting product page — that’s always the current state.
When a switch is due
The Mailcow dashboard shows your usage: mailboxes currently in use and how much of the storage pool is taken.
If you’re close to the limit (say 23 of 25 mailboxes on the Team plan), plan the switch in time — otherwise the next mailbox creation fails.
Requesting the switch
In the customer center (mein.xaweho.de):
- Log in.
- My services → Mailhosting → <your plan>.
- Click Change plan → pick the new plan.
- Confirm.
Or via ticket: “Plan upgrade from Family to Team”.
What we do
After your order, we adjust things on the server side:
- Raise the mailbox quota: more mailboxes allowed per domain.
- Adjust the storage pool: the total quota grows accordingly.
- If a new domain comes along: create DNS entries, generate DKIM keys, adjust the server configuration.
For a mailbox-limit increase (say Family → Team): usually effective immediately, nothing for you to do.
For adding a domain: you get the DNS values from us that you set at your domain registrar. Once DNS has propagated, the new domain can receive mail.
No data loss, no downtime
A plan switch is a pure quota adjustment. Mailboxes, mail, aliases, Sieve filters — everything stays untouched. End users notice nothing.
Afterward you can create more mailboxes in the Mailcow GUI and distribute the bigger pool.
Occasions where a switch pays off
More employees / family members: everyone gets their own mailbox.
Club role addresses: vorstand@, kasse@, mitglieder@, presse@ — 3 mailboxes quickly become 10.
Full storage pool: when the mailboxes together hit the pool limit, the next-bigger plan helps.
From Solo to Pro: same mailbox count (one), but considerably more storage — for long archives and lots of attachments.
Adding a second domain — what you do
Additional domains aren’t a plan feature but an add-on booked via ticket. The conditions are on the mail hosting product page. The flow:
- Open a ticket in the customer center: “Please add the domain
meinverein.comto my mail hosting plan”. - We set the domain up server-side.
- We give you the DNS values (MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC, MTA-STS).
- You set these DNS entries at your domain registrar.
- DNS propagation: 30 minutes to 24 hours.
- Once everything has propagated: mail to the new domain lands in Mailcow.
- You create mailboxes for the new domain in the Mailcow GUI.
Domain aliases (one domain forwarding to another): see Aliases and catchall.
Downgrading a plan
If you need fewer mailboxes (say after staff reductions, or the club has shrunk), you can downgrade too. Requirements:
- The current mailbox count has to be below the new limit.
- The current storage usage has to fit into the new pool.
If you still have too many mailboxes before the downgrade: delete the surplus mailboxes first, then switch plans.
When no standard plan fits
You need an unusual ratio — say few mailboxes with a lot of storage each, high sending volumes or mailing lists? Open a ticket with your requirements, we’ll look at it and tell you concretely what works and what doesn’t.
Frequently asked questions
Does the switch work in reverse too? Yes, any time. Requirement: you’re below the new limits of the smaller plan.
What happens to my storage usage on an upgrade? Existing mailboxes keep their quotas. You can assign more quota to new mailboxes (or existing ones) — the pool is what counts overall.
Can I upgrade only storage without the mailbox count? Storage pool and mailbox count are bundled per plan. With one mailbox, the path is Solo → Pro. For other special cases: open a ticket.
How fast is an upgrade active? Mailbox-limit increase: immediately. Domain addition: 1–2 hours of server setup, plus DNS propagation time.
Does the billing cycle change on a switch? It can: Solo and Pro are billed every six months, Family through Business monthly. We sort the details with you during the switch — it’s also in the confirmation mail.
Are existing mailboxes migrated during an upgrade? No. They stay on the same server, on the same storage — only the quota limits get adjusted. End users notice nothing.
Can I cancel the plan without my mailboxes being deleted? On cancellation, all data is deleted at the end of the contract. Export beforehand — on request we hand you your mail as a standard mbox file that you can take to any other provider.
What happens to DNS records on a plan switch? DNS records stay the same (MX keeps pointing to our mail servers, DKIM doesn’t change). When adding a domain, there are new DNS records for the new domain.
Do I get a confirmation of the switch? Yes, a confirmation mail with the current limits and the invoice adjustment.
What’s next
First login as domain admin in the Mailcow GUI
After ordering your mail server plan, you get access to the Mailcow GUI. Here's an overview of what you see as domain admin and where to find what.
Creating and editing mailboxes, setting quotas
How to create new mail addresses as domain admin, assign storage quotas, change passwords and delete mailboxes again.
Setting up aliases and a catchall
Route several mail addresses into one mailbox — info@, kontakt@, presse@ all in a single inbox. Plus a catchall for every typo address.
Creating app passwords for mail clients
With 2FA active, Outlook, Apple Mail and friends need an app password instead of your main password. How to create them, revoke them and avoid password chaos.