IMAP support with PHP 8.4 for monitored email

Product Support
1

Your software
My Mautic version is: 7.0.0-dev
My PHP version is: PHP Version 8.4.16
My Database type and version is: 10.11.15-MariaDB

Your problem
My problem is: Install and enable theimapextension to support monitored email.

However, as of PHP 8.4, the IMAP extension is no longer bundled with PHP and must be installed via PECL. From what I understand, this extension is also deprecated/unbundled and may not be fully maintained.

My questions are:

  1. Is IMAP via PECL officially supported/recommended for Mautic on PHP 8.4?

  2. Has anyone successfully configured monitored email with PHP 8.4 in production?

  3. Is it better to downgrade to PHP 8.3 for stability?

  4. Are there any plans in Mautic to replace the dependency on ext-imap?

Thanks in advance for any guidance.