| Operation | Pre-delivery Mail Agent | Post-delivery Mail Agent |
| When does it run? | Before mail is delivered to the user's mail box | After mail is delivered to the user's mail box |
| How many documents does it operate on? | One document | All new documents since the last time it ran |
| How do you access the document that the agent is processing? | Agent context | User's mail database |
| Can a new document be part of a collection in the user's database? | No | Yes |
| Can a new document be located by searching the user's database? | No | Yes |
| How is the execution limit controlled? | The "pre-delivery agent timeout" field in the "Router/SMTP" /Restrictions and Controls/Delivery Controls tab of the Configuration Settings document | The "Max execution time" field in the Server Tasks/Agent Manager tab of the Server document |
| Can the agent invoke other agents? | No | Yes |
| Does the agent automatically failover? | Yes | No |
| Do the Agent Manager NOTES.INI settings work? (such as, AMgr_DisableMailLookup, Log_AgentManager, AMgr_NewMailAgentMinInterval, and AMgr_NewMailEventDelay) | Not applicable | Applicable |
| What folder operations work? | Restricted to one PutInFolder operation | Unrestricted |
| Do unread marks work? | Not applicable | Applicable |