How can PHP be used to integrate user authentication and email retrieval functions for a custom webmail service with multiple user accounts?

To integrate user authentication and email retrieval functions for a custom webmail service with multiple user accounts, you can use PHP to create a login system that verifies user credentials and then allows authenticated users to retrieve their emails from a database or external email server. PHP Code Snippet:

<?php
// User authentication function
function authenticateUser($username, $password) {
    // Validate user credentials against a database or external authentication service
    // Return true if authentication is successful, false otherwise
}

// Email retrieval function
function retrieveEmails($username) {
    // Retrieve emails for the specified user from a database or external email server
    // Return an array of email messages
}

// Example usage
$username = $_POST['username'];
$password = $_POST['password'];

if (authenticateUser($username, $password)) {
    $emails = retrieveEmails($username);
    foreach ($emails as $email) {
        // Display or process each email message
    }
} else {
    echo "Invalid username or password";
}
?>