Description
Bulwark overrides an email's explicit inline max-width on tables, which stretches a standard centered 600px responsive email layout to the full width of the message viewer.
The iframe stylesheet currently contains:
table {
max-width: 100% !important;
table-layout: auto;
overflow-wrap: break-word;
}Source: https://github.com/bulwarkmail/webmail/blob/main/components/email/email-viewer.tsx#L2224
Because this declaration is !important, it overrides a normal inline declaration such as max-width: 600px. If the same table also uses width: 100% (a common responsive-email pattern), its effective maximum becomes the full iframe width.
Steps to Reproduce
- Send or import an HTML email with this minimal layout:
<!doctype html>
<html>
<head>
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
</head>
<body>
<table role="presentation" width="100%" style="width: 100%;">
<tr>
<td align="center">
<table
role="presentation"
align="center"
style="width: 100%; max-width: 600px; margin: 0 auto;"
>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 24px; background: #f3f3f3;">
Centered 600px email content
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</body>
</html>
- Open the message in Bulwark Webmail on a viewport wider than 600px.
- Observe that the inner content table expands to the full viewer width.
Expected Behavior
The inner content table remains centered and no wider than 600px, while shrinking responsively on viewports narrower than 600px.
Actual Behavior
The inner table expands to the full available width of the email viewer. The same message keeps its intended 600px maximum width in other tested mail clients.
Bulwark Version
1.8.1
Stalwart Mail Server Version
No response
Browser
No response
Operating System
None
Screenshots / Screen Recording
No response
Relevant Logs or Error Output
Additional Context
The conflicting rule is also present in the current main branch as of 2026-08-12.
Verified workaround
Adding an explicit HTML width attribute and fixed inline width prevents the stretching:
<table
role="presentation"
width="600"
align="center"
style="width: 600px; max-width: 100%; margin: 0 auto;"
>
This workaround was verified in Bulwark 1.7.8, but email senders should not need to change an otherwise standard responsive table layout specifically for this client.
Possible direction
Avoid overriding an email author's explicit table max-width with !important. Removing !important, or applying the safety cap only when the table has no narrower author-defined maximum, would preserve responsive layouts while retaining overflow protection for genuinely wide tables.
Description
Bulwark overrides an email's explicit inline
max-widthon tables, which stretches a standard centered 600px responsive email layout to the full width of the message viewer.The iframe stylesheet currently contains:
Source: https://github.com/bulwarkmail/webmail/blob/main/components/email/email-viewer.tsx#L2224
Because this declaration is
!important, it overrides a normal inline declaration such asmax-width: 600px. If the same table also useswidth: 100%(a common responsive-email pattern), its effective maximum becomes the full iframe width.Steps to Reproduce
Expected Behavior
The inner content table remains centered and no wider than 600px, while shrinking responsively on viewports narrower than 600px.
Actual Behavior
The inner table expands to the full available width of the email viewer. The same message keeps its intended 600px maximum width in other tested mail clients.
Bulwark Version
1.8.1
Stalwart Mail Server Version
No response
Browser
No response
Operating System
None
Screenshots / Screen Recording
No response
Relevant Logs or Error Output
Additional Context
The conflicting rule is also present in the current
mainbranch as of 2026-08-12.Verified workaround
Adding an explicit HTML width attribute and fixed inline width prevents the stretching:
This workaround was verified in Bulwark 1.7.8, but email senders should not need to change an otherwise standard responsive table layout specifically for this client.
Possible direction
Avoid overriding an email author's explicit table
max-widthwith!important. Removing!important, or applying the safety cap only when the table has no narrower author-defined maximum, would preserve responsive layouts while retaining overflow protection for genuinely wide tables.