Using Ssh To Redirect Local Port 25 Via Jailshell?

[dudescholar]

My ISP blocks port 25 so that I have to use their smtp relay. When I'm on the road, I need to reconfigure this each time for each email address - yuck.

 

Is it possible to have a JailShell set up and then use SSH to redirect port 25 for my domain name's smtp relay? That way I'm always correctly configured to send mail when I'm home on my cable modem or on the road and using another ISP.

 

(My ISP used used to block POP3 secure port 995 forcing one to use port 110.)

 

I don't want to pay for JailShell if this isn't going to work - I'll be running Linux and/or windows XP so at my end it's doable.

 

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dudescholar

[TCH-Andy]

dudescholar,

 

I'm not sure I'm understanding your request correctly. To my simplistic mind, if your ISP is blocking port 25, then it doesn't matter what you do at the domain name / TCH end, you are not going to get through on port 25.

 

If I understand your problem correctly, you need a script on your laptop which will modify all your email accounts SMTP info to either the local ISP, or TCH at the push of a button.

 

Can you always use your normal ISP for sending email? or do the ISPs you use whilst roaming block that?

 

Andy

[dudescholar]

Actually your local ISP won't see your port 25 request. For example, one of my domains is basicmail.net and I would like to use smtp.basicmail.net on port 25 on basicmail.net to send mail. If I had access to a standard shell on basicmail.net (I'm not sure about a jailshell) I could log in and send mail OR I could set up a secure shell from my local machine to basicmail.net and when ever I tried to send mail on a port 25 it would get forwarded over the ssh link and send on the remote host - basicmail.net in this case. The local ISP would only see an encrypted connect from my machine to the remote machine on a SSH port, they wouldn't otherwise have any access to it.

 

For example, if JailShell would work, here is a command that would do the trick replacing SMTPSERVER, USERNAME, and REMOTEHOST with the correct values:

 

ssh -L 25:SMTPSERVER:25 -L -l USERNAME REMOTEHOST

 

Then, anytime you sent something on port 25, it would pop out at REMOTEHOST and would get there via a SSH port which isn't port 25.

 

I guess the question I have is can one log into a JailShell and sent mail on port 25? If so, then I should be able to build an encrypted pipe using SSH to get there and have mail go down that pipe and pop out at the desired smtp server bypassing the ISP entirely!

 

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dudescholar

[TCH-Andy]

OK, I think I've caught up with you on this one - not my field of expertise, so I couldn'd say if it will work or not with JailShell.

 

I would suggest you put in a help ticket requesting JailShell, and referring to this topic on the forum as background information. If HG is happy for you to have it for the purpose you suggest, then it will be set up and you can give it a try.

 

Andy

[dudescholar]

OK, support set me up with a jailshell. Here is what I tried that worked, somewhat, but only for email recipents in my domain.

 

First, on the linux side I typed the command (my domain is basicmail.net):

 

ssh -f -l basicma basicmail.net -L 2525:mail.basicmail.net:25 sleep 99999

 

The -f allows ssh to ask for my password and then puts it self in the background.

 

The sleep 99999 keeps the connection open for my testing - its running on the server.

 

In my mail program "KMail", I set the smtp host to

 

localhost

 

and then set the local port to connect too to 2525 as configured above.

 

If I am sending to an email address in my domain - some_email_name@basicmail.net, it works bypassing my local ISP and connecting to mail.basicmail.net. If the receipent is not in the basicmail.net domain, it fails.

 

Right now I'm going to sleep on this and see what I can come up with. I'm not sure why it should fail if I send to an email address like dudescholar@yahoo.com.

 

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Steve (dudescholar)

[TCH-Andy]

Steve,

 

Pleased to hear it partially worked. Let us know what happens after a sleep and a few more thoughts

 

If I can think of a reason for it only working on the local domain, and how to get round that, I'll let you know.

 

Andy

[dudescholar]

I slept on it and the problem is solved. I needed to authenticate myself to the smtp server. Since I wasn't doing that in my email program, the smtp server was only letting me send locally within my domain. I suspect that any name and password for one of my email accounts will work but I used the name that was given me by totalchoicehosting when my original account was set up.

 

Steve (dudescholar)

[TCH-Andy]

Steve,

 

I'm glad you sorted it all out, it solves your problem, and it might be useful for other family members here

 

Andy