Mail/domain Issues

[chaumess]

Having a rather strange email issue...

 

It seems as though, when sending mail to certain domains, the recipient's mail server is unable to find the recipient's email account. This only seems to happen when we send mail using our TCH mail account (messages sent using different SMTP go through just fine). The first time this happened, a couple of weeks ago, I assumed that it was a problem with the recipient's email server, and contacted the organization's mail admin (still awaiting response).

 

However, this began happening again with a second recipient's domain.

 

We are able to send mail to these same addresses with no problems using a different email account. In other words, if I have two email accounts (w/ different SMTP) set up on the same machine, in the same mail client, I am able to successfully send email to the users in question with my non-TCH account, while mail sent from the TCH account always bounces with the same error message.

 

I was originally inclined to think that it was a problem with the recipient's email server, but since this exact same problem is now ocurring with two different recipient domains, I am beginning to suspect a larger problem.

 

Is it possible that our TCH domain (homebaseccc.org) or server11 are somehow on a blacklist of some kind? I can think of no reason why this would be the case, but am unsure what else would explain this strange behaviour.

 

This is beginning to frustrate me to no end! Below are two sample bounce messages (names/accounts have been munged with *** to protect privacy).

 

Thanks to anyone who can help!

 

 

This message was created automatically by mail delivery software.

 

A message that you sent could not be delivered to one or more of its

recipients. This is a permanent error. The following address(es) failed:

 

  *****@hsd.co.contra-costa.ca.us

    SMTP error from remote mailer after initial connection:

    host mailgw2.co.contra-costa.ca.us [64.166.144.19]:

    550 Requested action not taken: mailbox unavailable.

 

------ This is a copy of the message, including all the headers. ------

 

Return-path: <*****@homebaseccc.org>

Received: from adsl-64-173-9-197.dsl.sntc01.pacbell.net ([64.173.9.197] helo=homebaseccc.org)

by server11.totalchoicehosting.com with asmtp (TLSv1:DES-CBC3-SHA:168)

(Exim 4.20)

id 19hYwB-0006Vz-QG

for *****@hsd.co.contra-costa.ca.us; Tue, 29 Jul 2003 14:11:03 -0400

Date: Tue, 29 Jul 2003 11:13:26 -0700

Mime-Version: 1.0 (Apple Message framework v552)

Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed

Subject: Fwd: December Pre-Conference Institute

From: ***** ******** <*****@homebaseccc.org>

To: *****@hsd.co.contra-costa.ca.us

Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Message-Id: <59546ACE-C1F0-11D7-A05C-00039385D9BC@homebaseccc.org>

X-Mailer: Apple Mail (2.552)

 

message text

 

Hi. This is the qmail-send program at mgci.com.

I'm afraid I wasn't able to deliver your message to the following addresses.

This is a permanent error; I've given up. Sorry it didn't work out.

 

<*****@rubiconpgms.org>:

vdeliver: Invalid or unknown virtual user '*****'

 

--- Below this line is a copy of the message.

 

Return-Path: <*******@homebaseccc.org>

Received: (qmail 28553 invoked by uid 0); 11 Aug 2003 23:42:13 -0000

Received: from unknown (HELO server11.totalchoicehosting.com) (66.246.77.52)

  by mgci.com with SMTP; 11 Aug 2003 23:42:13 -0000

Received: from adsl-64-166-85-181.dsl.sntc01.pacbell.net ([64.166.85.181]helo=homebaseccc.org)

by server11.totalchoicehosting.com with asmtp (Exim 4.20)

id 19mMIc-00031Y-Cy

for ****@rubiconpgms.org; Mon, 11 Aug 2003 19:42:02 -0400

Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2003 16:42:02 -0700

Mime-Version: 1.0 (Apple Message framework v552)

Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed

Subject: test

From: ***** ***** <*****@homebaseccc.org>

To: *****@rubiconpgms.org

Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Message-Id: <68342E48-CC55-11D7-9585-00039366BDEA@homebaseccc.org>

X-Mailer: Apple Mail (2.552)

X-AntiAbuse: This header was added to track abuse, please include it with any abuse report

X-AntiAbuse: Primary Hostname - server11.totalchoicehosting.com

X-AntiAbuse: Original Domain - rubiconpgms.org

X-AntiAbuse: Originator/Caller UID/GID - [47 12] / [47 12]

X-AntiAbuse: Sender Address Domain - homebaseccc.org

 

message text

[Head Guru]

This is what I read -

 

*****@hsd.co.contra-costa.ca.us

SMTP error from remote mailer after initial connection:

host mailgw2.co.contra-costa.ca.us [64.166.144.19]:

550 Requested action not taken: mailbox unavailable.

 

The server you were sending the email to was down.

 

:

vdeliver: Invalid or unknown virtual user '*****'

 

That server did not know who the user you were sending to was.

 

Doing a blacklist check on the IP Address reveals one source that says the IP is not listed however there have been previous complaints against the data center. All of course have been corrected.

 

So its apparent that this IP is not blacklisted.

 

Both the errors you listed indicate a failure on the recipients end.

 

Bill

[chaumess]

That is what I originally thought as well.

 

But that does not explain why I am able to send mail to the exact same email addresses through a different SMTP server, with no problems.

 

Mail goes right through to the exact same recipients if I send through any other SMTP server; it only appears to be when sending from a TCH account that I get these bounces.

 

It's weird, I know, since the bounces pretty clearly seem to indicate a problem with the recipients' mailboxes.

 

Yet, as I am able to send mail to these people through other hosts, I am led to the conclusion that there must be a problem somewhere between server11 and their mail servers.

 

Any other thoughts?

 

Thanks!

[Head Guru]

Drop a support ticket in and we can look at the issue for you.