[horde] Help configuring Horde Webmail to stop a 550 blacklist

[Simon Wilson]

> Hello Horde
>
> Can anyone please help me?
>
>
> *Technical Details*
>
> I have a VPS from 123-Reg.co.uk
> It's running Parallels Plesk:
>
> OS: Linux 2.6.32-71.el6.x86_64
> Panel version: 10.4.4 Update #52,
> last updated at July 3, 2013 03:20 AM
>
> I created a website for a customer.
> He asked for email accounts on his domain.
> So I created some accounts via the Parallels Panel
>
> Panel > Subscriptions > Open in Control Panel > Mail > Create E-mail Address
>
> lets pretend I created an account called *johndoe at example.com*
>
> All OK
>
> *Problem*
>
> Then I sent an email to say *someone*@hotmail.com account I got the
> following error message back:
>
> <*someone*@hotmail.com>: host mx3.hotmail.com[*99*.*99*.*99*.*99*] said: 550
> OU-002 (COL0-MC4-F47) Unfortunately, messages from *88*.*88*.*88*.*88*
>  weren't
> sent. Please contact your Internet service provider since part of their
> network is on our block list. You can also refer your provider to
> http://mail.live.com/mail/troubleshooting.aspx#errors. (in reply to MAIL
> FROM command)
> N.B: Obviously I have changed the to and from IP addresses!
>
> I got the same error message when I sent an email to my
> *someone*@yahoo.comaccount.
>
> But I DON'T get the error message when I send an email to my *someone*@
> gmail.com (no problem)
>
> Now here is the strange thing, if I send an email into the email account I
> created on my server e.g. *someone**@example.com* from any email account it
> arrives into Horde email account no problem.
>
> *What my server provider had to say!*
> *
> *
> *Although we cannot directly help you in removing your listing from
> blacklisting sites, we can offer advice on how to guard against
> blacklisting.*
> *
> *
> *Usually these blacklists are automatically removed after a period of time
> or after following steps.*
> * *
> *Please see below for advice on email configuration and settings which may
> prevent future listings, we recommend you consider the following:*
> *
> *
> *Configuring your mail so that unsent mail is not set to bounce.*
> *Check that the server host name is set to the domain name of the mail
> server and not a generic name.(for example mail.example.com)*
> *Check your reverse DNS records are configured properly. If you don't have
> a RDNS set we can create one for you after changing the server hostname.*
> * *
> *We also recommend setting up a SPF record, this allows you to specify IP
> addresses that are legitimately allowed to send email for your domain name.*
> * *
> *The purpose of this to stop spammers trying to use your domain name.*
> *
> *
> *My problems*
> *
> *
> I don't know how to create a SPF record
> I don't know how to set unsent mail to not bounce
> I don't know what I am doing, I just expected it to work out the box.
>
> Can anyone please help me?
>
> Cheers
>
> Mike
> --

Mike

The issues you raise are not Horde issues. Horde sits on top of  
whatever mail configuration that your system has. So if you cannot  
send / receive / bounce / assess as spam / emails in the underlying  
system then Horde won't be able to either. Horde is not an MTA or an  
MDA, it (with Imp) is an MUA. You need to get your MTA / MDA setup  
working first.

Regarding SPF - that is DNS and MTA configuration. There is an SPF  
mailing list and plenty of good howtos online. It is absolutely not a  
Horde issue. As a side note - configuring SPF incorrectly (or  
correctly but the other end is incorrect) will potentially stop some  
of your emails from being received, and you may end up rejecting some  
legitimate inbound email (the latter being an issue I occasionally  
have but put up with - caused by people who don't know how to  
configure their DNS for SPF ;-) ).

Re your bounce issues - again possibly partly DNS, partly MTA config,  
partly ISP / host config (are you on a static IP?). Not Horde. Far too  
huge an issue to cover here on this mailing list.

As to working out of the box - if your system can already send,  
receive, scan, deliver, hold, email to / from e.g. hotmail or anywhere  
else without Horde, then there are no reasons why Horde won't work out  
of the box. But without a working foundation that is correctly  
configured and secured, all you are likely going to do is create  
another source of spam on the internet.

Simon

--
Simon Wilson
M: 0400 12 11 16
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