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vulgarbulgar
Asked: 2012-03-14 14:31:25 +0800 CST

mail server: retry timeout issues to and from specific domain

  • 772

we have a dv server with mediatmeple, running apache 2.2, and plesk panel 10.3.

for some reason, when sending mail from our domain to theirs, or when they send email to ours, the messages bounce back with the 'retry timeout' error.

before messages bounce back which we send out to this domain, i see them stuck in the mail queue in plesk panel: http://i.imgur.com/lRrqy.png

example of info in bounced message:

> > Subject: Mail delivery failed: returning message to sender
> > 
> > 
> >> 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:
> >>
> >> [email protected]
> >> retry timeout exceeded
> >> [email protected]
> >> retry timeout exceeded
> >>
> >> ------ This is a copy of the message, including all the headers. ------
> >>
> >> Return-path: <[email protected]>
> >> Received: from cpe00265acde45a-cm000e5c6e3f4e.cpe.net.cable.rogers.com 
> >> ([174.112.173.113] helo=sales)
> >> by host.interavenuehosting.com with smtp (Exim 4.69)
> >> (envelope-from <[email protected]>)
> >> id 1S7Uvm-0008KS-3q; Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:50:38 -0400
> >> Message-ID: <872EF71E95BA453EA0F8870024C3A22A@sales>
> >> From: "Claudio D'Ulisse" <[email protected]>
> >> To: "Errol Rosario" <[email protected]>,
> >> "MIKE BERG" <[email protected]>
> >> Subject: test
> >> Date: Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:50:31 -0400
> >> MIME-Version: 1.0
> >> Content-Type: multipart/alternative;
> >> boundary="----=_NextPart_000_00E0_01CD0117.DFCD9440"
> >> X-Priority: 3
> >> X-MSMail-Priority: Normal
> >> Importance: Normal
> >> X-Mailer: Microsoft Windows Live Mail 14.0.8117.416
> >> X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V14.0.8117.416
> >>
> >> This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
> >>
> >> ------=_NextPart_000_00E0_01CD0117.DFCD9440
> >> Content-Type: text/plain;
> >> charset="iso-8859-1"
> >> Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
> >>
> >> can you confirm you get this email please?

the maillog (/usr/local/psa/var/log/maillog) see log

a quick dns report - anything vital on there in need of attention? http://www.dnssniffer.com/en/report/advanced/floridaseating.com

SOLVED- response from Media Temple support:

Checking the domain names for an MX lookup, the IP address that was returned was on our blacklist due to malicious activity. As there has not been any recent malicious activity from this IP address, we were able to remove the ban. You should be able to receive email from sitconf.com / suite22.ca now. Please verify.

If you have any further questions regarding your (mt) Media Temple services, please feel free to contact us at any time.

Best Regards,

Customer Support (mt) Media Temple 877-578-4000 310-564-2007 (mt) Current System Status: http://status.mediatemple.net (mt) User Forums: http://kb.mediatemple.net/questions/824/ Follow us on Twitter! http://twitter.com/mediatemple

email smtp

2 Answers

  1. Best Answer

    Start from fixing IN PTR records for MX-hosts (they are domain-emitters also, yes?!)

    Shit 1 - mail.floridaseating.com

    Quering 8.8.8.8 for {158.99.70.216.in-addr.arpa.,ANY}
Received answer from 8.8.8.8
  Not authoritative

Answers for 158.99.70.216.in-addr.arpa.:
  -> [PTR] floridaseating.com.

    Shit 2 - sitconf.com

    Quering 8.8.8.8 for {150.161.223.206.in-addr.arpa.,ANY}
Received answer from 8.8.8.8
  Not authoritative

Answers for 150.161.223.206.in-addr.arpa.:
  -> [PTR] 206-223-161-150.beanfield.net.

    But now 

    Mar 13 02:45:09 floridaseating qmail: 1331621109.213098 starting delivery 1217: msg 33459587 to remote *@sitconf.com
...
Mar 13 02:46:10 floridaseating qmail: 1331621170.273121 delivery 1217: deferral: Sorry,_I_wasn't_able_to_establish_an_SMTP_connection._(#4.4.1)/

    show us banal troubles of connectivity

    Cheap solution

    Find SMTP-server, from which both sides are SMTP-reacheable and build backup-MX for domains on it. Deferred on delivery to primary MX will be dropped to backup-MX and later from it - on primary

    • 2

  2. I would find it strange for a setup to block the SMTP handshake/connection based on reverse dns.

    Can you please clarify some information?

    Your bounceback email states the mail was attempting to be sent TO floridaseating.com FROM sitconf.com and failed. Yet your image of the queue shows mail being sent FROM floridaseating.com TO sitconf.com. Also your qmail maillog shows you as floridaseating.com

    Do you manage both parties? It's rare for the problem to be seen both ways without one side having more issues than just email to or from one domain. Can you verify the direction the problem is happening in (even tho you mentioned once it was happening both ways).

    THIS-> Based on what I can see it appears sitconf.com might not be setup correctly. It is currently stating the MX server resolves from sitconf.com's host record: 206.223.161.50 though this shows host.interavenuehosting.com as the reverse DNS. In my first test it reported that it didnt like the RCPT [email protected] In the more recent test it stated there was a local problem Also one host got blocked because of reaching its limits.

    I'd focus my efforts on that server and why it's throwing errors.

    • 0