Any body use Strato to host Actinic site?? ...SMTP Server Woes...

[dug]

Hi again Fergus.

what you mention in your previous message has been my one major problem in this, all along!! the settings they provided to me work!!! using smtp.strato.com and the user name and password, i can authenticate and relay a message through their server, to any email address i desire, as if it had come directly from the company's exchange server.

...regardless of whether it be a perl script or an outlook client, local or remote, it is still using the smtp protocol, which follows the same basic rules

...smtp server address (local or remote)

...username and password, if authentication is required

...bob's your uncle!!

there are clearly flaws, or limitations in the software, if the perl script will not do what it's meant to do ...i.e. send out an email using the smtp protocol!

but yes, i did always do a publish after i adjusted the network settings.

...and Mike, i dont personally think that "getting what you pay for" wholly applies to the IT world. its such a competitive market these days ...and as i said, we've been using them for multiple clients, for multiple years, and never had a single problem!

Anyway, thanks again, and i guess i'll just have to wait and see if the hosting company can come up with anything good!

dug.

[Mike Hughes]

Agreed. Not always the case and there are some bargains to be had but at the end of the day it is a competitive marketplace and so you have to wonder why someone so cheap can undercut everybody else.

In terms of fixing this problem. There aren't that many variables you can change so if it won't work then it's either a case of keeping banging your head aganist the wall or moving host.

The thing I would do here is:

1. Run a network test, make note of the error.
2. One of the things a network test does is send an email. Look in your error.err file for any smtp errors, there should be loads by now. Also make a note of that.
3. Talk to your hosts. Tell them the error message that you're getting in your error logs. Tell them the time of the error (it'll be in your error log) and ask them to look in their smtp error logs and explain why the error is ocuring.

Mike

[DannyBoy]

Do you have a control panel (cpanel etc?) can you do a phpinfo() file and post results?

How do you create the email address to use with the remote authentication?

[dug]

Hi Danny. here is a link to my php info:

<a href="http://www.modelmasters.co.uk/phpinfo.php">link</a>

I do have a cpanel. i can adjust anything i need. the email account is very standard ...just click on the appropriate domain, and add pop account. these pop details are the ones that are used to authenticate through the smtpo server smtp.strato.com

Mike, the error i get in the error log is "unable to connect to mail socket, connection refused". i have gone to my hosting company with this, but naturally they do not know the program, and because they know that i can successfully relay through their smtp server smtp.strato.com with the smtp/pop account details, they cannot see how it is a problem at their end at all ...i can kinda see where they are coming from, aswell!

Anyway, this is my latest response from them:

=============================
Thank you very much for your enquiry to which I am glad to respond.

It is impossible to use 'localhost', as there are no mail services installed on the hosting server you are currently on, or any other shared webhosting server we are offering. In order to use mail and hosting services on the same server, you would require your own server, on which you could install both services.

If your software does not support using a different server for SMTP communication, which is a basic setting available in most commonly used software, this is the only solution I could offer you. If you are to require any further assistance or information, I or one of my colleges will be happy to oblige.
=============================

thanks.

dug.

[dug]

in fact, Danny, having just read through the phpinfo file, it does mention smtp, under the core PHP configuration table:

SMTP localhost localhost
smtp_port 25 25

Does this mean that the smtp localhost server / port is running?!

[Mike Hughes]

Mike, the error i get in the error log is "unable to connect to mail socket, connection refused". i have gone to my hosting company with this, but naturally they do not know the program, and because they know that i can successfully relay through their smtp server smtp.strato.com with the smtp/pop account details, they cannot see how it is a problem at their end at all ...i can kinda see where they are coming from, aswell!

You need the specific error messge. This will be in your errror logs and in the web hosts error logs.

The bottom line is this:

1. Actinic SMTP works with virtually every web host I've seen discussed here.
2. For some reason the web host SMTP server is refusing the connection.
3. If you want it fixed you need to find out what the problem is so it can be fixed.
4. If your webhost won't tell you why they're refusing the connection then you're stuffed. It can't be fixed if you don't know what the problem is.

Mike

[dug]

hi again Mike.

this is the full error i get from the actinic error.err file.

Program = MailForm, Program version = 22784 , HTTP Server = Apache/2.2.17 (Unix) , Return code = 999 , Date and Time = 2011/04/18 09:54, Internal Errors = Unable to connect to the mail socket (Connection refused)

is there another error file I need to look at? is there a default error file for my space on the web server?

thanks.

[Mike Hughes]

OK. This error is saying it can't connect to the smtp server. When it can there's usually a more specific error message.

You could try changing the port number. See the details here: http://community.actinic.com/showthread.php?t=44653

Mike

[dug]

think im done with all this.

this is the last response i got from the support, and i really have nothing more to say in response!!

The reason for that error is that the web server does not have SMTP installed on it. You can't use the local IP of the server, as this will result in the exact same error, not to mention that this IP is dynamic as well. The other hosting company might have the mail servers installed on the same physical server, but on a different logical instance. We are a bigger company, which separates those two servers completely, in order to assure that your server won't be overrun with mail queries as well. This is also a better security practice, which your program doesn't seem to accept.

I'm not quite sure why your program isn't willing to use external servers (maybe because this program is initially intended for windows based servers), but you unfortunately cannot use the local server in order to send emails. For that you would need a dedicated server, and would also need to configure most of the settings on the server yourself in order to allow your program to work.

I wouldn't want to see you move to a different company any more than you would want to do so yourself, but we do not offer the SMTP service on the same server as hosting, and I can't change that for you.

If you wish to have a more detailed explanation I'll be happy to give you one, and try my best to help you resolve this issue. Just call our service hotline (free call) and ask for me. I'll gladly try and help if I'm available.

guess i'll have to move host!

I really have not understood this whole thing from the start. For one, i fail to see how actinic's method to send out an email via smtp can be soooo different from anything else, two, i fail to see how my host can be seemingly so different from any other host, and three, if everybody else seems to think that this is such a basic issue, why on earth could i get absolutely nowhere with a solution to this problem?!

i can see where my host is coming from ...they gave me details that authorised and worked, and they say that there are absolutely no smtp services running on the web server ....to me this seems completely LOGICAL and GOOD practice to seperate roles ...standard practice IMHO ....so my realy question is, why on earth does no one else seem to have big problems with this.

...i feel that i am missing something extremely basic here in this whole situation ....and am dissappointed that neither actinic's or my host's support seemed to be able to help identify the problem. ...it makes me think that they dont know as much as they would like to think they do!

thanks for your help anyway!

[DannyBoy]

Well the quote from your hosting provider and your php ini file are contradicting as the phpinfo() function reports that sendmail is installed and SMTP is set to use localhost on port 25?

This is a normall config and should work, so when you create an email address from your cpanel what settings does it give you to enter into local mail client for pop and smtp?
normally it would be: mail.yourdomain.com

mail.modelmasters.co.uk mx points to mailin.rzone.de with the IP 81.169.145.100 you could try that for the smtp?

for me smtp.strato.com does not respond and has no mx result

Good Luck

[dug]

http://www.drillpine.biz/actinicstuf...eadoOfSMTP.txt


randomly found on internet...solved the problem in 5 lousy minutes ...and actinic knew about it all the time!!! ....they just dont "support" it!!

thanks a lot!!

[guccij]

The reason Actinic don't support it is because almost all actinic users have their sites hosted by companies which are known to support the software. For whatever reason, you have decided to go against the grain.

Norman's code was written for v6. We are now on v10 and v11 will be out late this year. Do you really want to stay years behind the times?