SMTP server question

[ibanezfoo]

Hi all,

We've been having problems with ATT over the last few months. If we send out more than 30 or so emails at one time (to different people), within a day or so, I get a message that our account may have been compromised and I need to reset the password.

First couple times it happened, I just went with tone of the message and reset the password. It's happened 5 times in the last two months.

According to the various support people I've spoken with over the phone or chat, there does not seem to be anything we are doing that would trigger this event. But they do say ATT is going through some sort of restructuring where random odd issues have been popping up.

Is it possible to run your own SMTP server? And if so, is it costly, technically challenging etc?

We are small all Mac office (scratch that, we have two PCs) if that matters.... 10 computers total.

You can run your own SMTP server or setup some kind of smart host and it seems really easy, and is.... BUT, you have to get your DNS (reverse, SPF records, etc) in order or you email will be bounced by many recipient servers.

[ibanezfoo]

Yes, you can run your own SMTP server. Just need to know and understand about MX and SPF records (those are actually DNS and very important in the mailing world). I personally like Postfix as my edge MTA servers. If you have microsoft exchange in your organization it would still be wise to use linux smart hosts. Anyway, SPF records should help you with your SPAM issues if you want to maintain your own SMTP server. Good luck.

+1 on Postfix. Once upon a time I was a master of Postfix (and Exim before that). I still use it for local mailers/tiny smart hosts on various servers.

[Casual_Shooter]

Thanks all.

[MaHoTex]

how do you remap SMTP to a non-standard port and notify every other SMTP server in the world that incoming SMTP traffic to your domain should be sent to port 2500 instead of port 25?

I guess you can use an external redirector like no-ip.com but how can a sourcerforge program on your computer do that?

Maybe SMTP2Go or something like that, it's not sorceforge though.

A remote redirector would certainly be required.

Though, to be completely honest, I did not even consider the incoming connections when I sent my original reply.

My solution to the ISP provided email was simple actually. I pay for a service for a website and hostname and it also has email as part of the service. It is about $100/yr for web with virtually unlimited email accounts that can be created at will. I have been using my own email w/ domain for nearly 10 years now.

Doing this makes it so I can have a very custom email address and variations of it very easily. Tex[at]hostname.com and Mrs_Tex[at]hostname.com so on so forth. I would not consider going back to the old Verizon.net or roadrunner.com names...