[Troubleshooting] People not getting email!

[Bamb0]

This has been getting MORE AND MORE frequent...

I email people ARE THEY ARENT GETTING IT!!!!!! (What ends up happening to the packet??)


I guess its not just happening on Fastmail but ALOT OF email servers.... What is going on??

Is this the end??

[n5bb]

I don't see any lost emails. You are posting on the Fastmail forum that messages you send are not being received. You then state, "I guess its not just happening on Fastmail but ALOT OF email servers".

So what are you saying? That your messages sent from the Fastmail web interface or SMTP server are (or are not) being received? I'm not sure how to understand your use of "just" in that sentence. Do you see this not on Fastmail, or not only on Fastmail but also on other email systems when sending messages?

Do you have two email accounts where you can test this? I receive and send a large number of emails using Fastmail every day, and I never see any lost. If you consistently can't get messages delivered to a certain destination, you should file a Fastmail support request and let them look into the logs. But you need to be absolutely sure that the recipient hasn't just misplaced the message. For example, many people use email services with rules which may be discarding or hiding your emails.

My guess if only you are seeing this is that your messages are being treated as spam by the receivers, or you are sending to an incorrect email address. Are you using any content in your messages (such as forwarding certain messages) which might cause your messages to be treated as spam?

When you send an email through Fastmail, the Fastmail SMTP server contacts the destination server and announces that it has a message for the recipient. If the destination server agrees to accept the message for that recipient, the message is transferred to that destination server. If there is any problem during this handoff, you will receive a notification email. If you are not receiving these delivery problem messages, then the messages are being accepted by some destination email server.

Are you sending messages directly to delivery accounts, or to forwarding services? Forwarding services are often the cause of email delivery issues.

Bill

[Bamb0]

Ya perhaps Billy thats it im not sure.....

I send FROM my fastmail acct and they dont get it!!! (2 confirmed as when i send from somewhere else they get it)

A friend of mine on GMAIL also says ppl say they arent getting his messages either.....

[n5bb]

Originally Posted by Bamb0

...I send FROM my fastmail acct and they dont get it!!! (2 confirmed as when i send from somewhere else they get it)...

You need to focus on testing these accounts. Here is what I recommend for those two friends. Send a test message to each one in this way:

• Log into your Fastmail account via the web
• Send a test message as follows:
  • Use a simple subject (such as "Test message")
  • Use a simple message body (such as "This is a test message. You should receive two test messages.")
  • Place the address of a person who isn't receiving your messages in the To field
  • Send the message with your alternative email address in the CC field. This is the account which you say can send to this friend.
• You should receive this email in your alternative email account. Log into that account and select Reply to all and send a reply. Don't add anything - just create a reply to all and hit send.
• So now you should have the following messages in various email accounts:
  • The original message should be received in both your alternative account and the test recipient.
  • The reply you sent from your alternative account should be received by both your Fastmail account and the test recipient.
  • So the test recipient should receive two messages - one from Fastmail and the other from your alternative email account. The messages should be nearly identical, except that Re: (or something similar) should be included in the subject of the message from your alternative account.
• The reasons I suggest this test method are:
  • The test recipient email address will be identical in both messages. Nothing you accidentally do can affect the address.
  • You will receive copies of each of the test messages, so you will know exactly when they were sent.
  • The subject will be nearly identical in both messages.
  • The message body will probably be similar, although your alternative email account may add some additional text.

Bill

[paul29]

I'm having trouble getting email to and from China. Yahoo to Fastmail and Hotmail to Fastmail both fail, in both directions I think. I suspect it's the Great Firewall rather than a fastmail problem. I'm trying to find out if the person can access fastmail's web site. If yes, I'll set up an account for them.

[n5bb]

Originally Posted by paul29

I'm having trouble getting email to and from China. Yahoo to Fastmail and Hotmail to Fastmail both fail, in both directions I think. I suspect it's the Great Firewall rather than a fastmail problem...

What SMTP error message are you receiving?

[paul29]

No errors afaik. The mail just never arrives. It might be getting lost inside the microsoft network.

[Bamb0]

Thats what happens with me also.... I get no error .. They just dont get it like its being blocked as spam or something.......

[jarland]

A lot of services are slowly adopting filter systems that simply discard mail from some of the worst offenders. You don't really know it's there until it accidentally targets you, and then most of those services won't talk about it unless you jump through a lot of hoops. That said, take Bill's advice to heart. Don't assume the worst until you've sat down, verified, tested multiple end points, and contacted the provider on both sides. Sometimes the simplest answer is the right one.

[n5bb]

Are you sending directly to the destination account, or to a forwarding service? If you get no errors when you send from Fastmail, then some email server (or forwarding service) is accepting your message. There isn't much you can do from your end to affect what happens at the recipient end. Looking at the news, I can imagine that messages to China might be affected this week.

Bill

[Bamb0]

Originally Posted by jarland

A lot of services are slowly adopting filter systems that simply discard mail from some of the worst offenders. You don't really know it's there until it accidentally targets you, and then most of those services won't talk about it unless you jump through a lot of hoops. That said, take Bill's advice to heart. Don't assume the worst until you've sat down, verified, tested multiple end points, and contacted the provider on both sides. Sometimes the simplest answer is the right one.

Ya that must be it Mr Jarland thank you....

Your pretty smart when it comes to this type of thing.....

A feiend of mine recently sent me an MP3 file about 9 megs..... After that,his emails were flagged as spam most of the time..... I finally emailed support and they unflagged it...

I told them he sent me a song,he wasnt spamming me.......


You guys have a hard time I see!!! (Especially now)