Emails rejected by gmail.com ...

[#1 · Accepted solution]

It shouldnt need that long. AFAIK the script runs every 6 hrs.

[#2]

ODD!!

I just did a nslook up and there IS a SPF record.

[#3]

There is now! Maybe someone 'kicked' the script ?

[#4]

@MisterW WEe, I could see it.

I'll send an email to my own GMail address and I'll get back to you as soon as I can, as you seem to think it should be working.

It'll be good news if it is!

Kenneth Spencer

[#5]

@MisterW @Townman 

If I'm not speaking too soon, it seems to be working now. But I know it wasn't working first thing this morning.

SO, I'm hoping that's it. Thanks to all those who contributed.

Kenneth Spencer

[#6]

Hi, I'm having the same problem. The google docs seem to be geared up for sending from google accounts. I went to the "fix" post on here, and it doesn't have the fix.

Can you point me to some clear instructions on how to add the necessary MX record please ? Mine looks like this:

Many thanks

[#7]

Mitigating email delivery failures (notably Gmail)

Many users are reporting challenging issues in sending emails to some of the big email players. Some of those providers (notably Gmail, but only in respect of their free email accounts) have mandated the SPF & DKIM non-mandatory RFCs on other email providers, such as Plusnet. This can bring about significant difficulty when attempting to send emails using the various Plusnet and vISP legacy email services.

How you mitigate Google's behaviour very much depends on how you send your emails via Plusnet's SMTP servers and which Plusnet vISP email brands you use.

• A Plusnet email account or a legacy brand (for example MAAF) email account
• you@youraccount.plus.com (native Plusnet email address)
• you@yourdomain.co.uk which is registered and hosted by Plusnet (or MAAF)
• you@yourdomain.co.uk which is registered elsewhere and hosted by Plusnet
• you@yourdomain.co.uk which is hosted elsewhere which forwards  mail to your Plusnet (or MAAF) mailbox

The vISP email brands have different level of mitigation capability - for some, the only practical solution might be to migrate your email hosting elsewhere.

Native Plusnet email address

If a user sends email using a from address of you@youraccount.plus.com then DKIM signing will be applied to the email automatically (and pass Gmail's imposed restrictions) if the SMTP server is configured to require authentication. Somewhat unhelpfully, Plusnet's email setup guide suggests that such authentication is NOT required if connecting over a Plusnet connection. Whilst technically true, operational complications can occur and it is much tidier to just enable authentication with the "use the same account settings as the incoming server" option.

Your own domain

If you send from your own domain name, then DKIM signing is not available and you will need to configure SPF instead. How to do this depends on where your domain is hosted - by Plusnet or by third party.

Plusnet fully hosted and registered domain

For Plusnet brand registered and managed domains, SPF configuration is facilitated by the addition of a TXT record in the domain's DNS settings. Plusnet's DNS configuration tool for hosted domains does not permit the creation of TXT records. However, there is an unsupported "facilitation" which will create an SPF record for a hosted domain.

On the basis that your account ALREADY has a hosted domain:

• Log into the user portal
• Go to Manage Account
• Manage Your Domains (Manage your domains link)
• Configure domain name
• Create an "Additional DNS records (Advanced)" as follows...

For the avoidance of doubt leave the left side blank, exactly as shown. It might take Plusnet's systems up to 6 hours to generate the SPF record.

If your email service is provided by one of the legacy vISP brands (for example MAAF) acquired over the years by Plusnet, similar options are not available to you.

Domain name registered and managed elsewhere (third party)

There are two scenarios here:

1. Plusnet hosts the email service for the domain
2. The domain forwards email to the native Plusnet email address

THESE ARE NOT THE SAME.  Ideally email forwarding should be avoided as it brings about numerous complications - you should use the DOMAIN's email servers to received and send your domain email, not Plusnet's.

To configure SPF on a domain name registered elsewhere, you must use your domain name provider's DNS configuration tools to set up the applicable SPF record:

v=spf1 a mx include:_spf-internal.plus.net include:_spf-internal2.plus.net ~all

or

v=spf1 include:_spf-internal.madasafish.com include:_spf-internal2.madasafish.com include:_spf-external.madasafish.com -all

It is six nines, not 5.

[#8]

@Townman many thanks for the fast reply.

After reading through the thread I got a sense of deja vu, and realised I must have done this some time ago, so couldn't figure out why it still wasn't working.

I deleted and recreated the MX record last night with the correct number of 9s (duh) which was well over 6 hours ago, so I guess now I just have to wait? Should I see the new record in the list?

(For clarification, my domain is registered and "hosted" by Plusnet, but I have A records for the domain pointing out to where I host all my other domains).

Thanks again.

[#9]

---

@OriginalBigBri wrote:

I deleted and recreated the MX record last night with the correct number of 9s (duh) which was well over 6 hours ago, so I guess now I just have to wait? Should I see the new record in the list?

(For clarification, my domain is registered and "hosted" by Plusnet, but I have A records for the domain pointing out to where I host all my other domains).

---

This might need clarification as this might possibly be yet a another use case...

Are you stating that your domain is registered with Plusnet, is using Plusnet's name server and DNs, but the services for that domain are hosted elsewhere?  That is for email, you are NOT using Plusnet's mail servers for this domain?

If you are not using Plusnet's SMTP server to send emails for your domain, then there is no means of specifying the SMTP server of the third-party host in the SPF record.  If I have read in to your statement correctly, then your best option would be to transfer out the domain registration to an environment where you can fully control the DNS entries.

If you are using Plusnet's SMTP server with the domain, then what you have done should generate the required SPF record.  What does a nslookup of the domain name report?

[#10]

For clarification: No, my domain is registered with Plusnet (originally with Free-Online) and I use Plusnet's mail servers to send and receive email. But I have "A" records defined on Plusnet for my website, which is hosted elsewhere.

I've just checked again and there is still no SPF record even though I corrected the 999999 last night. Is this perhaps something that is done manually by someone who only works Mon-Fri?? 

[#11]

No it’s an automatic script which should every 6 hours.

For the avoidance of doubt, does the original FoL domain name appear under Manage My Domain on the PLUSNET user portal?

Try deleting the record, wait 6 hours and put it back in. There is anecdotal evidence of gremlins in this unsupported feature … which I suspect coughs if there is something not quite right with the record.

@Gandalf has been spreading some magic dust around this space from time to time.

[#12]

Yes, it's the domain I've had registered with Free-Online then Plusnet since forever.

I've deleted the MX record and I'll try adding it tomorrow evening, as I'm heading out first thing in the morning.

Thanks for your continued help.

[#13]

@OriginalBigBri - looks like your domain has an SPF record, following the MX record being added last night. You should be able to send emails to Gmail addresses without issue now, let us know how it goes.

[#14]

@Gandalf - thanks for that. How can I see the SPF record? In my domain admin screen, it just shows the "please-add..." MX record and my 2 "A" records.
I'll send an email to someone an address that always fails, as a test.

[#15]

The MX record is a trigger, which then creates the SPF record in the background. If you type your domain into the MX Toolbox here then select SPF Record Lookup from the drop-down, that'll show the record.