SMTP Outgoing Mail Failure After Password Changed

[#1]

Hi @adamwalker, just wondering if your netops team have managed to look at this ?

Thanks, Derek

[#2]

Hi @DLeiper

We've had a update and I've sent some further info across on a PM

If you can respond when you're able to that would be great

[#3]

Hi @adamwalker ,

I believe I've done what @MatthewWheeler asked. Is there any further progress ?

Thanks, Derek

[#4]

Hey there @DLeiper

We got a reply back from our networks guys that they changed the pw and were able to log in. Can you try changing the pw and try and use the SMTP server now for me please?

[#5]

Hi @willcutforth 

I have reset my password. I note that in the "Manage My Account" section it says "Change Already In Progress. You are not currently allowed to make a change. There is already a change in progress. Please try again later. When I try to use the SMTP server, I get "Your e-mail server rejected your login. Verify your user name and password for this account in Account Settings."

So still not working I'm afraid.

[#6]

The change in progress notice does not apply to changing the account password or a secondary mailbox password.

[#7]

Just to check which SMTP server are you using? Just to make sure. It's relay.plus.net isn't it? 

[#8]

Yes, relay.plus.net, on port number 587, no encryption.

[#9]

@willcutforth @MatthewWheeler @adamwalker 

Gents stripping this one to the bones...

This is a no-longer a Plusnet customer, but an established user of free email scenario.  Is there any possibility that through the need to change the account password, that the account profile has change to (whatever its is called) "free email - receive only"?

Such would fit the profile of not being able to access the SMTP server.

@DLeiper - try this...

Test SMTP authentication

Email programs often report username / password error for issues not actually related to those being wrong, but for other connectivity issues. Such can be very frustrating when you are convinced that they are correct. Testing SMTP authentication through a command line interface can deliver a more precise error message. The following describes how to do this using TELNET.

This is not difficult, but you need the following resources which might be unfamiliar...

1. TELNET - this might need installing as an additional option, for Windows see enabling TELNET.
2. A code64 encoder / decoder such as this.

You can use TELNET to communicate direct with the SMTP server as follows...

Open the code64 encoder in a web browser and leave ready for use in the following steps.

Launch a windows command line window (DOS window) - press windows-key+R - type CMD into the run box - click OK

Enter...

telnet relay.plus.net 587

Press enter. Note if you use one of the other brand email services, use the appropriate SMTP server name for that brand. In response to SMTP server I'm here message, say 'HELLO'...

EHLO relay.plus.net

The SMTP server will then report what it can do after which tell the server you wish to authenticate...

AUTH login

The server should return the following, which is a base64 encoded string that requires your username:

334 VXNlcm5hbWU6

Use the code64 encoder to encode your username and paste it into the telnet window and press enter. For example:

bXl1c2VybmFtZQ==

The server should return the following, which is a base64 encoded string that requires your password:

334 UGFzc3dvcmQ6

Paste the base64 encoded password for the username. For example:

bXlwYXNzd29yZA==

The server will then report success or failure, any failure message should clearly indicate the reason for the failure. If the reason for the failure is not clear, please report back the message.

Close the SMTP / TELNET session by entering

quit

The session should look something similar to the below wherein your input is in bold...

220 avasout03 smtp relay.plus.net
EHLO relay.plus.net
250-avasout03 hello [your IP address], pleased to meet you
250-HELP
250-AUTH LOGIN PLAIN
250-SIZE 104857600
250-PIPELINING
250-8BITMIME
250-STARTTLS
250 OK
AUTH LOGIN
334 VXNlcm5hbWU6
bXl1c2VybmFtZQ==
334 UGFzc3dvcmQ6
bXlwYXNzd29yZA==
235 ... authentication succeeded
quit
221 avasout03 smtp closing connection
Connection to host lost.

Here are some examples of failure responses...

535 ...authentication rejected [as username / password is wrong]
535 ...authentication rejected as source IP has a poor reputation
535 Too many SMTP auth failures. Please try again later.

It might give you a clearer error status ... it might not be a password error!

[#10]

Hi @Townman 

Thanks for your ongoing support. I seem to think what you have suggested is correct.

With regards using Telnet, I had tried this way back in Nov-22, following your instructions on another thread 

https://community.plus.net/t5/Email/No-email-this-morning-10-November/td-p/1837610/page/55#:~:text=P...

which, I assume are the same as the instructions this afternoon ?

Unfortunately, it didn't work and I advised support@plus.net by (another) email 2-Nov-23, complete with screenshot of the telnet commands/responses, but sadly didn't get a reply. I am not 100% confident I got it all correct, but as Plusnet have access to my username and can use a temporary password, maybe they could test it ?

[#11]

Hi,

Yes it will be the same instructions (I do not recreate it each time! 🤣 ).

In what way did it not work?  Do the instructions need improvement, or was it a matter that you got an error?  It is the more precise error we are looking for here.

With virtually every email client ANY connection failure to the the SMTP server will be reported as a password error.  The manual SMTP connection test will generally deliver a more precise error, if it is something other than a password error.

Can you send emails if you log into to the mailbox via webmail?  If you can login to webmail and not send an email, that is nearly cast iron evidence that the account is prohibited from using the outbound server ... which is the characteristic of the original free legacy email accounts.

That restriction was removed when Plusnet sought to implement SPF on all accountname.plus.com domain names - which restricted sending of emails from @*.plus.com to relay.plus.net - that necessitated all legacy email accounts to need to be able to access the SMTP server.

[#12]

I was just about to say @Townman what you have just said. Try it on webmail and let us know if it allows to send. 

[#13]

Hi @Townman, the instructions are absolutely fine. I got the response 535 ...authentication rejected.

Webmail continues to send ok.

@willcutforth can you check that my username has not been treated as "receive only", following the security breach and consequent password change ? Did your net ops team find anything ?

Thanks guys

[#14]

@DLeiper by the looks of it, it should be all singing all dancing from the account side. Nothing should be stopping it.

[#15]

So to be clear - you log into webmail and can send without issue?

You configure on an email client and you can receive but not send?

SMTP is set as server relay.plus.net port 587 encryption STARTTLS

Authentication required - use the same as the inbound server?

Which client / environment are we looking at please?