PTR/Reverse DNS + email stuff

[#1]

Hello, I saw this post and it seems I should just ask like this. If I'm wrong, I'm sorry for spamming your forum.

I would like setup a pointer record for my domain.

I would also like to be able to send emails and I noticed live.com currently rejects my emails because my (static) ip is on a blocklist and gave a link to check.spamhaus.org There, it said this is normal for the majority of internet users and mentioned asking my isp to be removed from it.

Hopefully you can do this for me. I'll only be sending a handful of emails and they certainly aren't spam

[#2]

I believe you would need to contact PN to set your rDNS/PTR for your domain to your static IP, I'd also set your rDNS/PTR to be something like: mail.example.com, and also use https://mxtoolbox.com/blac to ensure you aren't on any other blacklists. 

Verify your DKIM and DMARC policies are set up correctly aswell, I've seen issues where emails wouldn't send due to a DKIM error, due to plesk not using the records specified on cloudflare. 

[#3]

Thanks for replying

I am hoping one of the staff notices this and replies like that other thread because I can't imagine calling regular customer support will be much fun for this sort of obscure problem (No offence to Plusnet's customer support, which has been excellent so far).

Do you think you could explain why I should add the "mail." in front of example.com? I didn't explain this, but my 'server' (old laptop in a cupboard) is for a website, not just an email server - if that matters 🤔

I checked mxtoolbox and it said my IP is only on 1 of the 93 blacklists, 'Spamhaus ZEN' and my SPF, DKIM and DMARC all pass 😁 Actually, gmail accepts my emails but for live/outlook, they don't even make it to the spam box.

[#4 · Accepted solution]

@123fdsa - Hi would you like the RDNS updating to the static IP address?

if so I've raised you a ticket if you could reply to it confirming things @ https://www.plus.net/wizard/?p=view_question&id=237980621 , thanks

[#5]

@123fdsa, I'd recommend proxying your website via something like cloudflare, and just running your mail server from mail.<domain>.com, not just for security, but makes everything 10x cleaner in my opinion, being able to deliver to outlook is always a pain to be honest, I've seen protonmail cry about dns record stuff before aswell. 

[#6]

I always assumed cloudflare was a pay monthly thing, I didn't realise there was a free option until you got me to look I'll consider it in future.

Could you explain or point me to an explanation of what the security problem is by not having mail.example.com, it seems I understand less than I thought 😅

I'm fairly confident that once I can get off this spamhaus 'policy blocklist', I won't have any problem sending to outlook but hopefully I'll find out if I'm right soon.

[#7]

If you set up your mail server directly under the primary domain, say example.com without any proxy, it reveals the origin IP. This is concerning since that IP is also tied to your website, leaving it vulnerable to DDoS attacks. By implementing Cloudflare, it acts as a protective layer, routing the traffic and displaying only their IPs rather than your actual one for both the www. subdomain and the root domain. I'm uncertain about Plusnet's DDoS mitigation capabilities, if they offer any. That's why I endorse using Cloudflare — it helps deter amateur "hackers" and minimizes the risk of DDoS attacks on your site. For mail services, you cannot use a proxy for the record. Hence, my recommendation of mail.example.com. This setup not only facilitates mail functionality but also subtly wards off novice "hackers".

I've placed hackers in quotes as some people say DDoS attacks are done by hackers, some say script kiddies yada yada, you get the point 

[#8]

I'm having trouble accessing the system to update the RDNS so I'll update the in a few days. I can't do anything the SPAM list sadly and it's unlikely you will be able to ask as a proper mail server over our internet that the likes of Gmail and Hotmail will accept email to.

The idea is to limit all emails being sent around the internet to a select few reputable email providers that are accountable for their users email, these company's will have proper means of identifying if spam is being sent and proper restrictions to maintain their reputation and stay off the SPAM list.

As you're hosting your own mail server in a less professional manner (through a residential broadband connection), being on the spam list is there to reflect that risk that your server could be used to send around SMAP.

[#9]

What a fantastic explanation. Thank you very much.

I wasn't particularly worried about DDoS because the website isn't critical, but still I'll do some homework and try cloudflare out. I didn't want to use any third parties for my website, but since it's free I guess I'd be a bit silly not to 

[#10]

I can certainly understand blocking home broadband IP's given how many spam emails are sent, I'll still apply to 'suppress' my ip from spamhaus's block list and see how it goes. 

Thank you taking the trouble to explain. 😆

[#11]

@123fdsa - Is using you own mail server a play around or a serious thing? I'm out of touch with making mail servers and Apache http servers, I remember having issues with my own and the RDNS, it's been a while though. Is there a particular need to not use a external SMTP server?

[#12]

Well I suppose it started as playing around but I'm trying to treat it fairly seriously, at least when it comes to security. I've set it up as send only, so I don't have to worry about receiving spam or malware. It's definitely mostly a learning experience though.

As for not wanting a separate mail server, I just want it to be as cheap as possible, especially avoiding recurring costs. Currently the total cost is the power of running an old laptop year-round and £10 a year for the domain. I did also put my old ssd in the laptop so it runs pretty fast too. What can I say, I'm a cheapskate

[#13]

Currently the total cost is the power of running an old laptop year-round and £10 a year for the domain. I did also put my old ssd in the laptop so it runs pretty fast too. What can I say, I'm a cheapskate

I'm not sure that's cost effective. A laptop typically consumes around 50w , lets say 30w if it has an ssd. So that's 30*24*365/1000 = 262kwh/yr which at my current rates = 262 * 0.2549/kwh =  £66.98/yr.

My hosted email costs me £20/yr!!

[#14]

My hosted email costs me a £5.50/yr, there is free alternatives like Zoho though. 

[#15]

Would also like to add for websites I've got a VPS with ethernetservers for around $14/yr, so the total cost is < £20/yr