SMTP

IMF: Gateway thresholds per server

So far we’ve known that Exchange Server 2003’s content filter – the Intelligent Message Filter (IMF), uses Gateway and Store thresholds and (Gateway) action that are configured once in Global Settings | Message Delivery | properties | Intelligent Message Filtering. These global settings apply to all SMTP Virtual Servers on all Exchange Servers in the […]

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Disabling NDRs

RFC 2821 requires a SMTP host to send non-delivery report if a message is accepted but cannot be delivered, and the reverse path is *not null*. Nevertheless, under certain circumstances it may be desirable to disable NDRs (entirely or for a particular domain). In Exchange Server 2007, this can be done from the shell: set-RemoteDomain […]

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Windows Vista and telnet

Fired up the console (command prompt) in Windows Vista and can’t telnet to smtp or use telnet at all for that matter? Just noticed this on Windows Vista RC1 – Telnet is not installed by default… and the HyperTerminal app is history as well. To add Telnet, go to Control Panel -> Programs -> Turn […]

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Telling Exchange about (non-Exchange) SMTP servers

For anti-spam agents like IP Block List providers (aka DNSBLs/RBLs), and Sender ID, it is important to know about which non-Exchange SMTP servers receive inbound internet mail. This allows it to ignore the SMTP servers that belong to your organization when parsing headers (in topologies where the Edge server – or the Hub Transport server […]

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HELO RFC 2821: Telnetting to Gmail’s SMTP servers

Telnetting to SMTP port of a mail server is a common troubleshooting task to test SMTP connectivity and mail flow that most of us do ever so frequently. After the initial HELO/EHLO command, you issue a MAIL FROM command that provides a return path to the receiving server – generally the SMTP address of the […]

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Exchange Server 2007: Internet email without Edge servers

The Edge Transport server role is not a required role. It’s good to have if you don’t want to expose your domain-joined Exchange servers to the internet, and the high amount of spam that mail gateways receive and filter. Nevertheless, many small environments— typically those with a single Exchange server, do not have that luxury. […]

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IMF: Archiving spam

As explained in previous posts, the Intelligent Message Filter (IMF) offers a few configuration options. The primary interface for configuring IMF is under Global Settings | Message Delivery properties | Intelligent Message Filtering tab. Figure 1: IMF configuration options in Global Settings | Message Delivery | Properties | Intelligent Message Filtering tab Here you specify […]

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IMF does not scan messages larger than 3 Mb

Microsoft has just released a knowledgebase article – KB 907691 – documenting the inability of its Intelligent Message Filter (IMF) – the anti-spam filter that was earlier offered as a free add-on for Exchange Server 2003 – to scan messages over 3 Mb. in size. When IMF encounters a message that is larger than 3 […]

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IMF: How to exclude recipients from IMF filtering

Microsoft recently released a hotfix for Intelligent Message Filter that adds functionality to exclude certain recipients from IMF filtering using an exclusive list, or only apply IMF to certain users using an inclusive list. The latter should be great for limited testing in a production environment. You do need to call Microsoft PSS to get […]

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IMF Confusion – Store threshold rating text in UI

A major source of confusion regarding the Store threshold value used by Intelligent Message Filter (IMF) is the IMF UI itself. This is documented in Intelligent Message Filter release notes. Figure 1: The text for the Store SCL incorrectly states that messages with SCL greater than or equal to the Store threshold will be moved […]

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