Unable to send outbound email through Thunederbird 102.5.0

PossumJohn

Our emails were transmitting perfectly last week. Suddenly they stopped going out. I have checked the configurations and made the changes recommended here (see screenshot):

https://www.spectrum.net/support/internet/mobile-email-setup

I'm being told that "Login to server mobile.charter.net with username possumjohn@charter.net failed.". The previous email server was "mail@charter.net" with no login/password. How can I check to see if I do have an account on "mobile.charter.net" and if the PW is correct? Could the account on that server be locked?

Respectfully -- John

Steph_S

Good morning @PossumJohn. I am sorry for the trouble that you are experiencing with your email. Are you able to access your mail via Webmail? Please let me know if you have trouble here as well.

PossumJohn

Yes I can but Webmail is NOT the same as going through a SMTP server. Webmail goes through a web browser which encompasses the protocols within. By going through Thunderbird for my outbound email access I am directly communicating with the email server. In the past, I could use the "mail.charter.net" server on port 25 or port 587. Login validation was not needed at the time. But, something changed over the past week or 2 where the Spectrum recommended SMTP server is "mobile.charter.net" on port 587 or 993 (which is the preferred for POP mail) and verification (userid/password) is now required. I have been using the "mail.charter.net" method of transmitting my outbound email ever since I became a Charter customer many, many years ago. The recent change at Spectrum was probably made for security purposes and I have no complaints about those steps being taken. But, I would like to be able to use Thunderbird for my preferred outbound email. I need the correct SMTP server and port information and I need for someone in the Spectrum Tech staff to ensure that my Charter login & PW are correct and can indeed connect to the server.

Respectfully,

John

PossumJohn

UPDATE: My Thunderbird is getting this message if I simply ignore the request for a password:

When attempting to enter my correct userid (charter email) and PW I get this:

HT_Greenfield

Make sure the password is correctly saved and edit it if it isn't.

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/password-manager-remember-delete-change-tb

PossumJohn

Thanks for your response. URL, Login_ID and PW are all correct. Any other thoughts?

But, something has changed. Now I get this...

William_M

@PossumJohn Are you still set up as POP3? Will you please create a new profile using IMAP per the instructions at Spectrum Email Server Settings?

PossumJohn

Port 993 just spins & spins and Port 587 produces the same

BUT, I started thinking about the entire scenario. My incoming (POP3) email to Thunderbird is from my personal & private domain and another (NON-Spectrum) email server. And my "From" address was possumjohn@mydomain.net. My thought was that perhaps Spectrum no longer allows just any domain to be listed in the "From". I.E Now only authorized Spectrum or authorized domains MUST be shown as the "From" addressee. I'm going to send an email out that has the "From" address as my Charter.net address and use the "Reply-To" option pointing to my personal domain. I will let y'all now if this solution works.

outbound

That said, is there a way that I could get my personal domain(s) authorized to use the Spectrum SMTP outbound mail server.

Paul_B

Hello @PossumJohn

One thing I wanted to check with you on is have you tried at all to remove and re-install the Thunderbird app to see if that changes anything? Also, could you try to setup your account on another mail app to see what happens there? I'd like to try to narrow this down a little to see if we can get to the bottom of this for you.

Paul_B

PossumJohn

Paul_B,

I've verified my theory from above. Let's just say that I own the domain named "abcxyz.net" (example domain name). I receive my incoming "zzz@abcxyz.net" (Note:not a real account) email to my Thunderbird account through POP3 from outside email server. When I sent email out (new or replies) they go out through the charter.net SMTP server. This is because the email server does not allow outbound email from unknown IP addresses.

Prior to whenever Spectrum/Charter tightened down their email servers, they were "open email servers". I understand why the change was made - it tightens down server security. Spectrum certainly wants server security because it lessens the amount of outbound email trafic, provides better server response for paying customers, aids in preventing DoS, SPAM flooding and other types of nuisances. After the change was made, only emails with return addresses that contain Spectrum/Charter authorized domain names are allowed to use the outbound services of the SMTP email servers. To prove this theory, I appempted to send outbound emails to my work account and me Charter.net account using the "zzz@abcxyz.net" return address. I also sent the same email out using my charter.net address as the return and the "zzz.abcxyz.net" address as the "Reply-To:" address. The former emails simply would not transmit giving the SMTP server-generated error I most recently posted. The latter outbound emails sent using the "zzz@abcxuz.net" address were accepted by the Spectrum/Charter SMTP server and were delivered to my work email account overnight. I am concerned that the CC to my "zzz@abcxyz.net" email account were not delivered, but that's a small part of the problem. The end result is that I am able to transmit email from my Thunderbird application through the Spectrum/Charter SMTP server.

Not that the primary issue is resolved, I do have a question. How can I get my personally-owned "abcxyz.net" domain authorized to use the Spectrum/Charter SMTP server? And, if my personal domain has been placed on a blacklist, how can I get it removed?

Please note that the domain "abcxyz.net" I've used above is only an example and does not exist. I do not wish to publish my actual personal domain name in a public forum for fear of increased spam traffic.

William_M

You would not be able to get your personal domain authorized on our SMTP server, I'm surprised that ever worked to be honest. If you would like to use a vanity domain with our email service that may be an option if you upgrade to a business account, you can call our business team at 1-855-762-1243 to discuss your options.

We do not manage the blacklists, but you will normally be removed automatically after a set time (varies depending on the blacklist) and should remain out as long as the offending action has ceased. You would need to contact them yourself if you want to pursue earlier delisting.

PossumJohn

Thanks for your response. My domain has been able to send email through Charter's SMTP server since I became a Charter customer -- somewhere around 20 years ago. That's why I was surprised when it stopped. As I said, I don't blame Spectrum/Charter for taking the additional security steps. I'm planning to switch out mobile service from Verizon to Spectrum next week. I'll talk to the Service/Sales person in the store when I talk to them about our mobile service switch. TBH, I think Spectrum should offer to all the use of your SMTP server to private customers for a nominal fee - say somewhere between $1 & $5 per month. Perhaps up to 3 domains for the $5/Month? Obviously, there should be restrictions on the amount of outbound email traffic allowed -- maybe up to 2500 emails per month? It's something to think about.

Happy Holidays to everyone at the Spectrum Support Center!

John