146704 - Can't send email. No SMTP traffic seems to be generated

Status: RESOLVED DUPLICATE of bug 144643

(MailNews Core :: Networking: SMTP, defect)

Description

[Tom De Rybel]

Mozzila build 2002052316 and older upto about 0.9.9 or so.

I can't send mail. With older versions of mozilla (about 0.9.8 and older) this
worked. The configuration is very likely correct, as it worked with the older
versions before I upgraded. Sending mail works with Netscape 4.7. I chekced the
network traffic (cable) on my server. It seems that Mozilla is not generating
any SMTP related traffic at all.  Netscape's traffic is clear. According to
TCPDump, it contacts tartarus.telenet-ops.be.smtp. No such traffic is visible
for Mozilla. 

This happens with both Win98 and Linux. The traffic goes through a RH 5.2 box
serving as firewall ect..., but nothing has been changed on this mashine, and it
works with NS 4.7. 

I'm sorry I can't offer more relevant details. (But I can do test if asked and
guided.)

Sincere greetings
Tom

Comment 1

[Jouko Holopainen]

Same here. The error is "Sending of message failed."
There is no "details" as what might be the error, except
it claims that mail setting might be erroneous - they 
most likely aren't. Ethereal shows no traffic whatsoever.

Netscape works (and ethereals shows everything ok).

Comment 2

[Paul Melis]

(PC/XP/2002053012)

It appears that when this problems occurs (no sending possible, but also no
traffic generated) an empty entry also appears in the Outgoing SMTP server list.
Seems to generate no more than one though, even when you try to send multiple
times...

(Sigh, this is __really__ annoying, since I haven't found a work-around and it
simply makes sending mail impossible, absolutely ridiculous...)

Comment 3

[Leif Lindholm]

Workaround:

Edit the empty entry in the SMTP server list (edit->mail&news->outgoing->advanced)

Tested on windows 95.

Comment 4

[scottputterman]

reassigning to varada.  Is this a dup of the other outgoing server bug you are
working on?

Comment 5

[varada]

Tom can you make sure that your SMTP settings are proper. If you have multiple
accounts make sure that each of them are using the right username and smtp
server. Mozilla tends to allow only one default smtpserver through the wizard.
If you need to add another one it has to be done thru the smtp panel and
advanced button there.

Comment 6

[Tom De Rybel]

Dear Varada,

I have always used the advanced ect... menu to fiddle with the mailservers, or
the accounts setting page in the mail program. I did found an empty server line
there, that I had deleted several times but came coming back. I filled it out
now with valid data, as suggested by Leif Lindholm (altough it wasn't set as the
default server) and things work now. I used the same data as in the line that
was my default server, so I now know that it was correct. I also browsed the
prefs.js file and noticed that my normal and only mailserver was being refered
to as SMTP3, while it was the only one defined.(This was before I completed the
blank one.) I also have only one account configured.   

I hope this helps.

Greetings,
Tom

Comment 7

[Ninoschka Baca]

Using a commercial 3/18 build I was able to reproduce the problem with a blank 
line appearing in the Advanced Server dialog but I was still able to 
send/receive messages. When the problem occurs it sounds like one of the blank 
lines in the SMTP Advanced dialog becomes associated with the account.

Did you try:
1. Opening the Account Settings window, selecting the top panel for the account 
so the right side is titled Account Settings (the panel includes Account Name 
and Email Address text boxes). Then selecting the Advanced button and selecting 
the desired SMTP Server? The pulldown only displays the SMTP Servers and 
doesn't give the option to edit.

2. Opening the Account Settings window, selecting the Outgoing SMTP Server panel
a. What does it display for the Server Name and User Name?
b. Then select the Advanced button so it displays all the SMTP Servers. This 
dialog allows editing the SMTP Servers.

If you try a recent build does this problem still occur? What happens in a new 
profile? You could also run an SMTP log and attach it to this 
bug. Here is a page with instructions on creating an SMTP 
log(http://www.mozilla.org/quality/mailnews/mail-troubleshoot.html#imap)

Comment 8

[Michael Buckland]

Discussed in mail news bug meeting.  Decided to minus this bug.

Comment 9

[augustz]

Also experiencing this problem or one very similar. This is on 
Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.1a+) Gecko/20020715 (08)

I get a "Send Message Error" claiming mailnews was unable to connect to my SMTP 
server and to check my settings. These settings work 50% of the time in 
mailnews and always in other programs such as Outlook which I unfortuantly now 
that this has cropped up no longer use. 

One work around is to save message to draft folder and then try sending. Seems 
to work like a charm everytime.

Currently have only one mailnews email account, and am using IMAP on the 
incoming/SMTP on the outgoing. 

SMTP requires POP before send (or IMAP before send in this case) but I seem to 
get the error even within the timeout window. 

Advanced account settings only shows one server.

Comment 10

[Stefan Huempfner]

The errormessage that is shown writes "$S" instead of the Name of the SMTP server.

Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.0; de-AT; rv:1.1) Gecko/20020826

Comment 11

[antonio montagnani]

Same here on build 2002090118.

Tried to edit also file pref.js, deleted all profiles, created a new user.

No way of sending mail.
It seems ridiculous.Shal I revert to Mozilla 1.0??

Comment 12

[varada]

There is another bug 146488 - which is about having a non existent smtp server
for the account that you are using. Please try the following steps and let me
know if the problem was solved.
Go To
Edit->MailNews Account Settings
Main panel for your Account->Advanced (this will open up the list of smtp
servers as well as show the one that is associated with your account). See if
the correct smtp server is associated or if it merely says use default. If it
says use default try associating it directly to the smtp server that is shown
there instead. Make sure in Outgoing SMTP Server the default is a valid smtp server.

These will help us isolate the problem and find a fix quicker.

Comment 13

[Robert Baruch]

Varada's suggestion of 9/12 worked for me, but I would have never thought of
looking in the Advanced section of the e-mail account when there was an Outgoing
Server (SMTP) item in the list. I respectfully suggest that either the Advanced
button be relabelled as "SMTP Selection", or there be a new button for SMTP, or
the Outgoing Server panel be able to set SMTP servers for each account.

Comment 14

[(not reading, please use [e-mail] instead)]

taking all of varada's bugs.

Comment 15

[WADA:World Anti-bad-Duping Agency]

Closing as DUP of Bug 144643, according to comment #13.
See Bug 144643 for detail.

*** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of 144643 ***