376252 - incorrect error message of "...Unable to connect to SMTP server xxx via STARTTLS sine it doesn't offer STARTTLS in EHLO response ..." for non-functioning TLS SMTP "454 TLS not available due to local problem"

Status: RESOLVED INCOMPLETE

(MailNews Core :: Networking: SMTP, defect)

Description

[Bernhard Rohrer]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (X11; U; Linux x86_64; en-US; rv:1.8.1.3) Gecko/20060601 Firefox/2.0.0.3 (Ubuntu-edgy)
Build Identifier: Thunderbird 1.5.0.10 (20070306)

I am at the moment trying to configure postfix to use TLS over port 587. When trying to send a message TBird comes back with 

"an error occurred sending mail: Unable to connect to SMTP server xxx via STARTTLS sine it doesn't offer STARTTLS in EHLO response ..."

this is in fact not correct, as the transscript of the SMTP session shows:

711138896[517a20]: SMTP Connecting to: collab.sm-wg.net
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 0
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Response: 220 collab.sm-wg.net ESMTP Postfix (Ubuntu)
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 15
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Send: EHLO [192.168.1.8]

711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 0
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Response: 250-collab.sm-wg.net
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 0
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Response: 250-PIPELINING
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 0
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Response: 250-SIZE 10240000
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 0
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Response: 250-VRFY
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 0
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Response: 250-ETRN
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 0
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Response: 250-STARTTLS
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 0
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Response: 250 8BITMIME
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 4
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 22
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Send: STARTTLS

711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 0
711138896[517a20]: SMTP Response: 454 TLS not available due to local problem
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 20
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 22
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 12
711138896[517a20]: SMTP entering state: 13

and the mail.log shows:  postfix/smtpd[19810]: warning: need an RSA or DSA certificate/key pair

so foolks, that error message is somewhat misleading ;)

Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1.
2.
3.

Comment 1

[Magnus Melin [:mkmelin]]

Confirming, seems incorrect for an SMTP "454 TLS not available due to local problem" response.

Comment 2

[Volker Stolz]

Same thing here, and the misleading error message led me to debug this problem on the wrong end first. After issuing STARTTLS, the systems was giving "421 Insufficient disk space" in my space. Just including the actual message from the SMTP dialog in the error notification to the user would be a big improvement (e.g. "The server said: ...").

Comment 3

[markham breitbach]

I have a similar complaint when sendmail issues a "reject=452 4.3.2 Connection rate limit exceeded."  Thunderbird displays an error:
 
Sending of message failed.
An error occurred sending mail: Unable to establish a secure link with SMTP server community-mail.ssimicro.com using STARTTLS since it doesn't advertise that feature. Switch off STARTTLS for that server or contact your service provider.

TURN OF TLS!!!! WHAT ARE YOU THINKING!!!!
This is not only a misleading message, it is potentially a serious security compromise!

TB 17.0.3 (OSX 10.6)

Comment 4

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

Does it also fail with a current version, or 60 from http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/channel/

Comment 5

[Phoenix]

Resolved per whiteboard