Steve, thanks you for the explanation. I removed the entry from the tcp.smtp file. however, my worry is, it wasin't blocking all mails before I updated my spamassin's rules using the scrit I downloaded from the rules emporium site.
I will read the man page from the url you sent and see how best to use it. crispin. > > On Aug 3, 2006, at 2:19 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > >> I dowonloaded rules-du-jour script from SARE (Rules emporium) site and >> executed it. SMTP services started blocking all incoming mails. the >> following are logs in smtp current log file; >> >> 2006-08-03 08:45:18.687385500 rblsmtpd: 217.146.188.116 pid 3450: 451 >> Blocked - Reverse DNS queries for your IP fail. You cannot send me >> mail. >> 2006-08-03 08:45:19.845827500 rblsmtpd: 61.191.136.82 pid 3451: 451 >> Blocked - Reverse DNS queries for your IP fail. You cannot send me >> mail. >> >> I them edited tcp.smtp file and removed this entry >> "RBLSMTPD="Blocked - >> Reverse DNS queries for your IP fail. You cannot send me mail." >> >> The server started accepting mails again. Can someone help me >> explain why >> this happened. My server was working before installing rules-du-jour >> script. > > heh - i encountered the same problem recently. here's my > (incomplete) understanding of what's going on: > > read the rblsmtpd man page (http://cr.yp.to/ucspi-tcp/ > rblsmtpd.html). according to it: > > If the $RBLSMTPD environment variable is set and is nonempty, > rblsmtpd blocks mail. It uses $RBLSMTPD as an error message for the > client. Normally rblsmtpd runs under tcpserver; you can use tcprules > to set $RBLSMTPD for selected clients. > If $RBLSMTPD is set and is empty, rblsmtpd does not block mail. > If $RBLSMTPD is not set, rblsmtpd looks up $TCPREMOTEIP in the RBL, > and blocks mail if $TCPREMOTEIP is listed. tcpserver sets up > $TCPREMOTEIP as the IP address of the remote host. > > so, the way i read this, your entry "RBLSMTPD="Blocked - Reverse DNS > queries for your IP fail. You cannot send me mail." in tcp.smtp sets > the environment variable $RBLSMTPD. i figure you must have been > setting this value for all incoming hosts; perhaps your tcp.smtp file > had a line like this: > > :"RBLSMTPD="Blocked - Reverse DNS queries for your IP fail. You > cannot send me mail." > > since there's nothing before the colon, it matches all hosts, and > thus blocks all hosts. > > my understanding is that you shouldn't need to explicitly add a line > like this, unless there are specific addresses or networks that you > want to block permanently (perhaps you might want to add permanent > block lines for the RFC1918 nonroutable networks, as a safeguard > against malicious or misconfigured hosts - but if you're using a > nonroutable network address, don't block it!) > > -steve > > -- > If this were played upon a stage now, I could condemn it as an > improbable fiction. - Fabian, Twelfth Night, III,v > > > > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > QmailToaster hosted by: VR Hosted <http://www.vr.org> > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- QmailToaster hosted by: VR Hosted <http://www.vr.org> --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
