[Users] [pf at pfortin.com: Re: Periodic "connection failed"]

[Haines Brown]

----- Forwarded message from Pierre Fortin <pf at pfortin.com> -----

Date: Wed, 28 Aug 2013 09:08:51 -0400
From: Pierre Fortin <pf at pfortin.com>
To: users at lists.claws-mail.org
Subject: Re: [Users] Periodic "connection failed"
X-Mailer: Claws Mail 3.9.2-71-g78573e-dirty (GTK+ 2.24.10;
	x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu)

This is not a response to the original problem; but additional
information that may help understand what is going on...  

This may be a DNS problem...

On Wed, 28 Aug 2013 07:01:55 -0400 Haines Brown wrote:

>There is no such host as gloria.histomat.net. 

Actually, you are using this domain as seen in the headers of your
messages to this list:
  Received: from haines by engels.HistoricalMaterialism.info with local
  (Exim
   4.72) (envelope-from <haines at histomat.net>) id 1VEdVc-0006cz-1h 
   for users at lists.claws-mail.org; Wed, 28 Aug 2013 07:01:56 -0400
  From: Haines Brown <haines at histomat.net>

A bit of dig'ing (output redacted -- vs. +short) reveals that all
addresses are in Torrance, CA, except for histmat.net...

$ dig engels.HistoricalMaterialism.info
;; AUTHORITY SECTION:
HistoricalMaterialism.info. 1800 IN     SOA     primary.guardeddns.net.
dns-admin.guardeddns.net. 101 28800 450 1209600 900

$ dig primary.guardeddns.net
primary.guardeddns.net. 16957   IN      A       216.239.130.176

$dig mail.gloriabrownministry.net
mail.gloriabrownministry.net. 21600 IN  A       216.239.128.27

$ dig gloriabrownministry.net mx
gloriabrownministry.net. 21600  IN      MX      10 postoffice.omnis.com.

$ dig postoffice.omnis.com
postoffice.omnis.com.   15457   IN      A       216.239.133.242

$ dig mail.gloriabrownministry.net
mail.gloriabrownministry.net. 21338 IN  A       216.239.128.27

$ dig histmat.net
histmat.net.  21600   IN   A  213.128.138.236  <-- Torrance, CA
histmat.net.  21600   IN   A  109.234.109.21   <== Germany!!!
histmat.net.  21600   IN   A  109.234.109.20   <== Germany!!!

$ telnet 216.239.128.27 110
Trying 216.239.128.27...
Connected to mail.omnis.com (216.239.128.27).
Escape character is '^]'.
+OK Dovecot ready.
quit
+OK Logging out
Connection closed by foreign host.

seeing the contents of your ~/.claws-mail/accountrc for this account (minus
the password[1] lines) might help.

Pierre, thank you. The problem with Claws persists as usual. This morning
it was hung. After killing the Claws-mail process and restarting it, there
was a bach of new incoming emails, as recently as earlier this morning. But
when I click "Get Mail", still get no connection error message.

I checked configuration. Server ID is simply my wife's email address. It
works for both sending and receiving mail, and here I confine myself to the
Receive mail configuration. The default inbot is
#mh/Mailbox/inbox. Incoming mail is filtered and Get Mail is enabled. SMTP
port is 587 and POP3 port is 110, which is correct. Domain name field left
blank as is all folder fields. 

I here append a redacted accountrc from her machine:

[Account: 1]
account_name=gloria at gloriabrownministry.net@mail.gloriabrownministry.net:110
is_default=1
name=Gloria Brown
address=gloria at gloriabrownministry.net
organization=
protocol=0
receive_server=mail.omnis.com
smtp_server=mail.omnis.com
nntp_server=
local_mbox=/var/mail
use_mail_command=0
mail_command=/usr/sbin/sendmail -t -i
use_nntp_auth=0
use_nntp_auth_onconnect=0
user_id=gloria at gloriabrownministry.net
password=XXXXX
use_apop_auth=0
remove_mail=1
message_leave_time=7
message_leave_hour=0
enable_size_limit=0
size_limit=1024
filter_on_receive=1
filterhook_on_receive=1
imap_auth_method=0
receive_at_get_all=1
max_news_articles=300
inbox=#mh/Mailbox/inbox
local_inbox=#mh/Mailbox/inbox
imap_directory=
imap_subsonly=1
low_bandwidth=0
imap_use_trash=1
generate_msgid=1
add_custom_header=0
use_smtp_auth=1
smtp_auth_method=0
smtp_user_id=
smtp_password=!
pop_before_smtp=0
pop_before_smtp_timeout=5
signature_type=0
signature_path=/home/gloria/.signature
auto_signature=0
signature_separator=--
set_autocc=0
auto_cc=
set_autobcc=0
auto_bcc=
Set_autoreplyto=0
auto_replyto=
enable_default_dictionary=0
default_dictionary=en
enable_default_alt_dictionary=0
default_alt_dictionary=en
compose_with_format=0
compose_subject_format=
compose_body_format=
reply_with_format=0
reply_quotemark=
reply_body_format=
forward_with_format=0
forward_quotemark=
forward_body_format=
default_privacy_system=
default_encrypt=0
default_encrypt_reply=1
default_sign=0
default_sign_reply=1
save_clear_text=0
encrypt_to_self=0
smtp_auth_method=0
smtp_user_id=
smtp_password=!
pop_before_smtp=0
pop_before_smtp_timeout=5
signature_type=0
signature_path=/home/gloria/.signature
auto_signature=0
signature_separator=--
set_autocc=0
auto_cc=
set_autobcc=0
auto_bcc=
set_autoreplyto=0
auto_replyto=
enable_default_dictionary=0
default_dictionary=en
enable_default_alt_dictionary=0
default_alt_dictionary=en
compose_with_format=0
compose_subject_format=
compose_body_format=
reply_with_format=0
reply_quotemark=
reply_body_format=
forward_with_format=0
forward_quotemark=
forward_body_format=
default_privacy_system=
default_encrypt=0
default_encrypt_reply=1
default_sign=0
default_sign_reply=1
save_clear_text=0
encrypt_to_self=0
privacy_prefs=
ssl_pop=0
ssl_imap=0
ssl_nntp=0
ssl_smtp=0
use_nonblocking_ssl=1
in_ssl_client_cert_file=
in_ssl_client_cert_pass=!
out_ssl_client_cert_file=
out_ssl_client_cert_pass=!
set_smtpport=1
smtp_port=587
set_popport=1
pop_port=110
set_imapport=0
imap_port=143
set_nntpport=0
nntp_port=119
set_domain=0
domain=
msgid_with_addr=0
set_tunnelcmd=0
tunnelcmd=
mark_crosspost_read=0
crosspost_color=0
set_sent_folder=0
sent_folder=
set_queue_folder=0
queue_folder=
set_draft_folder=0
draft_folder=
set_trash_folder=0
trash_folder=

"Use_mail_command=0" Does not sound right, but I don't know that this
function is supposed to do.

"password=" looks like an encrypted version of the plain text password I
provided during intial configuration.

"smtp_password=!" I also don't understand.

Haines