smtp.ntlworld.com attachment limit - is it still 10MB?

[dogsiwoo]

Hi all,

I use smtp.ntlworld.com to smarthost my outgoing Exchange server mail. When I set it up, the ntlworld system was still a legacy system with attachment limits of 10MB. I've done a bit of googling and Virginmedia say their email customers can send upto 20MB.

With this in mind, I tried sending a 13MB zip file to one of my GMail addresses and it failed.

This is not an Exchange issue as I have the sending limit disabled to prevent issues such as the abiove being caused by the server itself.

Does this mean the smtp.ntlworld.com SMTP address is still locked to 10MB attachments? Can I use smtp.virginmedia.com now and make use of the 20MB limit?

I am Ex-NTL if that makes any difference.

Many thanks,

Karl

[BenMcr]

Yup, I don't think the ntlworld SMTP server has been googlified yet so likely has the old limit on it

Some people have been able to use smtp.virginmedia.com with a ntworld address but it's not supported so no guarantees how long or if it would work

[Kymmy]

Also please note that a binary attachment can sometimes double itself in size by the time it's been encoded to go through an SMTP server

[dogsiwoo]

Ok, thanks guys - so using smtp.virginmedia.com - would that need authentication? The NTLWorld smtp is authenticated byt he VM IP Address IIRC, which is a bit easier!

EDIT: Changed Smarthost to smtp.virginmedia.com and authenticated using our originally assigned ntlworld email address. Sent the email (~13MB) - no error from Exchange, no Undeliverable message, but no message at the recipient (GMail) - sent an email without attachment and this also mysteriously disappeared - getting dropped by the VM SMTP Server maybe?

[dogsiwoo]

I also tried to direct through GMail, but my messages were just arriving FROM my actual GMaill address (IE the header had been overwritten, even though the message originated from my own domain) and so it looks like I'm back to smtp.ntlworld.com for now.

I found a post on the forum saying about adding another email address to your Account, using @virginmedia.com as the domain, which I went to do - but unfortunately:

"We are currently in the process of upgrading our email system. You will not be able to add or delete any mailbox during this time. As soon as the upgrade is completed you will be able to add and delete your mailboxes again."

So I guess it's a case of waiting...anyone got any clues as to how long?

[dogsiwoo]

Right, migration complete, I have been able to set up an @virginmedia.com address. I changed the Smarthost on my Exchange server to smtp.virginmedia.com, set authentication credentials and told it to use TLS (port 465, yes?) - sent an email to my GMail - not recieved, sent an email from my GMail - recieved, replied - not recieved.

I'm guessing Exchange is unable to communicate with outgoing SMTP on any other port except 25? Is there a way around this? As I understand it, eventually the smtp.ntlworld.com servers (which I have used since day 1 for smarthosting) will be decomissioned soon and so smtp.virginmedia.com may be my only option, so I'm hoping I can get it working somehow?

Thanks

[BenMcr]

It's SSL not TLS

[dogsiwoo]

Originally Posted by BenMcr

It's SSL not TLS

Good point Ben I get confused over GMail who in the past have allowed use of either SSL (465) or TLS (I think it was 587) - that's probably part of my problem!