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Cannot send message using the server smtp.mac.com

Hello,

I think this started last night (or very early this morning, my brain is fuzzy). I've been travelling about and somehow recently whenever I try sending an e-mail from my .mac account through the Mail application, I get a message that says:

"Cannot send message using the server smtp.mac.com

The server response wax: 5.5.1 Invalid user / domaine name.

Use the pop-up menu below to try a different outgoing mail server. All messages will use this server until you quit Mail or change your network settings." . . .

So far I've tried deleting the account in Mail and re-adding it, adding "@mac.com" to my username, re-entering the password to be sure it's correct, re-starting Mail, restarting my computer, and changing the port setting.

I don't think this is a problem with my ISP (Comcast, I'm in Seattle), because this started when I was in Calgary using my hotel's wifi, then at the airport in Vancouver using some other wifi &c.). It just started randomly. One day it worked, the next day it didn't.

I AM able to, say, send it through smtp.gmail.com, but I'm wary about that because I'm worried that some e-mail providers will see that the "from" e-mail address doesn't match the server and will mark it as spam (I'm not 100% sure of this, but I think that can happen and I don't want to risk it). Sending from the webmail works just fine of course, but I don't like doing that.

Is anybody else having this problem, and does anybody have a solution? Thanks.

MacBook Pro 15", Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Posted on May 24, 2007 10:15 PM

29 replies

May 25, 2007 4:36 AM in response to Deborah Kelley

Much weirdness, but at least the light on .mac support went amber, even though the "read more for interim solutions" is not actually a link!

Not worked for me since I first checked this morning at 9am London Time.

Its only smtp send related from the looks of it. No apple updates on my ugly Dell machine at work as far as I can tell! Webmail all good, I can even Telnet into the server and send one, apparently it accepted my email.

Just have to wait this one out. I am glad though, I though work had locked down my personal email account in outlook or our ISP was refusing to send mail onto .mac.

cripcrip

Level 1

0 points

May 25, 2007 5:32 AM in response to OliverHussick

I have same problem but i can send if my email address is account@mac.com but i can't send if my email address is alias.account@mac.com.
until yesterday all it was ok.

May 25, 2007 5:38 AM in response to cripcrip

Same problem here in Ireland. I have had this error once or twice in the past, but it has rectified itself within half an hour or so. But not this time. Also - was it my imagination, but before this shutdown, was Apple Mail just a bit slow in sending out .Mac messages? During the last few days?

cripcrip

Level 1

0 points

May 25, 2007 5:53 AM in response to Colin McClelland1

yes.
I am not much satisfying of this service.
I hope that soon it will work very soon.

do you have same problem with you alias email account?

May 25, 2007 5:54 AM in response to cripcrip

Don't have an alias .Mac email account, so cannot say. All my other POP accounts are working fine, though.

May 25, 2007 5:56 AM in response to cripcrip

In Apple's defence, though, I have to say that this is the first time in four years or more that I've had serious trouble with .Mac mail.

May 25, 2007 6:16 AM in response to cripcrip

Try sending now. Mine seems to be back in action. (Finally.)

cripcrip

Level 1

0 points

May 25, 2007 6:16 AM in response to Colin McClelland1

ok, NoW is ok 🙂

May 25, 2007 6:17 AM in response to Deborah Kelley

Incase you haven't checked, all is well! Mac servers are back up and running and accepting emails to go!

May 25, 2007 6:35 AM in response to Deborah Kelley

Thanks for looking into the server issue. I also discovered the ethernet connection was "red" during the server problem, so I duplicated my connection, snd made the new one active. That new duplicate is still working, while the old (yesterdays) network connection does not work after the security update.
Apparently we are again able to send our mail via Mail v2.1. According to the .Mac login page, "All .Mac services are online and fully operational."

macmini, refurb G4 15"pb Mac OS X (10.4.9)

May 25, 2007 1:43 PM in response to Richard Fielding

I've noticed that the .mac webpage frequently lists stuff as functional when it definitely is not. 😟

May 25, 2007 1:46 PM in response to Colin McClelland1

Same here, I've rarely (if ever) had real problems with the e-mail, except for random occasions when I'm trying to use webmail and there's a problem with the whole server and whatnot.

May 25, 2007 1:50 PM in response to Deborah Kelley

Turns out we all just had to wait it out. It fixed on its own. 🙂

OVozeh

Level 3

840 points

May 27, 2007 2:02 AM in response to Deborah Kelley

As many others and always, I wish Apple would be more interactive and responsive to its .Mac members in cases like this. Tell us when something is wrong, tell us what happened and tell us it's been fixed. All this could be done by automated emails to the worldwide .Mac members.
By not telling us anything, Apple causes people panic and do all kinds of unnecessery things to make things even worse for themselves on their computers.
Can we hope the Apple's customer service to its .Mac membership will ever change ?

Cannot send message using the server smtp.mac.com