XF 2.2 Email notifications not being received anymore

[rockstarmind]

Hey guys,

My email notifications were working perfectly until a few months ago when some would end up in the spam folder. And now some of my users aren't receiving them at all.

I am using G Suite for my email (my domain is on BlueHost), so I'm not sure what to set or whether to use Xenforo's default setting.

How do I fix this?

 

[TPerry]

You have SPF/DKIM correctly configured? Is your gmail account a simple "personal" gmail account or is it actually associated with your domain? Reliable email delivery is a major issue, and there is no simple "answer" until you can confirm your send settings... if you are sending from "regular" gmail account that has no real association with your domain.. that in itself can cause issues.
If you are sending from a "paid" account from GMail, it can also have limitations until you create the correct DNS entries for your MX, SPF and DKIM settings.

 

[rockstarmind]

Thanks....yeah BlueHost has the records set up to connect with GSuite through my domain. That part has been working for years.

 

[TPerry]

Thanks....yeah BlueHost has the records set up to connect with GSuite through my domain. That part has been working for years.

Have you confirmed that the DKIM and SPF are correct? If so, there should not be a "major" issue as rDNS does not come into play for you. The only issue I can see is if you are actually using a different domain for your GMail and your site, and settings are not correct.

 

[rockstarmind]

Have you confirmed that the DKIM and SPF are correct?

I've had GSuite set up and working for years, so this is all connected properly as far as I know. Not sure if Xenforo requires anything specific. Should I just set the Email transport method to Default to bypass this? Or is SMTP the best way to go?

 

[rockstarmind]

I'm getting this in my spam folder on the notifications I get when my customers reply to my thread:

 

[TPerry]

Seems like your SPF/DKIM may not be set correctly in your DNS settings....have you pressed the i to see if it tells you exactly what is off. This is something that I had a recent discussion with another member about... and frequently it's a DKIM/SPF/DMARC issue.

Check if your Gmail message is authenticated - Computer - Gmail Help

If you see a question mark next to the sender's name, the message isn't authenticated. When an email isn't authenticated, it means that Gmail doesn't know if the message has come from the person

support.google.com

From a couple of sites.. it may be a DKIM issue.

Have you tried testing your email sending from the XF ACP?

Newsletters spam test by mail-tester.com

mail-tester.com is a free online service that allows you to test your emails for Spam, Malformed Content and Mail Server Configuration problems

www.mail-tester.com

 

[rockstarmind]

It just gave a generic warning. If I choose the Default email transport method for now, then will it work in the meantime? Or does it have to be set to SMTP to work? When it was all working in the past, I had it set to SMTP.

 

[TPerry]

Unless you have PHP set up to reliably send email.. SMTP is your "babby's daddy".
Test it via the ACP using your existing setup at

Newsletters spam test by mail-tester.com

mail-tester.com is a free online service that allows you to test your emails for Spam, Malformed Content and Mail Server Configuration problems

www.mail-tester.com

That should show you any issues.

 

[rockstarmind]

Thanks for the tip....I've used this service in the past, but unsure how I should test the email address it gives me. Is there a simple way to test outgoing messages from Xenforo? Or do I have to set up a user with the test email address Mail Tester gives me?

Also, not sure if this impacts anything, but my forum is installed on a Cloudways server. Confused about what service I have controls the email functionality in my forum.

I have Cloudways as the host, Bluehost is where my main domain is registered, and GSuite is where my email on that domain is sent through.

 

[TPerry]

Yes.. there is a simple "test email" function in the XF ACP
ACP -> Tools -> Test Outbound Email.

As for the second issue.. it only depends on who you have send your transactional email.. My transactional email is sent by Amazon SES, most of my "domain" related accounts are hosted by ZoHo mail and my site is hosted on Hetzner (but no mail performed). It ultimately depends on how you have your sending set up, the MX entries you use and your sending email address. Once again, it's frequently not a "point & shoot' resolution.

 

[rockstarmind]

Super helpful....thanks! I'll check that out and report back if I can't get it to work.

 

[zoldos]

I suggest Mailgun. I used them quite a bit, and e-mails always went through. If not, their support is excellent and they'd always correct it.

You do need your own domain, or at least the ability to add records to it. I used their "Flex" account, and was charged, say, $5 or $6 a month for a very large amount of sends. If it's a small forum, you probably won't get charged at all.

 

[rockstarmind]

@Tracy Perry - I got some errors on the Mail Tester:




Does this mean I have to add s=default; to my TXT record in my DNS settings?

 

[TPerry]

It means (for your setup) that your DKIM settings are not correct... generally, if using the "hosted" version of Gmail, they provide the appropriate DKIM setting that you need to submit to your DNS.

Sign in - Google Accounts

 

[rockstarmind]

Thanks! I'll have a look. I think with the additions I made to the SPF record, it's helping already. Will check out the DKIM soon. Thanks again.