Can receive emails from everyone but Hotmail

[TheCableGuy96]

Hi,

I recently moved a server from one connection to another. Upon moving everything has come back online (change of IPs and nameservers) but I cannot receive emails from Hotmail.

At first I thought this was a propagation issue because all other mail providers are coming through fine and every DNS/Mail Server Test I do is reporting it as fine. Also the bounced email from Hotmail shows the new server IP and saying it cannot connect/refused.

I am also not on any blacklists (I know this is for outgoing generally but thought it best to check).

I cannot find anything in the logs which would indicate it's not even reaching the server and I also cannot find anything in CSF or the routers firewall logs saying it's being blocked. There's absolutely nothing in the servers logs, CSF doesn't show anything on a search and my firewall (pfSense) only shows the IP being passed/allowed.

I am completely stumped if anyone can help please?

 

[Richard G]

You might try to help yourself, because besides of checking logs and blacklist checks, for incoming e-mails there is little you can do.
Check if every DNS thing is oke, check your domain in both intodns.com and visit mail-tester.com to check all mail settings. Most of this is outgoing but it might reveal possible MX issues.

Als create a hotmail account yourself if you don't have one and send mail. The mail should either be delivered or possible get back to you as being bounced for some reason. This reason can also explain the issue.

 

[TheCableGuy96]

You might try to help yourself, because besides of checking logs and blacklist checks, for incoming e-mails there is little you can do.
Check if every DNS thing is oke, check your domain in both intodns.com and visit mail-tester.com to check all mail settings. Most of this is outgoing but it might reveal possible MX issues.

Als create a hotmail account yourself if you don't have one and send mail. The mail should either be delivered or possible get back to you as being bounced for some reason. This reason can also explain the issue.

Hi Richard,

I'm not sure what you mean by "you might try to help yourself"? I've been trying everything I can think of to help myself.

I've checked intoDNS, I've been using this site for a long time and everything is fine.

I've not come across mail-tester.com but this appears to check if it's spam related? If it was I'd be getting logs in the exim mainlog would I not? Regardless I checked with an email from Hotmail and it was a nice 9/10.

Lastly, I have a Hotmail account which I've been trying to send from already. This is how I know it's not coming through from Hotmail. The error is saying it cannot connect but as said, I cannot understand why because all other mail providers emails are coming through and I cannot see any blocks in the firewall, CSF or exim logs.

Thanks.

 

[TheCableGuy96]

A copy of the logs from the bounced email:
4/11/2022 8:57:54 PM - Server at VI1P193MB0751.EURP193.PROD.OUTLOOK.COM returned '550 5.4.316 Message expired, connection refused(Socket error code 10061)'
4/11/2022 8:47:40 PM - Server at domain.com (81.xxx.xxx.148) returned '450 4.4.316 Connection refused [Message=Socket error code 10061] [LastAttemptedServerName=domain.com] [LastAttemptedIP=81.xxx.xxx.148:25] [HE1EUR04FT055.eop-eur04.prod.protection.outlook.com](Socket error code 10061)'

 

[Richard G]

I'm not sure what you mean by "you might try to help yourself"? I've been trying everything I can think of to help myself.

I think I caused some confusion. With that I ment that you could get more information by using a hotmail account yourself and see what is happening. Because out of your message I got (maybe wrongly) the impression that you did not try that yet.
Seems I was having the wrong impression, sorry about that.

I recently moved a server from one connection to another.

I don't know what exactly you mean by transferring connection.... but.... since that it only happens to hotmail, because both the 450 and the code 10061 is to be translated to a connection refused, it might also be caused by some asymetric routing (if applicable to you).

Check this:

550 5.4.316 Message expired, connection refused (Socket error code 10061)

In a recent engagement of Exchange migration to O365 the client started experiencing random inbound delivery failures. The error in the NDR ...

ezoltan.blogspot.com

Another option might be that one (or more) of the outlook ip's is blocked for some reason in the firewall. Check this and maybe whitelist the ip's from outlook.com for the near future.
Or maybe just the domains in /etc/whitelist_domains like this:
outbound.protection.outlook.com mail.protection.outlook.com

If those things do not make any difference, then we have to see if someboy else has any idea's about it.

 

[Richard G]

Oh I see I missed a couple of things:

I've not come across mail-tester.com but this appears to check if it's spam related? If it was I'd be getting logs in the exim mainlog would I not? Regardless I checked with an email from Hotmail and it was a nice 9/10.

No it does not check if it's spam related, it checks if your mailsystem is in good order. The meaning was to test with your own mail domain, not with hotmail.

Also... Did you see *anything* of hotmail trying to connect to your Exim in either your exim mainlog, panic log or rejectlog?

 

[TheCableGuy96]

Yeah but mail tester is for outgoing mail right? This is specific to incoming and just for Hotmail. Every other mail provider is coming through fine and I can send to everywhere fine (even hotmail). I just cannot receive from Hotmail.

There's absolutely nothing in the logs from the web server and intoDNS is reporting everything as fine.

My suspicion is that it's my firewall (pfSense) as that wasn't in place behind the old location and I can see some connections from Microsoft IPs on port 25. But there's nothing in the logs and I don't know enough about pfSense to diagnose any futher.

I have posted on their forums indicating there are some packets received but not all. I am asking in here in case there's something I've missed in DA but I doubt it or in case someone has come across this before?

I can send emails from my mail server but not receive from Hotmail.

Hi, I recently moved a server from one connection to another. Upon moving everything has come back online (change of IPs and nameservers) but I cannot receiv...

forum.netgate.com

Thanks.

 

[TheCableGuy96]

It's a firewall issue. pfSense floating rule I missed and am still working out why but now I've disabled them it's working. Thanks for the help Richard.

 

[Richard G]

Yeah but mail tester is for outgoing mail right?

Right, but sometimes it reveals other issues which might also point to other problems.

It's a firewall issue. pfSense floating rule I missed

Can you say which rule it was? Because it was most likely a firewall issue. But hard to understand since it only stopped hotmail mails.
I'm curious as to what it is, so I might be able to help somebody with a similar problem in the future.