Email

Hi folks,

Sorry for more questions

I have read on another IDNET forum (admittedly from 2007 so things may have changed), that there may be issues using 3rd party email services eg. Gmail, GMX etc.

This from IDNetters forum:

If you are using the client to check other email accounts, such as GMail, Yahoo etc, you must use the IDNet SMTP server to send messages from those accounts. However to collect mail from non-IDNet accounts you must set your email client to the names of their POP servers, eg pop.googlemail.com etc.

Is this still the case or can I keep the current email settings for all my email providers in my email client (Apple Mail), or will I need to change the outgoing mail settings?

Thanks

adam

Have used IDNet as my ISP for two years now. Since long before IDNet I have used Thunderbird for all my e-mail accounts (Google, Yahoo, BT, an account on my own domain not hosted by IDNet and another account on an external domain not hosted by IDNet). Whether the account is POP3 or IMAP Thunderbird is directed to the SMTP server of the account supplier. There was absolutely no change in my access to the accounts after I moved to IDNet.

Great thanks.

As the post I found was from 2007, things must have changed.

I'd be more concerned about if you ever leave bt,under their present system you have to pay to keep your email account active or lose it,your message re servers is normal for sending messages from email clients,you use your isp servers to send but you have to set things to recieve from the servers of email service you use as that is where the messages are

I�ve never used the BT email, only gmail and GMX, but thanks for the heads up.

In reply to a post by astanden:

If you are using the client to check other email accounts, such as GMail, Yahoo etc, you must use the IDNet SMTP server to send messages from those accounts. However to collect mail from non-IDNet accounts you must set your email client to the names of their POP servers, eg pop.googlemail.com etc.

This is fairly common. Most ISPs restrict port 25 (which is used when sending email) to prevent their network being used to send spam. The only connection they allow via port 25 is to their own email server which gives them control over what gets sent out.

https://support.prolateral.com/index.php?/Knowledgeb...

However when collecting email you always have to contact the actual server that holds your account because only that server normally has access to your mail box.

The only thing puzzles me about that statement is that I don't think IDNet do block port 25. I run my own mail server so I need port 25 unblocked (so that my mail server can send mail for me) and I'm pretty sure Support told me that it wasn't blocked in the first place. I've also found this article online:

https://www.ispreview.co.uk/story/2010/01/19/uk-isps...

"The Director of IDNet , Simon Davies , told ISPreview:

"That's a simplistic view and is also futile. It is the same argument that says that if you block P2P ports then you'll stop illegal music filesharing. No, you won't. The traffic will just move to other ports and/or SSL-encrypted channels.

Most SMTP servers accept incoming connections on port 587 and also 465 for TLS. Blocking port 25 wouldn't slow down the spammers for very long at all but it would inconvenience the very many, mostly business use, legitimate reasons for being able to reach port 25."

I would contact Support to clarify but to be honest IDNet just isn't the kind of 'Mickey Mouse' ISP that does stupid stuff. It provides an honest and traditional service that allows its customers to use the internet in whatever (legal) way they want to. It does not put blocks or obstacles in place to try and control us.

Edited by Andrue (Sun 23-Feb-20 10:36:01)

Thanks Andrue,

It did seem a little odd. I�ve never had to use BT�s email servers for my gmail or GMX accounts. As IDNet is a monthly contract I�ll suck it and see. I can always use the webmail portals worst case scenario.

I�m just a bit OCD when it come to changing provider

I have registered for the customer run IDNet forum but haven�t had admin approval yet, so thanks to everyone helping me out on TBB

I only moved from idnet to save a bit of money on my combined cost of tv broadband and phone:-sky wanted to increase my package price by £10/month and remove legacy f1 from my package unless I subscribed to sky sports at an extra cost,at the smae time virgin were installing cables in our area,offering fibre to the home I get over 385mb(no coax)with a free to use phone package,to any no,and a tv package that made sky look very pricey for what they were offering ,for service idnet have been by far the best isp I have ever used but wasn't prepared to pay the extra that sy wanted so plumped for the virgin offer,still use idnet for emails though

I have never had to use an ISP's SMTP servers since 2007, since when I have been with O2, IDNet, Plusnet and AAISP. Now with Three mobile broadband.

At worst they block Port 25 to other SMTP servers, but there were nearly always alternatives available on the desired server that were not blocked. Nobody with any sense uses Port 25 anyway these days as it is not secure.

In reply to a post by steve195527:

I'd be more concerned about if you ever leave bt,under their present system you have to pay to keep your email account active or lose it,your message re servers is normal for sending messages from email clients,you use your isp servers to send but you have to set things to recieve from the servers of email service you use as that is where the messages are

I think that is perhaps not the latest information. There is an article on the BBC news website (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51571275) reporting that OfCom is writing to broadband companies to ask why some people are having to pay to keep old email addresses. The article includes the quote:

"BT says people can keep their email addresses for free using a basic service that's only accessible via a browser, but that customers who want to maintain their normal email service, they have to pay £7.50 per month."

Even that is not strictly true as I access an old BT e-mail account for which I pay no charge through Thunderbird.

Generally to the thread, Andrue's post happens to mention 587

I think misconceptions around the use of port 25 abound and 587 isn't just an alternative, there are official designations.

The official port for a mail client to submit a message to a mail server is 587/tcp.
The official port for a mail server to contact another mail server to deliver messages is 25/tcp.

Both can negotiate on use of TLS encryption (or none) - RobertoS - yes port 25 too.

This meant ISPs could block outgoing and even inbound traffic to destination port 25 and email clients would still work, but a customer would need to contact the ISP before setting up their own mail server at home (and/or use SMTP relays hosted by the ISP themselves).

Related, in olden times visitors would turn up at your office with clients configured for port 25 and start asking for your local SMTP relay IP while on site. When you told them to just use the official ports (587 or historically 465) and change the SMTP settings back to the original mail provider it was a revelation for them that these settings could work from any sensible Internet connection. One such person had been maintaining up to a dozen separate settings, one for every place they visited.

I'm also uneasy about trying to keep using email provided by a former home ISP unless paying / some kind of contract as it feels like it could go away at any time.
But I've used email since long before Google or Facebook existed and once I registered my own .me.uk domain, mailboxes and aliases have always been inclusive of the domain package.

Edited by prlzx (Mon 24-Feb-20 00:20:19)

Same for me. I quit BT six years ago when they wanted £5 pm (or something like that) to retain my email account.
As recommended by TBB posters, I signed up with Fastmail so I could change ISPs without losing email but my old BT account still works perfectly.