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Knowledge Base Article: 000426875

VNXe unable to send email alerts through SMTP (000426875)

Version: 2

Article Type: Break Fix

Audience: Level 30 = Customers

Last Published: Sat Feb 20 19:46:49 GMT 2016

This article helps in troubleshooting with sending email alerts to administrators and EMC ConnectHome. Email alerts are sent
Summary:
through SMTP mail server and steps are provided to identify any problems sending emails through this mail server.

Issue:

Unable to send email alerts to storage adminstrators.

Unable to send automatic ConnectHome alerts to EMC support if there are hardware problems.
Getting the following error message when you click on 'Send Test email' or 'Send ConnectEMC Test Request' button.
" The storage system failed to communicate an event message via Email server, SNMP server, or the ConnectEMC
Gateway"
Though a valid SMTP server is configured, not receiving any alert notification from VNXe.
VNXe is not generating any ConnectEMC requests through email.

Cause:

There may be multiple causes depending on the environment.

Connectivity problem to SMTP mail server.
Mail server not configured for SMTP mail relay.
Mail server has SMTP enabled but has filters to allow only specific IP address and domains.
Mail server allows SMTP mail relay only after valid authentication.
Mail serer configured not to allow relaying to unknown domains.
Compatibility issues between VNXe and mail server.

Resolution:

This document helps to troubleshoot any issues with SMTP connectivity between mail server and VNXe. VNXe uses the
management interface to send emails out. So, the management port of both SPs should be able to reach the mail server.
Whenever you see the above symptoms first check if you can ping the SMTP mail server from VNXe. Open a putty
session and ping the SMTP server's IP or name configured in Unisphere. If it does not ping there could be a network
issue which should be fixed.
1. If the connectivity is good, next step is to see why the mail server is not accepting emails. Use the following
command in a SSH PuTTy session to check if the mail server is listening on port 25 (SMTP port).
telnet <mail_server_IP_or_name> 25

If it connects, then the mail server is listening on port 25. If not, the mail server IP configured may not be a mail
server or it is not running SMTP service.
If you are able to connect to port 25 you will see something like this:
Trying xx.xx.xxx.xx...
Connected to mail.port25.com (xx.xx.xxx.xx).
Escape character is '^]'.
220 mail.port25.com (PowerMTA(TM) v4.0) ESMTP service ready
2. The first command we need to issue to the mail server is the EHLO or HELO. This is a basic greeting that
starts the communication between the telnet client and the SMTP server. Also passed is the DNS PTR for the
IP address from which we are connecting as determined previously.
EHLO server.example.com
3. The next command we need to issue is the MAIL FROM command. This determines the address to which
the email is sent. You may receive an error if the mail box does not exist.
MAIL FROM: <support@port25.com>
250 2.1.0 MAIL ok
4. Now that the MAIL FROM command has been sent we can send the RCPT TO command. This command
tells the SMTP mail server to whom the message should be sent. This can be the same or different than the to
header, which is the email address shown in the email client.
RCPT TO: <support@port25.com>
250 2.1.5 <support@port25.com> ok
5. The last command to run before starting the body of the message is the DATA command. This command

lets the SMTP mail server know that everything else about to be sent is the body of the message (which also
contains the headers).
DATA
354 send message
Enter the body of the test message you want to send. To indicate end of the message put a period (.) in a
separate line and press enter.
It is important to note that if a mail server supports PIPELINING, as mail.port25.com does, the SMTP mail server may
wait until the DATA command is issued before responding to any other commands after the EHLO/HELO. In this case,
enter the MAIL FROM, RCPT TO, and DATA commands before waiting for a response.
After you complete the DATA command if you see message queued for delivery , it means the message is sent
successfully to the mail server. Verify in recipient s inbox for the test message. If you have received the message but it
fails to send messages through the GUI alone, contact EMC support.
If you receive any error messages like access denied relay not allowed to unknown domain mailbox unavailable , you
need to fix the problems on the mail server. Check the list in cause section above and work with the mail server
administrator to resolve the issue.
Please note, VNXe does not have an option of authentication to SMTP mail server. If your mail server requires all clients
to authenticate to relay an email, VNXe cannot send email alerts through this mail server.
Notes:

Following is an example of working email deliver with all commands mentioned above:
root@spb:/cores/service>telnet mailhub.lss.emc.com 25
Trying xx.xxx.xxx.xxx...
Connected to mailhub.lss.emc.com.
Escape character is '^]'.
220 mailhub ESMTP Sendmail Sentrion 3.1; Wed, 19 Jun 2013 08:45:12 -0400
helo
xxx.x.x.x helo requires domain address
helo mailhub.lss.emc.com
250 mailhub.lss.emc.com Hello [xx.xx.xxx], pleased to meet you
mail from:vnxe-3300@emc.com
250 2.1.0 vnxe-3300@emc.com... Sender ok
rcpt to:dinesh.kr@emc.com
250 2.1.5 dinesh.kr@emc.com... Recipient ok
data
354 Enter mail, end with "." on a line by itself
This is a test mail from CLI to check the SMTP connectivity. please ignore this
email.
Thank you
Dinesh
EMC
.
250 2.0.0 r5JCjC2B026527 Message accepted for delivery

Following image shows the message recieved after running the above command.

Product:

VNXe Series,VNXe3100,VNXe3150,VNXe3300

Shared:

Yes

Core SFDC ID:

000165787

Article Properties:

Validation Status: Approved

Original Create Date: Sat Feb 20 10:34:34 GMT 2016

Channels: Customer , Internal App

First Published: Fri Feb 05 19:24:32 GMT 2016

Originally Created By: Dinesh KR

Last Modified: Sat Feb 20 19:46:49 GMT 2016