Rent This Monthly SMTP Relay Server

Businesses send out multiple emails to clients everyday and therefore it is important to ensure that the sender’s reputation is protected. That is why understanding the actual nature of an SMTP relay server service has become very important for businesses apart from the IT departments.

What is an SMTP Server?

It is a TCP / IP protocol that is used for sending and receiving email services. The work of an SMTP or Simple Mail Transfer Protocol involves a three-step process –

1. It enables the email server to send a mail from an email client to a receiving email server.

2. The receiving email server uses the SMTP to relay the information to a second receiving email server.

3. This second receiving email server uses an email client to download the incoming mail and place the same in the recipient’s mail box.

It must be noted that the SMTP is only used for sending messages. In case of receiving mails, the recipient email server has to use another protocol, which can be either IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) or POP3 (Post Office Protocol). Using the IMAP or the POP3, email servers can save the message in the server message that is downloaded periodically and updated in the client side.

Why SMTP Relay Provider Is Important For Business Communication

Before you think about its benefit in bulk communication, let us first understand how SMTP is working. As the name implies, the concept here is similar to a relay race. When an email is sent from one domain name to another domain name, the emails cannot be sent on the same SMTP server. Your domain server will need to communicate with the recipient’s server so that the information can be relayed. Ofcourse the SMTP relay service is not needed if you are mailing to someone within your business as in that case, the emails will be delivered through the same SMTP server.

Are Open SMTP Relays Good?

Open SMTP Relay services enable an outgoing server to accept messages from other domains without asking for authentication. This can be good but the problem is it also becomes the target of spam attacks. Spammers take the advantage of open SMTP relays by sending unsolicited messages in the name of the domain IP address. If your business domain IP becomes the target, then your IP will get quickly blacklisted and you will never be able to send mails from the same domain again.

Here are some good practices to prevent open SMTP relay misuse:

• Proper Email Server Configuration

Traditionally, to prevent misuse, SMTP port 25 is blocked by cloud providers and residential ISPs to prevent spam. Improper email server configuration can render ineffective security settings. You can diagnose the configuration with the help of SMTP diagnostics tool available online.

• TLS Encrypted Port

A TLS encrypted connection to port 587 ensures secure mail submission. This should be supported by both the client and the server. Since most of the modern mail service clients come with the TLS encrypted support, the burden of the email delivery depends largely upon the mail server management.

TLS encryption configuration of SMTP clients is essential for establishing outgoing connections since the initial handshake takes place in plain text.

• Configuring Third Party Professional Mail Services with Alternative Ports

As mentioned earlier, although port 25 is blocked, there are other alternative ports that are available such as port 587, 465, other non-standard ports for relaying the email. This can be great especially if you do not want to use your own mail server and would like to use a third party mail service instead for sending campaign mails and other marketing emails. There are many professional mailing services such as Mailgun smtp or Amazon SES that you can configure with your Mail Transfer Agents over port 587 to securely relay emails.

The Advantage of a Third Party SMTP Relay Service Provider

Third Party SMTP Relay services give you the advantage of relying on secured IPs. This will ensure that your IP does not become the easy target of spammers, while at the same time helping you to maximize your delivery.

Some of the advantages of using Third Party SMTP Relay Services are:

• Secured email hosting for effective business communication
• Smooth email relay services like redirecting emails to multiple domains, protecting emails from unwanted spams and viruses.
• Seamless Integration with On-Premises or Hosted Emails
• Get enterprise grade spam filtering solution

There are many third party SMTP relay server services available in the market. Just choose the right SMTP service plan when you go ahead.