IIS5/PHP4.2.3/Win2K mail() Server Error

[sublimatica]

Here's a weird one.

I've been happily sending form data in emails with PHP for some time, but it's stopped working. I don't know when exactly it stopped; I've only just noticed! (It could be weeks ago.) I've run through the config and it seems that everything is OK. However, even scripts that used to work now throw up a "Server error" whenever the mail() function is called.

I've tried two machines and environments, both running Win2K Server with IIS5:
- My public machine runs PHP 4.0.6 on IIS5 with Microsoft's IIS Lockdown tool activated
- My development machine runs 4.2.3 without the lockdown tool

Both have the problem.

The php.ini files are in my C:\WINNT folders, and the configuration is the same in both. I'm with Pipex broadband in the UK, and these values have worked in the past. They're the same as in my email client:
SMTP = smtp.dsl.pipex.com
sendmail_from = [e-mail]

Here's the code I'm using to call the function:
$to = "[e-mail]";
$subject = "website feedback form";
$message = "Hello world\n";

mail("Ben<$to>", $subject, $message, "From: website<[e-mail]>\nReply-To: $form_email_name<$form_email_field>") or ($result = 0);

Can anyone suggest where I'm going wrong? Is this just a bug in the Windows implementation of mail()? If so, what am I doing wrong?

In reality, my message is a lot longer than that one, but ultimately it's just simple text with a few \n newlines in. It has worked in the past.

Thanks to anyone who can help.

[jerdo]

Upgrade to 4.3, if you read the manual page for the mail function you will notice there are many issues with it on windows prior to 4.3

[sublimatica]

Err... OK, I'll try upgrading, but I don't understand how it could just stop working like this, on a server that used to work. This is why I'm confused.

I wondered for a while whether the problem could be a permissions one because of the IIS lockdown tool, but that's only running on one of the machines, so I guess it can't be that.

Here's hoping an upgrade works, then!

[sublimatica]

OK, so it seems there was a benefit in upgrading to PHP 4.3...

The error message is slightly more meaningful! 😃 I now get:

Warning: mail() [function.mail]: SMTP server response: 501 Bad address syntax in C:\path\path\path.php on line 28

I'm hoping that someone out there can suggest what I'm doing wrong to get this message, using the code that I posted originally.

Thanks again in advance!

[jerdo]

It's very likely this part

Reply-To: $form_email_name<$form_email_field>

[sublimatica]

I've tried changing that to something really simple and hard-coded, with no success.

I'm just going to email my ISP's support dept and ask whether they've changed their mail handling system, and introduced some weird check, but I'd be surprised if they have.

Any more ideas before I tear all my hair out? 😃

[jerdo]

Try simplifying the to and from addresses to just be an email address (without the name<email address>) and get rid of the reply-to, then test it like that. When debugging it's always helpful to break things down to the bare essentials and then add the other stuff one piece at a time to see where it breaks.

[sublimatica]

You were right, Jerdo. My problem was with the To: address. I had:
$to = "[e-mail]";
$subject = "website feedback form";
.
.
.
mail("Ben<$to>", $subject.....

Once I'd changed to:
mail($to, $subject.......

it worked fine. I had to upgrade both machines to 4.3, though.

Weird how this suddenly stopped working. I stilll can't work out why. Still, all OK now. I wonder how long it'll be before it stops working again for no discernable reason.

Thanks for your help, Jerdo. 🙂

[jerdo]

That's one of the things that makes computers and programming so much fun, they don't always do what you expect them to do. Glad you got everything working.