e-mailing error(multipart messages)

niall_buckley

Hi all,

I have just bought the book beginning apache, php, mysql web development....I am working my way through the book but i am having trouble with chapter 10, multipart messages...I am getting an error message when i try to send the e-mail...here is the code..
this is postcard.php

<html>
<head>
<title>Enter Data</title>
</head>
<body>
<form name="theform" method="post" action="pc_sendmail.php">
<table>
  <tr>
    <td>To:</td>
    <td><input type="text" name="to" size="50"></td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td>From:</td>
    <td>
      <input type="text" name="from" size="50">
    </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td>CC:</td>
    <td>
      <input type="text" name="cc" size="50">
    </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td>Bcc:</td>
   <td><input type="text" name="bcc" size="50"></td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td>Subject:</td>
   <td><input type="text" name="subject" size="50"></td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
  <td valign="top">Message:</td>
   <td>
     <textarea cols="60" rows="10" name="message">Enter your message here</textarea>
   </td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td></td>
   <td>
     <input type="submit" value="Send">
     <input type="reset" value="Reset the form">
   </td>
  </tr>
</table>
</form>
</body>
</html>

and this is pc_sendmail.php

<html>
<head>
<title>Multipart Mail Sent!</title>
</head>
<body>
<?php
$to = $_POST["to"];
$cc = $_POST["cc"];
$bcc = $_POST["bcc"];
$from = $_POST["from"];
$subject = $_POST["subject"];
$messagebody = $_POST["message"];
$boundary = "==MP_Bound_xyccr948x==";
$headers = "MIME-Version: 1.0\r\n";
$headers .= "Content-type: multipart/alternative; boundary=\"$boundary\"\r\n";
$headers .= "CC: " . $cc . "\r\n";
$headers .= "BCC: " . $bcc . "\r\n";
$headers .= "From: " . $from . "\r\n";
$message = "This is a Multipart Message in MIME format\n";
$message .= "--$boundary\n";
$message .= "Content-type: text/html; charset=iso-8859-1\n";
$message .= "Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit\n\n";
$message .= $messagebody . "\n";
$message .= "--$boundary\n";
$message .= "Content-Type: text/plain; charset=\"iso-8859-1\"\n";
$message .= "Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit\n\n";
$message .= $messagebody . "\n";
$message .= "--$boundary--";
$mailsent = mail($to, $subject, $message, $headers);
if ($mailsent) {
  echo "Congrats! The following message has been sent: <br><br>";
  echo "<b>To:</b> $to<br>";
  echo "<b>From:</b> $from<br>";
  echo "<b>Subject:</b> $subject<br>";
  echo "<b>Message:</b><br>";
  echo $message;
} else {
  echo "There was an error...";
}
?>
</body>
</html>

and this is the error message i'm gettin...

Warning: mail(): SMTP server response: 553 malformed address: <> in c:\inetpub\wwwroot\pc_sendmail.php on line 29
There was an error...

I can,t understand as I am using the exact code thats in the book and it still does not work....can anyone shed some light on this problem....

Thanks in advance

Rgds
Niall

noimad1

I think it may be your mail headers.

Try your from as:

$headers .= "From: " . $from . "<>\n";

niall_buckley

I have changed it and i am still getting the same error

noimad1

Sorry I can't be more help. I have a feeling that the problem does lie in your headers though. The multi-part messages are pretty strict on those.

I don't usually multi-part messages, so I can't tell you for sure what the headers shoud look like. The "from" was the only part that stood out for me....

niall_buckley

Ok thanks for your help anyway....

Rgds
Niall

niall_buckley

does nobody have any idea......?

BuzzLY

edit your script and enter the following lines before line 29 (the mail command):

echo $from;
return;

This will allow you to see what the address looks like that is being passed to the header.

What are you using as your SMTP server?

niall_buckley

I'm after echoing from and the address that i enter into from text box is what comes up when i do this...

e.g niall@ireland.com

I don't no what server we are using

dotbob

echo "From: ".$from." <".$from.">\\r\\n";

sometimes servers freak if the from address does not match the domain name that it is actually sending from so also try this:

echo "From: ".$from." <noreply@$SERVER_NAME>\\r\\n";

niall_buckley

I've tried putting this in

$headers .= "From: " . $from <$from>. "\r\n";

and then this

$headers .= "From: " . $from<noreply@SERVER_NAME> . "\r\n";

now i'm getting parse errors the first says

expecting '>'

the second says

expecting '@'

on this line.....

BuzzLY

you're missing a few quotes... if you have to, copy and paste exactly what dotbob suggested.

niall_buckley

Ok i've tried exactly what dotbob suggested and i am still getting that same error message.....

Warning: mail(): SMTP server response: 553 malformed address: <> in c:\inetpub\wwwroot\pc_sendmail.php on line 29

Any more suggestions...please

dotbob

yeh

check that the $from var actually has data in it i.e.

echo "FROM: ".$from;
exit;

niall_buckley

I've done that already, its returning whatever I put into the from textbox.....

e.g. niall @ ireland.com

dotbob

can you post your script now that you've made the updates that we suggested?

niall_buckley

yeah here it is.....pc_sendmail.php

<html>
<head>
<title>Multipart Mail Sent!</title>
</head>
<body>
<?php
$to = $_POST["to"];
$cc = $_POST["cc"];
$bcc = $_POST["bcc"];
$from = $_POST["from"];
$subject = $_POST["subject"];
$messagebody = $_POST["message"];
$boundary = "==MP_Bound_xyccr948x==";
$headers = "MIME-Version: 1.0\r\n";
$headers .= "Content-type: multipart/alternative; boundary=\"$boundary\"\r\n";
$headers .= "CC: " . $cc . "\r\n";
$headers .= "BCC: " . $bcc . "\r\n";
$headers .= "From: ".$from."<noreply@SERVER_NAME>\r\n";
$message = "This is a Multipart Message in MIME format\n";
$message .= "--$boundary\n";
$message .= "Content-type: text/html; charset=iso-8859-1\n";
$message .= "Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit\n\n";
$message .= $messagebody . "\n";
$message .= "--$boundary\n";
$message .= "Content-Type: text/plain; charset=\"iso-8859-1\"\n";
$message .= "Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit\n\n";
$message .= $messagebody . "\n";
$message .= "--$boundary--";
//echo $from;
	//return;
$mailsent = mail($to, $subject, $message, $headers);
if ($mailsent) {
  echo "Congrats! The following message has been sent: <br><br>";
  echo "<b>To:</b> $to<br>";
  echo "<b>From:</b> $from<br>";
  echo "<b>Subject:</b> $subject<br>";
  echo "<b>Message:</b><br>";
  echo $message;
} else {
  echo "There was an error...";
}
?>
</body>
</html>

postcard.php is still the same...

Thanks for your help

dotbob

mate,

that works fine.

I made a simple form to test it out and I got the email a few seconds later (ok, so that depends on the server which is pretty rapid).

I've attached both sendmail.php and postcard.htm for you to have a look at. Try using these.

If you can successfully send with my files then I would suggest that you have a problem when passing one of your variables to the sendmail script. Failing that, you have some wierd configuration on your mailserver.

Cheers.

P.S. This is the output from the browser

Congrats! The following message has been sent:

To: [email]####.####@####.com[/email]
From: [email]####.####@####.com[/email]
Subject: test
Message:
This is a Multipart Message in MIME format --==MP_Bound_xyccr948x== Content-type: text/html; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit test --==MP_Bound_xyccr948x== Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit test --==MP_Bound_xyccr948x==--

BuzzLY

It seems to me that your mail server, whatever it is, does not support the email format you are passing in. Without knowing the server, it's difficult to diagnose.

Have you been able to get the first example in Chapter 10 to work, Sending a Simple E-mail?

niall_buckley

Thanks Lads,

Yeah i'm still getting the same error message with your code Leon... it has to be the server i've tried everything...I'll have to get the boss to get on to the server company..any reasons do you think why its not working.....

anyway thanks for your help

niall_buckley

Yeah Micheal the first part worked perfectly....then when I tried the second part it didn't

When i comment out Cc and Bcc it works but it still sends the html tags to my e-mail...i am using Outlook

Is it anything to do with this?