Custom SMTP doesn't send first email...

[pbrama]

Using some code I found online, I created my own library for sending SMTP messages so that I can send multiple emails per connection. Had it working using one SMTP server, but when I switched it to another, it drops the first email and sends the remainder. This one is baffling me....

$smtpConnect = fsockopen($server, $port, $errno,$errstr,45);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, "HELO $smtpLocalhost". $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($this->smtpConnect,"AUTH LOGIN" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, base64_encode($uid) . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, base64_encode($pwd) . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

$mailHeader="From: ".$mailFrom.$crlf;

$multiDiv="--".md5(time());

$mailHeader.="MIME-Version: 1.0".$crlf;

$mailHeader.="Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary=\"".$multiDiv."\"".$crlf.$crlf;

$mailHeader.="This is a multi-part message in MIME format.".$crlf;

$mailHeader.=$multiDiv.$crlf;

$mailHeader.="Content-Type: text/html; charset=iso-8859-1".$crlf;
$mailHeader.="Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit".$crlf.$crlf;

$mailHeader.=$mailBody.$crlf.$crlf;

$fileName=$mailAttachName;
$fileBase=basename($mailAttachName);

$mailHeader.=$multiDiv.$crlf;

$mailHeader.="Content-Type: ".mime_content_type($fileBase)."; name=\"".$fileBase."\"".$crlf;
$mailHeader.="Content-Transfer-Encoding: base64".$crlf;
$mailHeader.="Content-Disposition: attachment; filename=\"".$fileBase."\"".$crlf.$crlf;
$mailHeader.=$mailAttachData.$crlf.$crlf;
$mailHeader.=$multiDiv."--".$crlf;

$to="[e-mail]";

fputs($smtpConnect, "MAIL FROM: <$mailFrom>" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, "RCPT TO: <$to>" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, "DATA" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, "To: $to\r\nFrom: $mailFrom\r\nSubject: $mailSubj\r\n$mailHeader\r\n\r\n$mailBody\r\n.\r\n");
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);



$to="[e-mail]";

fputs($smtpConnect, "MAIL FROM: <$mailFrom>" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, "RCPT TO: <$to>" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, "DATA" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, "To: $to\r\nFrom: $mailFrom\r\nSubject: $mailSubj\r\n$mailHeader\r\n\r\n$mailBody\r\n.\r\n");
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);



$to="[e-mail]";

fputs($smtpConnect, "MAIL FROM: <$mailFrom>" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, "RCPT TO: <$to>" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, "DATA" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);

fputs($smtpConnect, "To: $to\r\nFrom: $mailFrom\r\nSubject: $mailSubj\r\n$mailHeader\r\n\r\n$mailBody\r\n.\r\n");
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);



fputs($smtpConnect,"QUIT" . $crlf);
$smtpResponse = fgets($smtpConnect, 4096);
fclose($smtpConnect);

If I track all the $smtpResponse values... they all look good with proper response for each email. The only problem... [e-mail] never gets their email.

I tried doing some Google searches for SMTP help to see if I am missing something, a call, a parameter, etc... but trying to understand SMTP itself... that can be a nightmare. All what I am doing so far is using some PHP examples that I ran across.

I know there are classes and libraries out there will do this... but I also have heard problems with some of them. That's why we tried to work our own out.

Any suggestions?

[bradgrafelman]

Well I was going to highly suggest that you look at using something like Pear::Mail and perhaps even Pear::Mail_Queue until I read this:

pbrama wrote:

I know there are classes and libraries out there will do this... but I also have heard problems with some of them. That's why we tried to work our own out.

Er... so instead of going with a package that has been in development for a while, you thought it'd be better to create your own? Especially after you admitted that "trying to understand SMTP itself... can be a nightmare" ?

Given the (well-accepted) truth that "All software has bugs", I personally would be more inclined to go with a package that's been in development for over 8 years rather than 0 years. :p

As far as your problem at hand, the first thing I'd do is implement a debugging mechanism in your library that logs all data sent to and received from the remote SMTP server. Sometimes this reveals things that shouldn't be there.

Also, how did you "track all the $smtpResponse values" ? Can you show us that version of the code?

Also, were all of the responses identical? Can you show us those responses verbatim (after carefully obfuscating/replacing e-mail addresses, of course)?

[pbrama]

I appreciate your fast reply. I started using PHPMailer and looked into PEAR than ran into some issues with it. We need to convert thousands of lines of ASP code for a client to PHP. Because alot of their code handles emails (and database stuff), it was decided that it would be easier to create our own libraries that MIMIC some of the ASP code structure instead or... recreating the wheel... so to speak.

That is what brought on the "not use existing"....

As for tracking... I didn't list all that code. All the smtpResponse's were stored in an array for each one call. When I list them out after running the script... they are absolutely identical for each email... no differences. That's what is odd. When I look at it with the "working" SMTP server, it matches as well... (except for the server name). When I look at the header for the emails that DO go through, again, they match too.

That's what is odd by this.... they all match... just never get the email on the first email address. And before someone asks, yup, I changed the addresses around too. Didn't matter. Whatever is first, never gets anything.

[bradgrafelman]

Do you have any control (or relations with those who do) over this new SMTP server? If it's generating a response to the first e-mail, then it must be logging something about that message. Without that additional debugging info, I'm at a loss as well.

Have you tried calling [man]fgets/man in a loop just before the first e-mail is sent, just to make sure you've flushed out the incoming buffer of data?

[pbrama]

Unfortunately, the server is not under our control and tech support... of course... says it's our issue with our code and they don't debug code.

I thought about calling FGETS, heck I even thought about sending a "dummy" email but that to me is just a band-aid.

I figure I am missing something, some call, some response... but can't figure out what.

[bradgrafelman]

pbrama wrote:

tech support... of course... says it's our issue with our code and they don't debug code.

Okay, so you can't prove that it's not your code's fault (hence why the programmer is a popular target), but can tech support prove it's not their fault? Have you tried asking them for logging info from the SMTP server to aid in the debugging process?

Also, what happens if you only send a single e-mail? What about only two e-mails?

[pbrama]

Hmmm, sending a single, guess I didn;t try that... honestly not sure why cept it was a long day. I did send two and only one sent.

Unfortunately, I am having a connection issue from here so i will have to try one tomorrow. Not sure what is going on or if I "broke" the SMTP server... that's not good!!!

I'll have to check with them about the log too...

[bradgrafelman]

pbrama;10980476 wrote:

I'll have to check with them about the log too...

It'd be a very nice thing to have.

I was facing a situation much similar to yours; I was dealing with a remote API and getting erratic responses. Every time I reached out to the entity that managed the API, they always shot back an immediate reply: "Test responses worked for us; must be your code."

I got so frustrated with hearing that (and staring at my code, finding nothing out-of-line with their API docs) that I finally asked for the raw logs for my queries.

I didn't get a response for a while, and I later figured out why; when the tech grep'd for the logs and was about to send them as a reply, he noticed several lines that began: "ERROR-SQL: MySQL server has gone away" :p

[pbrama]

Tried this morning... single email... nothing. Two emails... 2nd one only. Three emails... 2nd & 3rd.

The "results" look like this.....

Open: 220 zimbra.XXXXXXXXX.net ESMTP Postfix

Helo: 250 zimbra.XXXXXXXXXX.net

Auth Request: 334 VXNlcm5hbWU6

AuthUID: 334 UGFzc3dvcmQ6

AuthPWD: 235 2.7.0 Authentication successful




MailFrom: 250 2.1.0 Ok

MailTo: 250 2.1.5 Ok

Data: 354 End data with .

FullData: 250 2.0.0 Ok: queued as 4D0CC2660DE




MailFrom: 250 2.1.0 Ok

MailTo: 250 2.1.5 Ok

Data: 354 End data with .

FullData: 250 2.0.0 Ok: queued as 53F5D2660E0




MailFrom: 250 2.1.0 Ok

MailTo: 250 2.1.5 Ok

Data: 354 End data with .

FullData: 250 2.0.0 Ok: queued as 5E0102660E1

[pbrama]

FOUND IT!!! It actually WAS working. As it turned out, the customer was moving to this new server. They still hadn't changed their DSN for their domains to the new IP. We were testing with the new IP itself.

The some of the email addresses we were sending the test too, were already setup on the new server. So... it was being delivered to the new server... not going out on the net to the old server.

The way we FOUND it... was by luck. We changed the email to one that was setup on the old server but not on the new one and got an error message back about the email not existing on the server... because it was looking at the new one.

Uggghhhhhh!!!!

Always has to be something stupidly simple!!

Thanks for all your help!