Using NOTES 8 Client for my ISP's POP/SMTP based email service

HCL Domino Domino Forum
1

I’m trying to configure my Notes 8 Client to work with my ISP’s POP/SMTP based email service.

I’m able to use the service with no problems using MS Outlook Express and MS Outlook, but have had no luck in doing the same with the Notes 8 Client.

My ISP is the Bell Sympatico service in Canada and in each of the Outlooks I need to configure them with SSL related settings.

On the NOTES 8 client, I’m able to receive mail now through the POP account I’ve configured, but I can’t send mail through the SMTP account I’ve configured. On my Replicator page I see:

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  • Send outgoing internet mail: →

SSL Error: Invalid SSL message

Failed with smtphm.sympatico.ca: 12:06 PM Today

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Any suggestions on where I can look to see and debug the SMTP/SSL related error code that NOTES is seeing?

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For the SMTP piece of the Service I’ve configured this Account in My Contacts / Accounts

“Bell Sympatico-Incoming/ POP / Local (Office)”

“Bell Sympatico-Outgoing/ SMTP/ Local (Office)”

and

In Advanced for the POP (which works)

Port number: 995

Accept SSL site certificates: Yes

Accept expired SSL certificates: Yes

Send SSL certificates when asked

outbound connections only): Yes

Verify account server name with

remote server’s certificate: Disabled

SSL protocol version: V3.0 with V2.0 handshake

and Advanced for the SMTP (which is reporting “SSL Error: Invalid SSL message”

Port number: 25

Accept SSL site certificates: Yes

Accept expired SSL certificates: Yes

Send SSL certificates when asked

(outbound connections only): Yes

Verify account server name with

remote server’s certificate: Disabled

SSL protocol version: V3.0 with V2.0 handshake

Note: The Ports configured (i.e. POP 995 and SMTP 25) are exactly as configured in my Outlooks where the SMTP works).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

2

Subject: Same here!

I too am trying to configure LN for the Bell SSL settings & am having no joy. Unlike you I can’t even get Inbound to work. I’m using LN 7.0.2 but still… what I’m seeing in my Notes Log when I try to replicate is:2009.12.14 08:59:54 PM [00CC:0004-0B40:wrepl] POP3Client: RetrieveMessages

2009.12.14 08:59:54 PM [00CC:0004-0B40:wrepl] POP3Client: Connect: Host pophm.sympatico.ca, Port 995, Use SSL: 1

2009.12.14 08:59:58 PM [00CC:0004-0B40:wrepl] POP3Client: ReceiveResponse: +OK BLU0-POP57 POP3 server ready

2009.12.14 08:59:58 PM [00CC:0004-0B40:wrepl] POP3Client: Connect: pop3 greeting -

2009.12.14 08:59:58 PM [00CC:0004-0B40:wrepl] POP3Client: Authenticate: User b1???, Pass xxx

2009.12.14 08:59:58 PM [00CC:0004-0B40:wrepl] POP3Client: CommandUSER: b1???

2009.12.14 08:59:58 PM [00CC:0004-0B40:wrepl] POP3Client: ReceiveResponse: +OK password required

2009.12.14 08:59:58 PM [00CC:0004-0B40:wrepl] POP3Client: CommandPASS: xxx

2009.12.14 08:59:59 PM [00CC:0004-0B40:wrepl] POP3Client: ReceiveResponse: -ERR authentication failed

And, I did verify that the password entered is correct. It doesn’t seem to matter if I’m using my email address or my b1-ID in the Account document; neither work. I know I had tried a year or so ago to use the pophm/smtphm settings but couldn’t get them to work then either. I ended up reverting to the pop8/smtp8 servers – I’m wondering if the vintage of my a/c has something to do with it.

I disabled my anti-virus email checking even but that made no difference. I noticed that the ports in my anti-virus s/w were a little off for the Bell SSL settings but even after changing them it still didn’t work, so I disabled it to eliminate it from the suspects list, but still no joy.

This is so frustrating !

3

Subject: Using NOTES 8 Client for my ISP’s POP/SMTP based email service

Judy,I think the problem you have with the “POP” account side of your Notes connection to BELL Sympatico is the id + pw word you’re using.

With the migration of BELL’s Sympatico service away from the original service they used to provide to some sort of arrangement they have with Microsoft’s HotMail service (and I think the corresponding introduction of SSL to make the service more secure), BELL moved away from their users needing to provide their old “b1****” style id and password when you login to their Sympatico service, to requiring you to use your full Sympatico email id “{your sympatico email id}@sympatico.ca” and the same password you use with your “b1****” id.

I suspect if you try this, you’ll at least be able to >receive< your Sympatico email into Notes like me.

However, your >send< / SMTP side will likely continue to broken. I believe the problem with this connection relates to Bell Sympatico having effectively “outsourced” / using Microsoft Hotmail as a “white lable” emil service. Things appear to have been integrated between Bell & Microsoft to work normally if you use either of the Microsoft Outlooks as your email client (and a couple of others), but Lotus Notes isn’t one of the clients that Sympatico supports.

I don’t know whether it’s something that needs to be tweaked somewhere in the Lotus client configuration (or code?) side of the SMTP / SSL connection or something that’s happening in the Bell Sympatico / Microsoft Hotmail side of things.

If someone could tell us if and where we could see any more detailed SMTP / SSL related logging that might expand on the problem Notes sees, we might know something more.

4

Subject: Using NOTES 8 Client for my ISP’s POP/SMTP based email service

Judy,I think I’ve finally figured out at least a workaround for the problem I have using the NOTES Client with the BELL Sympatico email service (i.e. their POP / SMTP service).

I’m not sure if my “workaround” will work for you, but you could give it a try. I’m not sure it it will work for all Sympatico accounts (by which I mean setup more recently), but it does for me (I’ve had my service for many years).

The “workaround” is to configure your Sympatico Accounts in NOTES (the POP one and the SMTP one) to:

a) >not< use SSL

b) use your original old 6 character “b1****” sympatico id (not “{your Sympatico email id}@sympatico.ca” as I suggested in my previous post

c) >don’t< use the pophm.sympatico.ca and smpthm@sympatico.ca servers. Instead use the servers you may have originally used at one point in time … in my case it is pop1.sympatico.ca on port 110 and smtp1.sympatico.ca on port 25. I guess these old servers still exist and I guess haven’t been migrated to the security “improvements” provided by SSL.

5

Subject: Work-around

Hi John, My account had indeed been blocked on the pophm server (I guess due to trying too many times to sign in w/my b1 ID), but wasn’t obvious to me since incoming mail was fine still on the pop8 server; so MSN folks unblocked it for me. I can pick up mail from the pophm server using SSL now, but like you can’t send using smtphm. I also figured I could revert to using my original settings (smtp8 in my case) for now & that works but don’t know for how long. Bell’s implementing this SSL change in January 2010 so it may stop working then.

BTW, I emailed Bell with details of my problems knowing full well that they don’t support LN. Result was as expected – the “IT support” guy didn’t even read my email or couldn’t understand English 'cause he simply parrotted the help for how to change your password via the web site & how to set up my Outlook!

I added these lines to my notes.ini:

SmtpClientDebug=1

POP3ClientDebug=1

Debug_SSL_All=1

with the result that I get a handshake error in my notes.log when I try to use smtphm:

2009.12.15 08:49:32 PM SMTPClient: Starting to transfer 1 messages to smtphm.sympatico.ca for user CN=Judy Kilpinen/O=Judy Kilpinen

2009.12.15 08:49:32 PM [0D5C:0004-0358:wrepl] SMTPClient: Attempting to Connect: Host smtphm.sympatico.ca, Port 25, SSL Port 0, Connecting Domain smtphm.sympatico.ca

2009.12.15 08:49:34 PM [0D5C:0004-0358:wrepl] SMTPClient: SSL handshake error: 1046h

2009.12.15 08:49:34 PM [0D5C:0004-0358:wrepl] SMTPClient: Attempting to Disconnect:

2009.12.15 08:49:34 PM [0D5C:0004-0358:wrepl] SMTPClient: Connection already disconnected

I also went into my Preferences > User Security > Authorities & accepted all possible internet certificates base on other posts I found re: gmail SSL problems but it didn’t help. I also read on same blog (Richard Schwartz) someone who was trying to configure Rogers SSL with no success either & other posts that indicate it may be a cipher incompatibility. I’m no SSL whiz so I’m at a loss now what to do.

Richard’s blog on the topic: http://smokey.rhs.com/web/blog/PowerOfTheSchwartz.nsf/d6plinks/RSCZ-683MXN

Thanks & we’ll see what happens in Jan.2010!

6

Subject: work around

Yes … it looks like we’re both reading similar posts from the web. As you’ve indicated my “workaround” may be short lived if Sympatico discontinues their old POP and SMTP servers in January and require people to use the new “hm” servers and SSL. (Thanks for the tip on how to see more NOTES logging in the POP / SMTP area).

7

Subject: How I Got Mine Working

I use Hands On Webhosting for my band server, and I got the SSL errors when trying to connect the mail clients to my hosts. They are now working with the following settings

POP SSL Enabled

Port Number: As described by my ISP (an alternate)

Accept SSL Certs = Yes

Accept Expired SSL Certs = Yes

Send SSL Certs When Asked = Yes

Verify account server name with remote servers certificate = Disabled

SSL protocol version = V3.0 only

SMTP

POP SSL Enabled

Port Number: As described by my ISP (an alternate)

Accept SSL Certs = Yes

Accept Expired SSL Certs = Yes

Send SSL Certs When Asked = Yes

Verify account server name with remote servers certificate = Disabled

SSL protocol version = Negotiated

Whooo hooo! Only 4 hours later.