When your email experience is blocked or not working, you can call up your phpmailer account and verify the connection. If the connection fails, then you know that your phpmailer is working!
When a user sends an email to your phpmailer, the user’s email is verified against your database to ensure that the recipient exists and that they have approved the message for delivery.
If this process fails, the user will not receive their mail as soon as they want which is why it is important to get it working initially. When this happens, users will feel more comfortable sending emails to your account!
This article will discuss ways to help fix this problem and get users on their feet again.
Check your host and port for the SMTP connection
If the SMTP connection fails, check your host and port for the SMTP connection.
SMTP is a common protocol used for email. Many hosting companies offer SMTP, so look into that!
If your hosting doesn’t offer SMTP, then you can use iMessage or another messaging app to send and receive emails. You can also use an exchange or online mail server such as gmail or hotmail.
Checking your host and using a different internet connection may help as well.
Make sure the From address is correct
If your email client is sending an Email with an invalid From address, then it will fail.
The main problem is that the From address is not validly verified. This happens when your client does not have access to the domain where the email account is registered.
To fix this, you can use a different server to verify the From address. There are many free services that can do this for you, so try some of them until you find one that works.
If you need help setting up a From address verification server, look up How to Set Up an Email Verification Server on Google Play or Apple App Store.
Are you using a trusted email service?
Your email service should be able to connect to your phpmailer account. If it does not, then try another service or look for an alternate way to communicate with your organization.
If you are using a desktop app, use a dedicated app where only messages can be sent and received. A mobile app can have different rules, depending on how the recipient uses it.
If you are using a web app, make sure that your domain is registered and working correctly. Check the settings are set up correctly and that they are receiving notifications from the phpmailer.
Check that you have the correct credentials
When you try to connect to the SMTP server, the server will ask for your username and password.
If the connection fails, check that you have the correct credentials. Most providers will require a username of mail and a password of nothing, so if not, make sure you do these steps.
If you have trouble connecting, make sure that your computer is connected to the internet and that you are running an up-to-date version of phpmailer.
Check that TLS or SSL is enabled
Email addresses can be protected with a certificate or a TLS (SSL) protocol that uses encryption.
If your app requires SSL, you must also install and use a certificate. Some popular ones are from Let’s Encrypt, VeriSign, or ProtonMail.
If your app requires TLS, you must install and use a protocol. The one that works the best is Transport Layer Security (TLS). Most web browsers support it now, but in the past it was not common.
TLS was added in because of potential attacks on email servers. Attackers are looking for ways to see user names, email addresses, and possibly even messages during an email account verification process.
Ensure that you have a valid certificate
If the site does not appear to be hosted in America, then it is possible that the site is not using a valid certificate.
To check if the site is using a valid certificate, go to http://serveraddress.com/ and view the SSL certificate. If it looks like this, then the site is using a valid certificate.
As of late 2017 and early 2018, all major web servers run on top of TLS (transport layer security). This encrypted connection requires that both parties use a Certificate Authority (CA) to verify that the other party has signed their server’s certificates.
If your server does not have an SSL (secure ssl) connection, then you must purchase a new one! Buying a new SSL cert can be difficult, so it is recommended to buy them through one of the online platforms below.
Review your SMTP logs for errors
If you are still encountering the above error, check your SMTP connections in your mailer settings. Make sure that your server is accepting emails and that your smtp server is configured to receive emails.
If you are using port 25 as your SMTP server, make sure that your mailer is using a port of at least 1521. If you are using port 587 as the SMTP protocol, make sure that your mailer is configured to use TLS when communicating with the server.
SMTP connects require a username and password so it is important to review these in case of an error.
Reconfigure your SMTP server connection
If the above steps do not help, check to see if your SMTP server is being configured for TLS.
SMTP requires that the server be configured for TLS, which is why your mailer is failing to connect to the senders.
To configure your SMTP server for TLS, go to Server > Connections and click on Add. Then, select Transport protocol and select SMTP: Use this step to connect with TLS.
This will ensure that your mailer knows it must use a secure connection when sending emails. If you have trouble changing this setting or are struggling with the other steps listed, ask a trusted person for help.
When finished setting up the connection, enter smtp in the type field and network field to preserve these settings.
