I hate my isp

[Crusader]

My ISP (TELUS) recently blocked out all SMTP traffic. The only way to get 3rd party SMTP sending is by paying another $20 or so What should I do?

Live Technical Support: I have a connectivity problem
Messages:


TELUS eCare 04:22:04 PM Oct 05 2004

Your service request has been received and will be queued shortly.

TELUS eCare 04:22:18 PM Oct 05 2004
Your request has been received by the TELUS Technical Support Help Desk and has been put in a queue until a support analyst is available. Your request is being handled in the order it was received. If you prefer not to wait, simply use the "I have to go ..." box in the lower right of the screen.

04:23:33 PM Oct 05 2004
I'm trying to send e-mail through an smtp server not of Telus but I can't seem to send any e-mail. Why can't I send mail?

TELUS eCare 04:24:37 PM Oct 05 2004
A TELUS Technical Support analyst Mike has been assigned to your request. He or she is looking into your issue. Please wait for a message.

Mike 04:26:25 PM Oct 05 2004
Telus recently put a filter on any outbound SMTP traffic to any other server that our own. Primary reasoning behind it is reducing the number of virus infected emails sent by infected machines. Any consumer plan will only be able to send messages using "smtp.telus.net". The static IP address plans do not have this limitation, so if you do require a 3rd party SMTP server, perhaps contact Sales at 310-4638 and let them know you're thinking of a static IP plan.

04:27:33 PM Oct 05 2004
How much more would that cost?

Mike 04:29:00 PM Oct 05 2004
This link outlines current prices for plan upgrades: http://www.mytelus.com/internet/highspeed/prices.do

04:33:23 PM Oct 05 2004
Is there any way to authorize specific 3rd party smtp servers? It seems stupid to pay more just to send e-mail through your work server.

04:35:36 PM Oct 05 2004
Not at the present. I do apologize for the inconvenience, but the steps were pretty much necessary: network traffic tied to email virii was at the point where it may have started causing instability on the network. They may decide to change this a bit in the future (especially with the release of SP2). At current I'm not aware of any plans to do so, however.

04:37:18 PM Oct 05 2004
Alright then. Thanks for responding quickly.

 

[McDope]

You ISP has probably blocked port 25 which as you may already know is the one used by SMTP servers.

You will need to find a third party mail server that allows for relaying messages and (this is the important bit) that is configured so as to use a non standard port (ie, other than port 25). There are some paid ones such as the one at no-ip.com

http://www.no-ip.com/services/mail/smtp

and I guess there have to be countless other similar services available for free. If you google a bit I'm sure you'll find them out.

You could try installing a local SMTP server configured so as to use a different, nonstandard port (such as 9925) but you will still face the same problem since even though your mail client would connect to your STMP server through 9925, your local SMTP server would still try to deliver your message using port 25, which would still be blocked.

Mmm, does it make sense?

 

[Crusader]

They've blocked out my alt (port 26) and I have reason to believe that they've blocked out all other ports...

 

[McDope]

I have reason to believe that they've blocked out all other ports...

If I understood it right, then there's no excuse in this world, IMHO. I'm sure I'd move to another ISP as soon as possible.

I can (partially) understand why they could think of blocking port 25 but I simply cannot imagine the Internet being limited to ports 80 and probably 21.

I'm sorry I can't think of anything else.

 

[Crusader]

They're the only DSL provider in BC

 

[adam_uk]

proxy server maybe?

thats not on though thats stupid if isps in the uk started doing that id flip

 

[ichibaka]

try PostCast SMTP Server free edition, you can configure it to send message using any port.

 

[McDope]

That would not work. Your mail client would communicate with PostCast (or other local mail server for that matter) through any given port, *but* PostCast would still try to send messages through the standarized port 25.

http://www.postcastserver.com/html/port_25_blocking.html

The only solution in my view would be to find a third party mail server somewhere else that would allow for relaying and that would listen at a different port. But, if his ISP has indeed blocked so many other ports, there may not be a solution.

Crusader, you should definitely verify whether that's true or not. I really find it hard to believe that they are proceeding that way, it just does not make sense.

Sorry to hear they are the only ISP around. That would explain their insane policies

 

[superprogrammer]

Please change the ISP

 

[Crusader]

As I noted before, it's the only DSL provider in BC

 

[McDope]

I've been looking for further info and it appears that you might still get a chance to use SMTP connecting either to port 587 (reserved for authenticated SMTP) or by making an SSL connection to port 465 (reserved for secure SMTP connections). Of course, provided your ISP did not block these ports and your mail server supports such connections. Worth a shot.

 

[YUPAPA]

You can use their SMTP server isn't it?
It would be better and faster than using 3rd party SMTP since it is just one hop away from you.