ITEM: L0919L

Adjusting sendmail delivery timeout for many hop-counts

3.2.5, Token Ring -> Internet

Customer is unable to send mail to some sites on the internet.  
Customer has not modified the /etc/sendmail.cf file.  The mail
verbose option shows that it gets connected but then returns a
"host unknown" message.  A DEC machine on this token ring can
send mail to this site with no problems; another RS has the
same behavior.

Response:

Mail can successfully be sent across the Internet to the support
center.  The remote hostname can be resolved, but timeouts occur
during any attempts to send mail to these specific sites.  Ping is
successful.

The output of the mail -v and a traceroute shows that the host is
24 hops from me to the customer.  The timeout problem may just mean
he is even more than 24 hops away and can't complete the connection
before sendmail quits.

The sendmail 'r' option allows configuring how long sendmail will
wait for a conversation with a remote host to be completed before
it times out and terminates the connection and queues the mail for
another attempt later.  Increased the timeout value from the default
of five minutes to a greater values seems to have solved the problem.



Support Line: Adjusting sendmail delivery timeout for many hop-counts ITEM: L0919L

Dated: June 1995 Category: N/A

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