SMTP (or Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) is a network protocol, designed for e-mail transmission in TCP/IP networks. The SMTP server is a mailman of the Internet. Basically, it helps emails get to the right destination. SMPT executes processes similar to the mechanism of delivering the actual mail. After you send an email, it gets to this server, which then delivers messages directly to their receivers. By telneting into a given SMPT server, you can test a lot of things, for instance: The operability of the server Presence of a firewall that blocks communication The list of SMTP commands that the mail server supports Besides, you can also define the amount of time needed for a server to response, and check if the server responds with the right hostname. Testing with a manual telnet session Before starting testing smtp, a telnet client needs to be verified for the installation on the server. Then, begin searching a mail server to log in to. You are going to need the DNS MX record for your domain to proceed it. Use this command: Windows: Linux: You need the DNS PTR for the IP you will be using. That’s why you should start with checking your current IP address. There are plenty of websites that can help you with this. Then run the following command, replacing T.T.T.T with your IP address. Windows: Linux: At this point, you have two basic requirements – the PTR for the IP you are going to use and the MX record for railsware.com. Now you can log in to the SMTP server by using this command: You will see something like this code: Something like this should be returned: The MAIL FROM command will be the next to issue. It shows the address where bounces are delivered. The MAIL FROM command was sent, now you can send the RCPT TO command. It determines the user to send the message. There are mail servers, including mail.rsilsware.com, that support PIPELINING. This means that before responding to other commands after the EHLO command, the SMTP mail server will wait until the issuing of the DATA command. In this case, you should enter the MAIL FROM, RCPT TO, and DATA commands before waiting for a response.

The list of online services for testing SMTP servers

Before starting, you have to define the SMTP server’s address. To do it, use ns lookup command or some of the online services.

1 The list of online services for testing SMTP servers1.1 Wormly1.2 MX Toolbox1.3 Test SMTP1.4 Check SMTP1.5 SMTPer

The SMTP check service will include the following stages: checking your server DNS Black List status, relaying configurations, verifying MX records, verifying the email address, PTR Record. These online services will help you examine the SMTP server:

Wormly

Wormly has a free trial to check SMTP servers, but it will not allow you define the password or port, and there’s no secure connection.

MX Toolbox

It’s a free service that will test SMTP Reverse DNS Mismatch, SMTP Transaction Time, SMTP Banner Check, SMTP TLS, SMTP Valid Hostname, SMTP Connection Time, and SMTP Open Relay. But you also will not be able to define the port or enter a password.

Test SMTP

Test SMTP sends requests to SMTP servers for performing Relaying tests. It does not provide you a sufficient toolkit to examine SMTP properly.

Check SMTP

Check SMTP works for some parts of a process but a proper examination is not possible. Besides, this service doesn’t provide a secure connection. Check SMTP can verify MX records, check your server DNS Black List status, verify email address, and run some other tests.

SMTPer

SMTPer is the best solution that gives you a secure connection and authorization and allows defining the port. You also can fill out recipient and sender forms.

Testing SMTP Server from the Command Line in Online Tools and via Telnet - 4