Understanding Undeliverable or Return E-mails
January 8th, 2008 Posted in business, emailBy Judith Kallos
When an e-mail is returned as undeliverable, that does not necessarily indicate that your e-mail it “broken” or even that the reason for the returned message has anything to do with you.
There will always be a numerical error code message as well as a brief description as to why the e-mail was unable to be delivered in the top part above the returned message. That code will give you a clue as to what may be happening. Here is a link to a site that covers e-mail error codes.
Some of the most common error codes are:
421 Service not available, closing transmission channel
450 Requested mail action not taken: mailbox unavailable (E.g., mailbox busy or full to capacity)
451 Requested action aborted: local error in processing
452 Requested action not taken: insufficient system storage
500 Syntax error, command unrecognized
501 Syntax error in parameters or arguments
504 Command parameter not implemented
550 Requested action not taken: mailbox unavailable (E.g., mailbox not found, no access)
551 User not local; please try
552 Requested mail action aborted: exceeded storage allocation
553 Requested action not taken: mailbox name not allowed (E.g., mailbox syntax incorrect)
554 Transaction failed
Most of the confusion comes in when you receive a returned or “undeliverable” e-mail that you did not initiate or send. This is generally due to tricky spammers or one of your contacts that has a virus on their computer which just sent the virus off to everyone on their address book — with your e-mail address in the From: field.
In both of these cases there isn’t much you can do but hit Delete. You probably cannot find out who you know that has a virus, nor can you track down the spammer throwing other’s e-mail addresses in the From: field to try and shield their identity.
Most times your returns will be due to benign reasons such as mailbox filled to capacity or due to a typo; no such e-mail address/account. What you can do, however, is become a bit more informed and familiar with the typical return messages you’ll see so that you understand what is going on. And with technology that’s always a good thing!
About the Author: Judith Kallos is an authoritative and good-humored Technology Muse who has played @ http://www.TheIStudio.com for over a decade. Check out her popular E-mail Etiquette Web Site, Books and Free Tools @: http://www.NetManners.com
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