SUMMARY: Mail problem

From: Upkar Singh Kohli (upkar@wsu-eng.eng.wayne.edu)
Date: Wed Feb 05 1992 - 17:42:56 CST


My query was regarding the error message:
...host name configuration error...
when trying to send mail from machines using SunOS 4.1.1.

Some prompt and very useful replies from:
        Neil W Rickert <rickert@cs.niu.edu>
        lars@CMC.COM (Lars Poulsen)
        birger@vest.sdata.no ( Birger Wathne)
        Debbie McGlade <debbie@cs.odu.edu>
        Michael.Meyers@Corp.Sun.COM (Michael Meyers)
        arrent!root@uu.psi.com (Operator)

There were suggestions about configuring my sendmail.cf... I did
not want to do that since at this stage customization is not important.

The nail-hitting replies:
-------------
birger@vest.sdata.no ( Birger Wathne)

I had a problem like that where it seemed like the sendmail process
on the mail server was convinced that /var/spool/mail was mounted.

I must confess i had experimented a bit, using automount among other things.
But after i set everything back to normal, sendmail still acted as if the
directory was mounted, and tried forwarding to itself recursively.

I was in a hurry, so i fixed it temporarily by removing the OR option on
the server. I don't remember the permanent fix anymore, but it's back to
normal now.

------------------------
Michael.Meyers@Corp.Sun.COM (Michael Meyers)

 Bug Id: 1029205
 Release summary: 4.0.3
 Synopsis: Sendmail breaks if /var/spool/mail is a direct automount in remote mode
 Description:
        If you make /var/spool/mail a direct automount point then when in remote mode sendmail will try to connect to itself and loop forever. Here is
        an example where the sendmail deamon is not running with it running the
        error message is "Trying 129.156.136.42... connected.
        Cdredd 8 % # Trying 129.156.136.42... connected.
        220 dredd.UK.Sun.COM Sendmail 4.0/SMI-4.0 ready at Mon, 30 Oct 89 12:24:31 GMT
>>HELO dredd.UK.Sun.COM
        553 dredd.UK.Sun.COM host name configuration error"
        :

As for finding "this patch", that could be a problem. If "this patch" refers
to a patch for bug id 1029205 then you're out of luck. Unfortunately there is
no patch for that bug. There is a workaround that was listed which may or may
not help you in your situation.

 Work around:
        either set the hostname in the sendmail.cf file or on the command line
        for the R option:
    
        So change the line
        OR
        to be
        ORflash
        
        in the /etc/sendmail.cf file where flash is the name of the mail
        server.

-----------------------------

I had to specify to server with the OR option on ALL clients to
escape the problem...

Thanks to all the people who replied.

Upkar Kohli



This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.2 : Fri Sep 28 2001 - 23:06:35 CDT