SMTP outbound blocked

[JefferMC ACE - Wizard]

I'm sorry that you had such a rough experience.  Others have gotten port 25 unblocked on a residential account.  However, they did have to be persistant.

[seanmcc]

Just took one call for me to get my port 25 unblocked.  I just had to explain it and ask they contact tier two.  I was also able to get my reverse dns changed, but that took an email to a fellow named Ron at ATT.  Took about 24 hours to get it all sorted.  Now I can email back to craigs list and others that do reverse lookups.

[Big-B]

So just spoke with AT&T via chat and also Matt via eMail. They all want to charge $29 via that other service...

How can they say me requesting a port unblock is UNSUPPORTED via AT&T and I must use that service? That company is for unsupported help like Virus, Wifi setup, other troubleshooting not service related.

My request to unblock a port is service related. What is wrong with this company? Either they are greedy as heck or dont know how to train people what the additional support service is REALLY for...

[spd2demun ACE - Master]

Call back and ask to be escalated to Tier 2; they can do it for you.

[Big-B]

Isn't Matt in Lvl2? He is on the list of people doing this...

I spoke with a manger even and they said no I have to pay.

[spd2demun ACE - Master]

Yes, but I thought maybe his email might have said otherwise.  You are looking at Port 25?

Look at this post here, they got it done by Tier 2; took 24 hrs. to take hold.  This is how it has always been done.  If they're charging for it, that is news to us.

I know they are pushing ConnecTech, but that's what this free forum is for!

You might wait and let others chime in later who have had this port unblocked (at no charge).

[Big-B]

Here is first response:

" I can get this done for you, in order to unblock port 25 there is a onetime $29 fee, however there are other things on the U-verse network blocked at the CO end that we cannot turn off, the only way around this would be to purchase a block of 8 static IP’s which would be $15 a month reoccurring."

Here is response two when I ask to not have the fee and ask about what other ports blocked

"We block port 25 by default to keep down on spam circulating our network, unfortunately I cannot unblock this port unless you pay the onetime $29 fee that would show up on your next bill.... The only other port by my knowledge that I know that is blocked is port 143 which is commonly used for Microsoft Exchange Server...."

I am sure other ports are blocked they dont know or wont tell, maybe why others have issues with media streaming ect.. but in a nut shell AT&T is greedy and dont seem to care anymore.

I asked the chat reps to show me terms or something that says port 25 is blocked and we must pay a fee to unblock and none could, said no documentation exists.

So you can make up this policy but cant show it because it does not exists, than how do you follow it?

I think I am going to just cancel. Simple things are a hassle with this company. They worry about more money but lose more customer to crappy CS than anything....

[brexroth]

Call direct to Tier 2 to get the unblock done.  See the 2nd message in the thread http://forums.att.com/t5/High-Speed-Internet-Access/static-ip-addresses/td-p/2553697 (I keep this page bookmarked) to see a direct number to Tier 2.  This is the number I called back in Dec. 2010 to get port 25 unblocked on my residential account.  All I asked for was for outgoing port 25 to be unblocked.  No hassle at all from the tech.  I would note that even after it was unblocked, I was unable to send email out.  Resolved this by emailing Tier 2 (required having my account un-provisioned and then re-provisioned).  You can read about this in the thread http://forums.att.com/t5/High-Speed-Internet-Access/anyone-else-trouble-with-att-connec-tech-and-por... (my message is #8).

Brian

[spd2demun ACE - Master]

Any luck with those suggestions in the last post?

I cannot believe they are going to start charging for this, and are constantly steering people to PAID support!

[Big-B]

Nope 3 people tell me same thing, 1 manager, and 2 different level two... They claim and I will quote Matt "   As of last year the company has decided that unblocking port 25 is out of Tier 2’s scope of support due to it having to do with dealing with Outlook and 3rd party applications. Again I do apologize but this is the companies standpoint, and I cannot change it or else I will be in trouble."

What the heck an unblock request has to do with apps and other steps heck if I know, I even clearly stated on phone and in chat and in email I do NOT want to troubleshoot or get help with ANYTHING, just a port unblock and I would handle reset.

"No Sir we cant, that's outside my scope." Pay the other side of the company who can do it, when whats funny is they send you back to AT&T if its ANYTHING else other than port 25 saying "sounds like a service issue" LOL... So they are "Advanced Support" but have to say I need to call AT&T. guess that confirms they are not really AT&T, just as TOS say its subcontracted and affiliated companies... Yet AT&T claims it is them.. My butt it is... Its a company you get a cut from for people using and an easy skate goat...

What happened to companies that care for customers? I understand not going way outside your scope like helping with a virus or something but even IF I wanted help using port 25 they should do it, a mom and pop shop will do anything for its customer, a big greedy company looks for more ways to make money and while doing so does not even help with what they should.

I cant wait till comcast is done here, screw it even with 250GB cap, I rather pay for 2 accounts or a business account at 2x the cost than pay a company who cares jack for its customers.

[seanmcc]

Maybe mine was easy because I already have the fixed IP package??  I just called in and asked for tier 2 support to have port 25 unblocked.  "Will you hold sir while I check on that?"... 2 minutes later it was done.  No charge or even an attempt to charge me.  What was only 2 weeks ago.

[spd2demun ACE - Master]

I'm not doubting you, Big-B.

Anyone else here who had luck getting Port 25 opened in the past few weeks, with no fuss?

[peeeeeanut]

Wish it were good news, but...earlier today I:

1.) Called CS, wound up with clueless tech who only wanted to discuss setting up my email client (NOT the problem).  When I heard her start hemming and hawing when I said I use a Macintosh computer (many low level techs will immediately insist things won't work on Mac when they're simply too lazy or uninformed to gather the correct information), I asked to be transferred to higher-level support.  She sent me to Connect Tech, which asked for its $29.99.  The justification is that I'm using a "third party client" and not AT&T Webmail, which is the only email option AT&T is prepared to support.  I literally laughed before I more or less hung up on them (not rudely, but I don't see why I should pay $30 to use my work email address on DSL service I pay for).

2.) Tried online chat.  The tech said I had to upgrade to a business account to unblock 25 but couldn't tell me how much it would cost and said I had to call Sales.

Here's the backstory:  Sometime last fall (how I wish I had recorded when/who I spoke to) I called AT&T to register my two or three Yahoo/Comcast/Secureserver email addresses so I can send mail from 'em.  At that point I was told that was an option and that I needed to register said addresses to be able to use them.  I get that they need to battle spam, and can live with this as a compromise to having a blocked 25 but...only one of the three addresses (the Comcast one) will send mail.

I can't seem to find the proper bit of information I need to request this over again.  Guess I could call Tier 1 again, but the last tech didn't understand even what I was talking about...the web "help" pages have been redesigned and I can't find anything to do with this issue, just dum-dum information on what email is, how to press the "send" button etc.

Sigh.  Any info on where to go from here appreciated.  My issue is that I have to design a complicated email newsletter, with graphics and special fonts, and I simply can't do that using (anyone's) Webmail.

I think what I'll do is call back, record the Tier 1 agent's user name/info number or whatever and keep a paper trail so I can try every option to get hold of someone in Tier 2.  By the way, when I called I wasn't told there was a Tier 2 - was transferred directly to Connect Tech, which immediately asked for money to solve the problem.

[alt_phil]

Wow, this thread blew up here recently.

I'm really bummed out to see all the problems people are having trying to get SMTP unblocked.  I too had no problem at all the first time, took a couple minutes.  The first person I spoke to had it done and it was immeadiate.  No sweat at all.

This thread I started was because there was some crazy problem where their system SHOWED that 25 was already unblocked, but it wasn't really.

And what's with 143 now?  Wha?  Blocking 143???  That's ridiculous, AT&T!!!  That's just standard IMAP, not specific to exchange.  They aren't trying to block IMAP now, are they?  How the heck does that help fight spam?  Stupid.

Man, I'm really starting to regret giving up Comcast in favor of U-verse.  My connection was faster, and way more reliable.

Well, only thing I could suggest is continue being persistant.  I'm very interested to know if AT&T actually did change their policy regarding unblocking port 25 on request.  I'd have to drop AT&T if they stopped letting me run my own mailserver.  That'd certainly be the straw that breaks this camel's back, considering the very unstable service I've had so far.

I'm just not very happy with my service.  Having another service tech come out today to try to fix my unstable internet issues, fix my non-working 2nd ipTV receiver, and replace the dead PSU battery.  I'm a bit anxious over it, because the last time a tech came out to my house, he replaced some equipment, and that's when all this mess with SMTP being blocked again all happened.

But no, I would NEVER speak to Connect tech and pay money to have someone give me incorrect info.

[alt_phil]

Well, tech came and left.  He got my 2nd receiver working again, and showed me how my bonded pair install shouldn't be necissary.  He said he can't see why they even set me up with a bonded pair in the first place, and said the bonded pairs can be kind of flaky.

So I'm trying running with only one of the links up, and I'll see if that improves stability.

The important thing is that this time, my smtp outbound is still working.  Yay!  I was worried about that.

[spd2demun ACE - Master]

Great you're up and running again.

I don't understand what's up the port blocking lately either.

[steverikli]

At the risk of beating a dead horse, I now have an experience to share ...

I recently signed up for U-Verse DSL with the 8 static IP package in the Santa Clara, CA area.

Install went well, figured out how to config the statics on RG so far, etc.

However as many others have experienced, outbound SMTP on port 25 is blocked.

After reading many (many!) other peoples' experiences here and elsewhere, and because I'd

had a good experience with them for another issue, I decided to try emailing u-versecare@att.com

to unblock port 25 for my address range.

FYI, the folks responding to my emails to that address have email signatures which say:

AT&T U-Verse Tier II Technical Support

Social Media Support Team

So I had hope I was reaching knowledgeable people who could actually help me -- the forums

almost always say "talk to Tier II to get help".

But cutting to the chase:  the technician tells me:

   "The port 25 filter is set to protect our network from spammers. Since
     your account is labeled as a Consumer account there is a onetime fee to
     unblock the port 25 filter. I can unblock the port if you will allow the
     charge of $29 to be added to your account."

So it sounds like I've found someone who can/will fix the situation, but there's the infamous

$29 fee again that I've read so much about.

Any advice on how to handle this before I agree to the $29 fee (ransom?) to restore acces

to port 25 ?  I never had to do anything like this in 10+ years as a regular DSL customer,

and never had blocked access to any common network services ports.

[SomeJoe7777 ACE - Geek]

Matt, who used to be on the Social Media Support team has stated over on DSL Reports that the $29 has been officially instituted and can't be waived, unfortunately.

My guess would be that AT&T wants only people who seriously have the need to have port 25 unblocked to have it done.  Many power users used to call and request the port be unblocked "just because" when they didn't really need or make use of that functionality.

You might, however, pay the $29 fee to have it unblocked, and then call billing and see if they can give you a small promotion on the TV service to make up for it.

[steverikli]

Thanks SomeJoe7777 -- interesting news about the $29.  I (politely) asked the Tier-II Social Media Support

Team technician for a pointer/URL/etc. which documents the fee policy.

I can understand AT&T's stance on not wanting spam to originate from their networks, and I can even

understand (to a lesser degree) the fee to unblock port 25.  My issue at this point is the way AT&T/U-verse

handle (don't handle) disclosing their policy and the fee.

E.g. if it were clearly stated or documented up-front during the customer sign-up phase, it wouldn't come as

a surprise and perhaps wouldn't be as objectionable to some people.

Fortunately I wasn't taken completely by surprise at the block nor the fee, from reading other's experiences

here in the forums; but it still seems to me that AT&T/U-Verse are doing a disservice to their customers by

not being more forthcoming, and effectively forcing us to rely on rumor, guesses, tribal knowledge, etc.

[rocketsci]

- I thought every ISP blocked outgoing port 25.  I first encountered this with ATT (then SBC) about 10 years ago on a regular old DSL line.  I formally had COMCAST at home and they blocked it as well.

- The company I use to host my email provides port 587 as an alternative for outgoing mail. gmail also supports 587. This works fine for client to server connections on UVERSE and COMCAST. I've never had the need to run SMTP at home, so I don't know if server to server connections work on this port or not.

- even the guys explaining how to set up Outlook should have this information.

[steverikli]

Not all ISPs block outgoing port 25.  Many ISPs have customers who run their own mail/SMTP servers and therefore require

the ability to send messages to other mail servers and relays, on port 25.

In fact, I ran my own domain and mailservers on AT&T residential DSL (not U-Verse) for 10+ years and port 25 was never

blocked, nor was it ever even an issue as far as I know.  Of course, as has been mentioned elsewhere on this forum, "not

all AT&T's are created equal".  :-)  That is, what may be (have been) the case for PacBell could be different for SWBell etc.

The point about alternate ports is fine for some mail clients (Outlook, Thunderbird, etc), but as noted -- it doesn't apply if

you are running a mail server and need to deliver mail messages to/from other mail servers.

[terry5578]

Just wanted to add my 2cents - I just resently upgraded from DSL to U-verse and discovered my out bound email blocked.  At first I could not get anyone willing to help without me paying first.   Then I found this forum.  I called back and requested to have my port 25 unblocked.  The first guy wanted to send me to Connect Tech like the earlier messages said.  I requested Tier 2 support instead and got it.  The first guy again wanted to send me to Connect Tech and said there was a $29 charge to unblock port 25.  I refused and told him I was reading on this forum I would be sent to Connect Tech if the person I was talking to didn't really know what he was doing and I would rather call back and try again.  Which I did.  This time I told the first guy I was having email issues and I wanted my port 25 unblocked - to my surprise instead of wanting to send me to Connect Tech he said he could do that and asked if he could put me on hold a minute - I said yes - he did - he came back within a couple minutes and asked to try it again.  He did it - my email started working and I didn't have to pay the ransom.

I want to thank this forum -  I was ready to dump U-verse and go to cable.  Now I might keep it a while.

[spd2demun ACE - Master]

Thanks for letting us know it CAN still be done without a charge, and a little persistence.

[Atlas5001]

We had the same problem at work. We had to switch from att dsl to att uverse. After the switch outlook express wouldn't send email with the settings that had just worked on the previous dsl service. Went through all the settings to change  - port 465 register email addresses thru the yahoo/att account ...... bunch of crap. We just wanted to send email thru our server. Do we really have to go thru att\yahoo email? Turns out that a simple change in settings in outlook express from port 25 to 587 was all that  needed changed! Wish I had found this out before I spent 6 hours messing with settings and reading thru all kinds of posts! It was actually easy to find the answer in the att support page. I just typed "port 25" in the ask a question box. I'm not a networking expert, so maybe this is the wrong answer for you, but it did solve our out going email problems. I think att should have made this much easier to find - the tech could have even mentioned it, or at the very least the support people on the phone (if you can actually get through) should have the answer. Hope this helps someone. JIM

Link:http://www.att.com/esupport/article.jsp?sid=KB402877#fbid=7CMxDO66-N1

[mottsmith321]

1st call: I ended up at Tier 1 and he logged into my RG and said that port 25 was already open. Started asking about my email client, etc. OK, thanks for your help.

2nd call: Started at Tier 1, said they could send me to ConnectTech. I asked for Tier 2. Tier 2 agent looked and couldn't find anything and said that ConnectTech could do it for the $29 fee that I could probably deactivate immediately and not get charged. No thanks, I'll keep trying.

3rd call: Tier 1 agent put me on hold for a couple of minutes, came back and said to try again. I confirmed that he wasn't just checking the RG and he said he was using another tool on my account to unblock port 25. It didn't work initially and he said he would try it again. Then it worked! No Tier 2 or ConnectTech or $29 fee!

This was on 8/16/2011. It does take a little persistence to get through to someone who knows what they are doing. I used this same phrase every time "I would like SMTP outbound on port 25 unblocked". Don't try to over-explain or say that you need it to send email from your home server, etc. Just stick with that phrase. If they are adept with the knowledge base tools on their end, they will figure it out.

Thanks,

Matt (aka mottsmith321 ... seriously, who blocks specific letter combinations from a username? I couldn't have 'att' in my username)

[spd2demun ACE - Master]

That's good to hear! 

It used to always be free, but seems they are just referring people to ConnecTech for simple things these days.

[remops]

I had this issue when I first setup outlook to use my business address for outgoing reply's. CS said they didn't work with outlook but I would have to pay for their contech support. At the time I had no idea what was happening and thought I would call my hosting company they had me change my outgoing port to 26. Works well no problem.

Try port 26

[JohnMullins]

I have set up a private domain. It is registered correctly and has the proper MX records. I have my own DNS and mail server (postfix on a linux box). All of my mail works correctly except for outgoing. Yes port 25 was blocked but I was using 465 with tls/ssl. I would correctly autenticate with the server but continue to get 553 errors.

I have used on-line chat, tier 1, tier 2. They finally got me into ct for $15/month. So today I call in to check and tier 1 says they can't service me and escalate. Tier2 says that I have to use CT. I use connecttech online chat an the tech can't find my account info. He refers me to sales. Sales sees that I have ct and puts a tech on. After convincing hime I was talking about a server he checks and they unblocked port 25, I changed my server to use it and get the same error. Connecttech escaltes to tier2. They get yahoo support involved. It turns out that yahoo requires the from address to be registered. I need to take each user from my domain and add them under my att.net email id for verification.

You have got to be kidding me. This is not a solution. So why did I have to give up my existing isp when I got uverse? So that I could use yahoo?

[mottsmith321]

Update to my post on 8/16/11:

I had to get a new u-verse account back in October (long story). I had to call in for the new account to get port 25 unblocked. I was successful on my first call to Tier 1.

Just remember to use the phrase that pays: "I would like SMTP outbound on port 25 unblocked"

[spd2demun ACE - Master]

Thanks for the report, and that you were not charged.

I wonder what has happened lately with so many now being asked to pay for the change?