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The TCP/IP Guide
9 TCP/IP Application Layer Protocols, Services and Applications (OSI Layers 5, 6 and 7)
9 TCP/IP Key Applications and Application Protocols
9 TCP/IP File and Message Transfer Applications and Protocols (FTP, TFTP, Electronic Mail, USENET, HTTP/WWW, Gopher)
9 TCP/IP Electronic Mail System: Concepts and Protocols (RFC 822, MIME, SMTP, POP3, IMAP)
9 TCP/IP Electronic Mail Delivery Protocol: The Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP)
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SMTP Communication and Message Transport Methods, Client/Server Roles and Terminology
(Page 2 of 3)
Modern E-Mail Communication Using DNS and Direct Delivery
The creation of DNS radically changed
how e-mail delivery worked. DNS includes support for a special mail
exchanger (MX) record that allows easy mapping from the domain name
in an e-mail address to the IP address of the SMTP server that handles
mail for that domain. I explain this in the
topic on the regular e-mail address format,
as well as the
dedicated topic on DNS e-mail support.
In the new system, SMTP communication
is much simpler and more direct. The sending SMTP server uses DNS to
find the MX
record of the domain to which the e-mail
is addressed. This gives the sender the DNS name of the recipient's
SMTP server. This is resolved to an IP address, and a connection can
be made directly from the sender's SMTP server to the recipient's to
deliver the e-mail. While SMTP still supports relaying, direct e-mail
delivery using MX records is faster and more efficient, and RFC 2821
makes clear that this is now the preferred method.
In this new system, SMTP is generally
only used for two transfers: first, from the sender's client machine
to the sender's local SMTP server, and then from that server to the
recipient's local SMTP server, as shown in Figure 301.
(A distinct mail
access protocol or method is used by the
recipient for the last leg of the journey.) Each transfer of an e-mail
message between SMTP servers involves the establishment of a TCP connection
and then the transfer of the e-mail headers and body using the SMTP
mail transfer process. The next two topics describe in detail how this
occurs.
Key Concept: In the early days of SMTP, mail was delivered using the relatively inefficient process of relaying from server to server across the internetwork. Today, when an SMTP server has mail to deliver to a user, it determines the server that handles the users mail using the Domain Name System (DNS) and sends the mail to that server directly. |
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Version 3.0 - Version Date: September 20, 2005
© Copyright 2001-2005 Charles M. Kozierok. All Rights Reserved.
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