Mail Delivery Error Messages

Let's look at some of the most common mail delivery error reports and try to decipher what they mean. If you receive a mail delivery error report not shown below, can't figure it out, and want to know what it means, forward it to for interpretation.

WARNING: Don't be fooled by phony mail delivery error reports! If you receive one that claims to be from "postmaster@chilipepperweb.net" or "postmaster@chilipepperweb.bcpl.net", it is a fake that may carry a virus. Mail delivery error reports originating from ChiliPepperWeb.net's mail system always show "Mail Delivery Subsystem <MAILER-DAEMON@mail.chilipepperweb.net>" on the "From: " line, never "postmaster".

Almost all mail delivery error reports begin with something like the following:

----- The following addresses had permanent fatal errors -----
<JDOE@HOME.COM>

That tells you that your mail to the specified address could not be delivered. It may also tell you whether the error is a "permanent fatal error" (one which makes it impossible to deliver the message) or a "transient non-fatal error" (just a temporary setback, and the mail server will keep trying).

A more complete description of the problem is usually next, in a section labeled "Transcript of session follows". Below are the more common ones, each followed by an explanation. These are taken from actual delivery error reports, but the usernames have all been changed to "jdoe" to protect the privacy of the actual addressee.

The examples below are all mail delivery error reports generated by Sendmail, the predominant mail server software on the Internet. Error reports generated by other mail server software (QMail, Postfix, Microsoft Exchange, or whatever) may look different, but will contain the same basic information.

We accept: