I'm having problems sending emails via Outlook. Some get sent OK, most are getting stuck in the outbox. None are large. I've tried uninstalling and reinstalling my antivirus (AVG). The Outlook account test message seems to work OK. If I close Outlook then open it up again I seem to have more success with the first message I send then problems start again. I'm having particular problems with replying to emails sent to me - this hardly seems to work at all.

It's happening on my broadband (Metronet) and dial up (Freeserve) accounts

I'm able to receive emails without problem.

I had a new hard drive fitted two days ago and XP Pro reinstalled. I'm therefore working from a restored version of my Outlook.pst file so maybe that has caused some kind of problem (the inbox repair utility found some errors initially but when I've run it the last few times it says the file is fine). I've also done a google looking for answers but nothing seems to fit.

Anyone come across this before?

Are you sending from Freeserve? They have recently (I think) introduced a policy of only allowing you to send mail through their SMTP servers if you are connected via their dialup. Try changing SMTP (outgoing) servers on both accounts to the Metronet ones.

Thanks for that - I didn't know that freeserve had applied that policy. I do have the Metronet setting for my SMTP. Problem is, I still can't send emails when I use the freeserve settings in the freeserve dial-up and it's also happening with a claranet dial up account I set up to test my settings.

Whichever SMTP setting work, apply them to all your e-mail accounts.

Originally posted by ncrossland
Are you sending from Freeserve? They have recently (I think) introduced a policy of only allowing you to send mail through their SMTP servers if you are connected via their dialup. Try changing SMTP (outgoing) servers on both accounts to the Metronet ones.

Yup, they do have that policy. Except they haven't informed any of their users about it. The other thing is, it still sends as far as the user is aware but then dissapears into space. So that crucial email never reaches its destination. So beware.

If you think it is the pst file, trying exporting your mail in to CSV export or something like that.

Start a brand new PST file and re-import the CSV file. May do the trick.

I _think_ (from experience rather than hard facts) they also block you from using anyone else's SMTP servers when you are dialed up through them (a spam prevention measure), although only on port 25, you can use 26 as an alternative if your SMTP server supports its.

Wouldn't of thought its the PST file, so keep a backup before messing with it.

Thanks for the tips! It seems like my dial-up is now working OK and the problem is when I try to send anything more than a very short (ie one or two word) email using my broadband connection. I'm also unable to log into my Yahoo and Hotmail accounts via the internet and I've been unable to send large emails via my freeserve webmail the broadband connection.

Does this point to a problem with my router (Netgear DG843v2) or ISP (Metronet).

I'm completely ignorant when it comes to these things - how do I get at my port 25/26?

No need dial up if you have broadband - just stick to one connection and it'll make it easier to diagnose.

Are you getting any error messages when it refuses to send?

You can't log on to Yahoo / Hotmail - can you see any other website (obviously this one) - what about others?

Are you using Windows XP - if so, have you installed SP2?

Tiscali have adopted the same policy for their systems too.

Have you installed the Office 2003 servcie pack? That has cured a lot of my Outlook problems.

1. I've had to use my dial-up account to post this as once I'd typed it in on my broadband account it wouldn't uploadit

2. Here are the error messages I'm getting in Outlook:

Task 'Freeserve via Metronet - Receiving' reported error (0x800CCC0D) : 'Unable to find the e-mail server. Please verify the server information in your account properties.'

Task 'Metronet via claranet - Sending' reported error (0x800CCC0B) : 'Unknown Error 0x800CCC0B'

Task 'Freeserve via Metronet - Sending' reported error (0x8004210B) : 'The operation timed out waiting for a response from the sending (SMTP) server. If you continue to receive this message, contact your server administrator or Internet service provider (ISP).'

3. I can see all other websites that I've tried to access

4. I haven't downloaded SP1 (was a bit nervous about it as I've heard it could cause problems).

5. I don't know if I've installed the Office 2003 Service Pack(!). How can I check whether I have?

Cheers for the help guys, hopefully I'll get there in the end!

It's the Windows XP service pack 2 thats a bit dodgy. The Office service pack is ok.

Sounds, from your last post, like you've got a whole load more problems than just your email...

Best course of action is probably a complete security check and patch fest..

Visit good old windows update (link at top of Start->programs) and get ALL the critical updates plus any drivers... will probably take about an hour..

Then visit the Office update (link from the windows update site) and do the scan to check which updates you need, then get those installed too..

Obviously then you need to do the usual spyware checks, anti-virus scan, etc...

Once you've done ALL that you may find the problem resolved or identified... Certainly from what you've said so far though, there do seem to be some fun connectivity issues at work...


Oh and you may want to remove your router from the equation in order to do the above.. but if you do, make sure you have zonealarm installed or some other firewall FIRST...

best of luck... :)

Thanks very much to people for all the help. Turns out it was an MTU problem (whatever that means...) and after some fiddling around with my router settings all seems to be well. Fingers crossed.

Thanks again

Originally posted by Skatiechik
Yup, they do have that policy. Except they haven't informed any of their users about it. The other thing is, it still sends as far as the user is aware but then dissapears into space. So that crucial email never reaches its destination. So beware.

Sorry but its been the case for at least the last two years or longer.

Re- disappearing

It doesn't send it at all - it gets a 550 prohibition message so you can stop scare mongering now. Same as it would with 99.9% of other isps. Its not exactly rocket science is it?

You could always use the mail accounts of your isp instead.

I wasn't scare mongering thankyou. I was simply telling the truth,

If I send an email through an alternative outgoing server (not a freeserve one) my email sends perfectly well with regards to my mail program. However 9 times out of 10 it will not reach its destination. So therefore it dissapears into space.

Skatie - do you connect to the internet using freeserve/wanadoo?

If so, you're outgoing mail server needs to be set to smtp.freeserve.com or smtp.wanadoo.co.uk

As long as your account is still active, they will then go.

If you're using an alternative isp - then you need to put their smtp address in your outgoing mail server address in the mail profile for each email account you use.

It is highly unusual for email to just disappear with pop3.

Yes I do connect using freeserve/wanadoo, yes the mail did regularly dissapear. and yes the outgoing settings were set to my particular server (not freeserve one).

However I resolved the problem a few months back now, and as you said the outgoing mail server needs to be set to freeserve.

I have just done a quick google on what I was saying about freeserve and dissapearing emails .........


this post on one of their newsgroups came up.

It would seem that freeserve is blocking PORT 25.

They don't. They do, however, intercept Port 25 SMTP requests to send
email via a non-FS SMTP server and route it through their own systems.
Those systems could well get overloaded due to the number of people
trying to use other SMTP servers when they should be using the Freeserve
SMTP outgoing server.

The problem is the mail sends perfectly well using a non-FS SMTP server, and for all intense on purposes it has been sent. However when FS reroute through their own server it dissapears about 9 out 10 times.

but that wouldn't lose it - it does give a '550 prohibition' error and advises the user - the message should still be sat in the outbox.

That is standard practice are all (well all I've come across) ISPs to use their own smtp server. I can't see what the problem is - set your outgoing mail to the smtp server of your connection isp and off you go. Its nothing sinister...

Just as a thought... I saw something similar caused by Norton AV a few years back when there was some issue or other with an SMTP server...

The email was being marked as sent but due to a timeout or something similar the AV would fail to actually send it on after scanning it..

You could try disabling scanning of outgoing email and see if that helps...


Course it may be totally unrelated...

NAV is very good at setting mail server addresses to 127.0.0.1 and people wonder why they can't get their email.:loopy:

And thats always OUR fault too....

Originally posted by Internetowl
NAV is very good at setting mail server addresses to 127.0.0.1 and people wonder why they can't get their email.:loopy:

And thats always OUR fault too....
Older versions of Nav did that... newer versions don't...