SMTP: SMTPPUT 201: Failure Submitting Message to Mail Database

ID: Q135926

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Mail Gateway to SMTP, version 3.0

SYMPTOMS

The File Format Application Programming Interface (FFAPI) access component SMTPPUT.EXE that is provided for the SMTP gateway will return the following 201 error code when the program is unable to successfully deliver a message to a postoffice:

SMTPPUT returned 201
201 - 1 - 140 - Failure submitting message to mail database

[tx] 552 Error in local delivery

CAUSE

The 201 error code is generated by the FFAPI access component SMTPPUT.EXE. The error is returned to the gateway when SMTPPUT.EXE is unable to insert the message into the postoffice database.

The 201 error code is caused by the following conditions:

Network file contention.

Insufficient disk space.

Postoffice directory structure incomplete or corrupt.

Insufficient access rights granted to gateway machine.

Insufficient file handles.

Network problems accessing the postoffice files.

Alias address in SMTP gateway larger than 10 characters for version 3.0.8.

Corrupt or incorrect format of the Microsoft Mail File Format(MMFF) file.

RESOLUTION

Network File Contention

SMTPPUT.EXE component must access certain files to create a message on a postoffice. Gateways that service postoffices that receive high volumes of message transfers and are serviced by the External Mail program should consider disabling mailer (-md).

The files accessed by SMTPPUT.EXE with mailer disabled are ACCESS.GLB, ACCESS2.GLB, MASTER.GLB, C850SORT.GLB, GROUP.GLB, NETWORK.GLB, CONTROL.GLB, INQUEUE3.KEY, and INQUEUE3.MBG. These files may be locked by other processes temporarily while in use.

NOTE: The 201 error has been reproduced by locking the INQUEUE3.MBG file.

Postoffices located on Novell servers that operate under high-traffic conditions are recommended to set the postoffice as shareable with a few exceptions. There are certain conditions that dictate that the CONTROL.GLB, TID.GLB, FLAG.GLB, and MASTER.GLB should only be accessed by one process at a time; thus, they should not be shareable.

For additional information, please see the Microsoft Mail Gateway to SMTP "Administrator's Guide" and/or the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q99204 Doc Err: Setting Attributes for High Traffic Network

The most common problem is the INQUEUE3.MBG is being locked by another external or gateway. This problem can be compounded if the other external or gateway is operating on a slow machine or over a slow link. The option -v20 or CompatV20 utilized by the External Mail program will add additional file locking functionality, increasing the amount of network overhead and possibly causing additional network file contention. Additional network file contention can be created by improperly running the External Mail program from a network drive (see page 233 of the "Administrator's Guide").

Insufficient Disk Space

Insufficient disk space will prevent the client from enlarging or creating postoffice files. Novell NetWare file servers can produce a insufficient disk space response to the program when the files have become ownerless or the purge file has used all the available disk space.

Postoffice Directory Structure

The postoffice directory structure consists of 19 main subdirectories.

For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q77926 Description of Mail Database Subdirectories

Insufficient Access Rights

The gateway components should be given full network access rights for the postoffice.

For additional information, please see the Microsoft Mail Gateway to SMTP "Administrator's Guide" and/or the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q103380 File Scan Rights Required for Novell NetWare

Q117152 MTA Not Report LAN Man User-Level Security Problems

Insufficient File Handles

Increase the number of file handles to 50 in the CONFIG.SYS file of the workstation running the gateway.

Network Problems

The SMTPPUT.EXE utilizes the network components to effectively perform the file commands that create and manipulate each file. Network problems that interfere with the operation of these commands can cause the 201 error to occur.

SMTP Alias Address Larger Than 10 Characters

The SMTP gateway version 3.0.9 resolves an issue that can cause a 201 error to be logged. The README.TXT file included with version 3.0.9 of the SMTP gateway discusses the problem when an alias name is larger than 10 character.

MMFF file problems

Ensure that the MMFF file TO_NC.API submitted by the gateway follows either the Basic or Extended Message Format for the SMTPPUT.EXE program to properly convert (definition begins on page 50 in the FFAPI SDK).

MORE INFORMATION

The error displayed may consist of three numbers separated by a hyphen (-); for example,

(201 - 1 - 140).

The error code number 201 signifies that the error occurred when you tried to insert the message into the database. The second number, 1, can signify the number of messages sent per socket connection. It will rarely exceed 2. The last number refers to the line number of the message indicated by the second number. It is only valid if the problem was created by a corrupted or incorrectly formatted MMFF file.

Additional query words: 3.00

Keywords :
Version : MS-DOS:3.0
Platform : MS-DOS
Issue type :