On Tue, 4 Jun 1996 16:37:05 -0400 Mike Holloway <[log in to unmask]> said: >VMS.DC.LSOFT.COM has been having problems delivering to one address, >DHHS.GOV, from which a user is trying to subscribe. VMS.DC.LSOFT.COM is >reporting that "Domain "OSASPE.DHHS.GOV" doesn't exist" despite the >admin there insisting that the system has not been down and that e-mail >to and from other sites has not been a problem. VMS.DC.LSOFT.COM delivers between 1,500,000 and 2,225,000 messages per business day. When something is wrong with this machine, we find out VERY QUICKLY because the phone rings seconds after we drop it back. There are many domains with flaky DNS servers that our servers attempt to deliver to and for which they get this error. In the present case, there IS a definite problem with the DHHS.GOV domain, specifically with the HHS-CUSTOS.dhhs.gov name server, which claims that OSASPE.DHHS.GOV does not exist. >I've often been frustrated by the lack of control over how my list is >distributed when problems occur. I can't even diagnose the problem most >of the time since I have no idea how the messages are being distributed >in the LISTSERV system. The reason DHHS.GOV is routed through our machines is that the site hosting your list is taking advantage of L-Soft's offer to deliver all the LISTSERV mail of existing BITNET VM sites that do not have the necessary horsepower to deliver it locally. We deliver this mail for FREE, even when the beneficiary is not a customer and doesn't contribute a cent to our bottom line (as is the case with your list). We did this because the BITNET core was about to explode, sites were dropping from INTERBIT every month, and we had the technology to solve this problem elegantly and wanted to demonstrate to the many skeptics that this technology actually works and is not just an electronic glossy. I am not complaining or blaming anyone, we've made this decision a long time ago and we're standing by it, but this *is* costing us real money (call the ISP of your choice and ask how much they charge for 10Mbps). So, it would be nice if the beneficiaries did not keep flaming us in public every time they experience a delivery problem that we can't do anything about, especially without first checking if the site in question doesn't maybe have a problem after all. Eric