D NS Servers and Mail Hosts

To connect to WebSTAR Mail, your server must be properly identified in the Domain Name System (DNS). This requires more than a host name DNS record: you must also indicate that you can handle email.

For more information, see DNS .

Mail Exchange Records

The MX (Mail Exchange) record for your server points to hosts that can accept mail for that domain. For example, domain.com 's DNS entry could include an MX record that directs all messages to a host named mail.domain.com .

For technical information on MX Records, see RFC 974 .

MX records include the domain name, the code "IN " (Internet Data Class), the priority , and the host which will accept the messages.

If you have a single host, you do not have to set up an MX record (although you should be sure that your DNS administrator has not directed mail elsewhere). If you do choose to create an MX record, just repeat the host name:

 

	example.com. IN MX 10 example.com.

If you have a separate mail server machine, point at that host name. In this example, all mail to domain.com will be handled by the host named mail.domain.com :

Make sure that the name on the right side is an A (authoritative name), not a CNAME (alias).

 

	domain.com. IN MX 10 mail.domain.com.

Handling Mail for Multiple Host Names

For each host that you serve, you need to do two things:

See Checking Your DNS Entries , and keep very good records of your DNS data.

Create an MX record in each DNS entry, telling other servers that this server can handle email messages locally. If you do not run your own DNS server, work with your ISP or institutional DNS administrator to add this information.

In the following example, email messages for domain.com will all be handled by mail.domain.com , and messages for example.com will be handled by the same host, example.com .

 

	mail.domain.com      A      192.168.0.2

 
	mail.domain.com.     MX 10 mail.domain.com.

 
	domain.com.          A      192.168.0.4

 
	domain.com.          MX 10 mail.domain.com.

 
	example.com.      A      192.168.0.5

 
	example.com.       MX 10 example.com.

Create a host entry in WebSTAR Admin, so that WebSTAR Mail knows that it should handle messages for this host.

For instructions, see Mail Hosts .