Adjusting default sending address for replies

[skosner]

Here's a sticky situation, regarding email accounts, that maybe someone knows how to solve:
On the hosting level, each OX user has a primary email address, as well as a forward-only address, which forwards everything it receives to the primary address.
When an OX user receives an email that was sent to his/her forward-only address, while the email shows the "To" address as the forward-only address, the actual delivery address is the primary address.
When replying, this causes the "From"/"Sending" address to default to the primary address, but it needs to default to the forward-only address.

(yes, an OX email account is setup for sending with the forward-only address)

1) What can be done so that the "From" address of all email replies, default to the "To" address to which the original email was sent?
2) Is there any other way to solve this?

Linux OpenSuse 11.2
OX Version : 6.16.1 Rev3 ( 2010-04-23 11:06:42)

[Martin Heiland]

Hi,

i suggest you need the --defaultsenderaddress option for those users. You might assign different aliases to a users where the default sender address can be specified by this option.

Greetings

[skosner]

It sounds like you're talking about the defaultsenderaddress in the configuration area in the OX GUI. It does not seem to be a solution since it can only provide one setting for the entire OX account, regardless of the number email accounts within.

What is needed is a way for the default sender address to vary per email account/identity.

Could the config file "javamail.properties" be relevant here? Its' description is a bit vague, making it difficult to determine:

"This '.properties' file contains all known JavaMail properties structured by sections:"
"JavaMail, JavaMail API System Properties, SMTP, IMAP, POP3 & Internet. All configurations done in this file will overwrite the ones set and used before, so modify it with care!"

The few settings that look possibly relevant are:

1)
The return email address of the current user, used by the InternetAddress method getLocalAddress.
String
mail.from=

2)
Email address to use for SMTP MAIL command. This sets the envelope return address.
Defaults to msg.getFrom() or InternetAddress.getLocalAddress(). NOTE: mail.smtp.user was previously used for this.
String
mail.smtp.from=

3)
A string containing other email addresses that the current user is known by. The MimeMessage reply method will eliminate any of these addresses from the recipient list in the message it constructs,
to avoid sending the reply back to the sender.
String
mail.alternates=

Is this config file and any of these settings relevant?
If not, is there any other solution?

Thank you

[Martin Heiland]

Hi,

i think your requirement (multiple sender addresses for external mail accounts) is not implemented. The current implementation allows one sender address per external account which must be equal to the configured mail address. javamail.properties will not be of value here, please don't touch that file.
You might contact a sales or support representative on bringing in the feature request.

Greetings

[skosner]

Your suggestion sounds good for the scenario described, but the situation has changed a bit, although it's simpler.

1) A little recap - an incoming email is sent to an OX user's alias/secondary address, but auto redirected at the hosting level to the primary OX email address.
2) Naturally, OX would not place the email in the alias folder tree's inbox, but instead drop it in the primary mail account inbox - and this is what causes the replies to be "from" the primary email address.

Here's where things have changed. Using a filter rule, incoming emails sent to the alias address are now filed in the alias inbox. That should solve the problem - but here is what actually happens.

Selecting an alias email (but not opening) in the list view and clicking reply on the panel/toolbar at the top of the main OX window, generates a reply email with the "from" address as the alias address. So here it works correctly.

But, if instead, the alias email is opened (double click, etc) and reply is clicked on the panel/toolbar of the email window, the "from" address is set to the address of the primary email account.

This can cause confusion for the recipient of such an email. More than that, we're using alias addresses to communicate with less trusted recipients, to reduce spam. Obviously, if email replies are sent with the primary email address, it undermines the whole point.

This is apparently a bug; can you guys fix it?

Thank you for your help.


Linux OpenSuse 11.2
OX Version : 6.16.1 Rev3 ( 2010-04-23 11:06:42)

[Martin Heiland]

Hi,

when i try this procedure, the default sender address is used as sender every time, not only when replying from list view. Could you specify what exactly you're doing? If the popup window acts differently that's of course something we might fix.

Greetings

[skosner]

Aside from the main email account, there must be a secondary/alias email account. Open (by double click / pop-up) an email that resides in the inbox of the secondary email account and it will erroneously default to the primary account email address. Does this clarify?

1) Are you opening an email that was sent to the address of the primary email account? That is not the scenario described.

2) By "default sender address", you mean the address that is set in the email configuration area?

Thank you

[Martin Heiland]

Sorry, this works fine for me with latest version. Please open a bug report and attach screenshots.

Thanks

[skosner]

You're using version 6.16.1 Rev3 ???

[Martin Heiland]

Actually 6.16.1-rev8 but iirc there have been no major updates to the multiple mail feature.

[skosner]

Is 6.16.1-rev8 available yet? After downloading all updates from the OX repository, the version is still 6.16.1 Rev3.

Thanks

[Martin Heiland]

IIRC rev8 contains custom fixes for our customers so it's not available to the public as packages. We're prepping 6.18 right now which should be out end of this month. Still, you might want to open a bug report and attach logs/screenshots so we can address the issue.

Greetings

[skosner]

So 6.18 will not contain everything that's in IIRC rev8? Will first try 6.18 and see if that produces different results.

[Martin Heiland]

Of course 6.18 will contain all fixes of previous versions.