Path: utzoo!censor!geac!torsqnt!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!julius.cs.uiuc.edu!ux1.cso.uiuc.edu!mp.cs.niu.edu!rickert From: rickert@mp.cs.niu.edu (Neil Rickert) Newsgroups: comp.mail.misc Subject: Re: Which headers may Sendmail re-write? Message-ID: <1990Dec14.145021.2116@mp.cs.niu.edu> Date: 14 Dec 90 14:50:21 GMT References: <2766B2E7.276@tct.uucp> <1990Dec14.064837.8996@Latour.Sandelman.OCUnix.On.Ca> Organization: Northern Illinois University Lines: 59 In article <1990Dec14.064837.8996@Latour.Sandelman.OCUnix.On.Ca> fts1!latour!mcr@alfred.ccs.carleton.ca writes: >In article karl_kleinpaste@cis.ohio-state.edu writes: >>Let's assume that "tct" is a UUCP neighbor of "osu-cis." Let's assume >>that chip@tct.uucp sends mail aimed at, say, osu-cis!ucbvax!somebody. >>Headers read: >> From: chip@tct.uucp >> To: osu-cis!ucbvax!somebody >>... > > But, I/chip/tct-admin PUT chip@tct.UUCP in the From: > If I can't get a reply, THAT IS MY PROBLEM!!!!! > No, it is not JUST your problem. If someone finds they can't reply, they may look at the 'Received:' headers, and send mail to 'Postmaster@cis.ohio-state.edu' to ask for assistance. Karl doesn't need the extra work this will entail. If you want to send mail to 'ucbvax' and have an unrepliable 'From: ' header, that is your choice. All you need do is negotiate a uucp connection to ucbvax, and pay your own long distance charges. But if you prefer to use the services of another host to do your relaying you have a responsibility to make sure your headers conform to the standards of that relay host. And if you fail to meet that obligation, the relay host has every right to correct those header to ensure that they do meet its standards. Hell, just because you can drive in your own driveway without license plates, and can drive in my driveway without license plates, that doesn't mean you can use the highways all the way between your place and mine without using license plates. > If I want a reply bad enough I can do two things: > a) Put the correct Reply-To: in. (and hope attention gets paid to it) > b) Register my site under the appropriate valid top-level domain >and get an MX record. > > Since I assume you'd prefer you have everyone do (b), why encourage >the tct.UUCP people from being lazy, and in the meantime, possibly >mangle the From: beyond recognition. Correction - Karl does not mangle the headers beyond recognition. The headers emerge form tct.UUCP in a near unrecognizable form, and Karl modifies them to make them clearly and plainly recognizable. If what is on the 'From:' header is so precious to you, why don't you insert an additional copy in the body of the mail. Karl won't touch it there. > mcr@julie.UUCP/michael@fts1.UUCP/mcr@doe.carleton.ca -- Domain address Talking of munged addresses, why don't you fix this one. Otherwise some novice is going to send mail to it, with 3 '@' and two '/' symbols and all. (Yes, I am being serious. I have had to deal with users who have sent to exactly such strings as addresses). -- =*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*= Neil W. Rickert, Computer Science Northern Illinois Univ. DeKalb, IL 60115. +1-815-753-6940