Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!ncrlnk!ncr-sd!hp-sdd!hplabs!ucbvax!RADC-MULTICS.ARPA!Ata
From: Ata@RADC-MULTICS.ARPA ("John G. Ata")
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip
Subject: Re: implementation question
Message-ID: <881212152322.832053@RADC-MULTICS.ARPA>
Date: 12 Dec 88 15:23:00 GMT
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Organization: The Internet
Lines: 21



    From:  apple!bionet!lear at BLOOM-BEACON.MIT.EDU (Eliot Lear)
    Subject:  implementation question

    Given a permanent error condition and that you control SMTP server
    code, which do you believe to be the better action?
    
    [a] Immediately have a server respond with an error to the SMTP client
        leave the client to report the error.
    
    [b] Receive the message and report the error directly to the sender.
    
I believe that [a] is the more efficient way to go.  This is because if
a SMTP server KNOWS that it cannot deliver the message to the intended
recipient, it is taking up network bandwidth needlessly by accepting the
message.  It would seem that the proper thing to do is to reject the
message at that point, so that the SMTP user can then return the mail
item to sender.

                              John G. Ata