Pillar Axiom: MaxRep email alert feature not working

Asset ID:	1-71-1934874.1
Update Date:	2018-04-25
Keywords:

Solution Type Technical Instruction Sure

Solution 1934874.1 : Pillar Axiom: MaxRep email alert feature not working

Applies to:

Pillar Axiom Replication Engine (MaxRep) - Version 2.0 to 3.0 [Release 2.0 to 3.0]
Information in this document applies to any platform.

Goal

Resolve emails not being sent from the MaxRep Engine to the SMTP server due to required additional configuration.

Solution

This document applies to MaxRep R2 and R3. It is possible that the email alert would not work even if the DNS servers have been referred correctly under /etc/resolv.conf on the appliance during the installation.

The Test Mail button under Settings -> Manage Users -> Edit should send an email to the selected administrator account.

Please open a service request with Support and quote this article to apply a workaround.

On some environment, the MaxRep Engine is not able to send an email to the SMTP server as it cannot resolve the domain name. The workaround involves an SSH to the replication engine to modify a line under /etc/mail/sendmail.cf and restart the sendmail service.

MaxRep Engineering is using Bug 19781121 to provide a permanent fix for R3.

Before modifying /etc/mail/sendmail.cf we will verify the content of /etc/resolv.conf to make sure the DNS servers can resolve the mail server full qualified name:

[root@MAXREP]# cat /etc/resolv.conf

search storage.com

nameserver 163.108.4.26

nameserver 163.108.18.14

[root@MAXREP]# nslookup mailserver.storage.com 163.108.4.26

Server: 163.108.4.26

Address: 163.108.4.26#53

Name: mailserver.storage.com

Address: 163.108.18.100

[root@MAXREP]# nslookup mailserver.storage.com 163.108.18.14

Server: 163.108.18.14

Address: 163.108.18.14#53

Name: mailserver.storage.com

Address: 163.108.18.100

In the above example, both DNS servers return the IP address of the mail server that has been set under Settings -> Replication Engine Settings.

Try to send a test email and check /var/log/maillog, you should see something similar:

Oct 9 10:41:19 MAXREP sendmail[27907]: s998fJh5027907: from=apache, size=444, class=0, nrcpts=1, msgid=<201410090841.s998fJh5027907@MAXREP.storage.com>, relay=apache@localhost

Oct 9 10:41:19 MAXREP sendmail[27908]: s998fJII027908: from=<apache@MAXREP.storage.com>, size=687, class=0, nrcpts=1, msgid=<201410090841.s998fJh5027907@MAXREP.storage.com>, proto=ESMTP, daemon=MTA, relay=localhost [127.0.0.1]

Oct 9 10:41:19 MAXREP sendmail[27907]: s998fJh5027907: to=john.smith@storage.com, ctladdr=apache (48/48), delay=00:00:00, xdelay=00:00:00, mailer=relay, pri=30444, relay=[127.0.0.1] [127.0.0.1], dsn=2.0.0, stat=Sent (s998fJII027908 Message accepted for delivery)

Oct 9 10:41:19 MAXREP sendmail[27910]: s998fJII027908: to=<john.smith@storage.com>, ctladdr=<apache@MAXREP.storage.com> (48/48), delay=00:00:00, xdelay=00:00:00, mailer=esmtp, pri=120687, relay=storage.com, dsn=5.1.2, stat=Host unknown (Name server: storage.com: no data known)

Oct 9 10:41:19 MAXREP sendmail[27910]: s998fJII027908: s998fJII027910: DSN: Host unknown (Name server: storage.com: no data known)

Oct 9 10:41:19 MAXREP sendmail[27910]: s998fJII027910: to=root, delay=00:00:00, xdelay=00:00:00, mailer=local, pri=31947, dsn=2.0.0, stat=Sent

This will confirm that this article can apply to the customer’s situation.

Modify /etc/mail/sendmail.cf and add the mail server full qualified name under the “Smart” relay host line:

# "Smart" relay host (may be null)

DS mailserver.storage.com

Then restart the sendmail service:

[root@MAXREP]# service sendmail restart

Shutting down sm-client: [ OK ]

Shutting down sendmail: [ OK ]

Starting sendmail: [ OK ]

Starting sm-client: [ OK ]

[root@MAXREP]#

Finally, try to send another test email and check /var/log/maillog, you should see something similar:

Oct 9 10:46:28 MAXREP sendmail[31733]: alias database /etc/aliases rebuilt by root

Oct 9 10:46:28 MAXREP sendmail[31733]: /etc/aliases: 76 aliases, longest 10 bytes, 765 bytes total

Oct 9 10:46:29 MAXREP sendmail[31738]: starting daemon (8.13.8): SMTP+queueing@01:00:00

Oct 9 10:46:29 MAXREP sm-msp-queue[31746]: starting daemon (8.13.8): queueing@01:00:00

Oct 9 10:46:46 MAXREP sendmail[31883]: s998kk3k031883: from=apache, size=444, class=0, nrcpts=1, msgid=<201410090846.s998kk3k031883@MAXREP.storage.com>, relay=apache@localhost

Oct 9 10:46:46 MAXREP sendmail[31884]: s998kklD031884: from=<apache@MAXREP.storage.com>, size=687, class=0, nrcpts=1, msgid=<201410090846.s998kk3k031883@MAXREP.storage.com>, proto=ESMTP, daemon=MTA, relay=localhost [127.0.0.1]

Oct 9 10:46:46 MAXREP sendmail[31883]: s998kk3k031883: to=john.smith@storage.com, ctladdr=apache (48/48), delay=00:00:00, xdelay=00:00:00, mailer=relay, pri=30444, relay=[127.0.0.1] [127.0.0.1], dsn=2.0.0, stat=Sent (s998kklD031884 Message accepted for delivery)

Oct 9 10:46:46 MAXREP sendmail[31886]: s998kklD031884: to=<john.smith@storage.com>, ctladdr=<apache@MAXREP.storage.com> (48/48), delay=00:00:00, xdelay=00:00:00, mailer=relay, pri=120687, relay= MAXREP.storage.com. [192.196.84.69], dsn=2.0.0, stat=Sent (s998iEsW019371 Message accepted for delivery)

References

<BUG:19781121> - EMAIL ALERT FEATURE IS NOT WORKING

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