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Send Mail Via Telnet /Test for Open Relay

Behind the scenes, the commands sent to mail servers are simple text commands. These commands can be sent to an email server manually via Telnet. This is a quick way to test an email server to determine if it is an open relay.


First, determine the MX for the domain in question:

nslookup
set type=mx
mydom.com

This should return something like such as the following: Server: ns2.mydom.com
Address: 192.168.1.10
mydom.com preference = 10, mail exchanger = mx.mydom.com
mydom.com nameserver = ns.mydom.com
mx.mydom.com.com internet address = 1.1.1.1
mx2.mydom.com internet address = 1.1.1.2

The last two lines tell you about the mail server (MX = Mail Exchange). In this case, 1.1.1.1 and 1.1.1.2.

So, armed with this knowledge, note the following examples:

telnet 1.1.1.1 25

Server responds with: 220 mx.mydom.com SMTP
HELO

Server responds with: 250 OK
MAIL FROM:[email protected]

Server responds with: 250 Address Ok.
RCPT TO:[email protected]

Server responds with: 250 [email protected] OK
DATA

Server Responds (or may not): 354 Enter Mail
Enter message, and then on a new line, enter the following;
.

exit

The message should now be sent. By modifying the MAIL FROM and RCPT TO lines, you can test for open relay.

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