Delivery Guidelines
The following information will help ensure that email is successfully delivered through the campus SMTP gateway.
- The campus SMTP gateway will accept email for postmaster or abuse at any valid UCLA subdomain.
- The campus SMTP gateway will not accept connections from systems that have been determined to be open relays, open proxies, or open routers, or to have otherwise been made available for unauthorized use.
- The campus SMTP gateway will not accept connections from systems that use dynamically assigned or residential IP addresses, or that have generic bulk-assigned DNS entries.
- The campus SMTP gateway may reject connections from servers whose recipient lists consistently generate a high bounce failure rate.
- The campus SMTP gateway may reject messages from systems that do not have valid DNS PTR entries and that send an incomplete or invalid HELO string.
- The campus SMTP gateway will not accept connections from systems that claim to be members of the smtp cluster (ie, issue "HELO smtp.ucla.edu"). The gateway may reject messages from senders that provide other invalid HELO information.
- The campus SMTP gateway may reject connections from servers whose senders do not accept bounce-return messages.
- Complaints submitted by UCLA community members may be used as a factor in determining whether a system is blocked.
- Messages passing through the campus SMTP gateway that are infected with viruses will be rejected.
- All messages passing through the campus SMTP gateway are evaluated for likely spam status and are so tagged with a header. Messages that receive an excessively high score may be rejected by your recipient.
- UCLA does not authorize the use of its computers and network to accept, transmit, or distribute unsolicited email sent from the Internet to UCLA community members.
NOTE: Following these guidelines is not a guarantee that your email message will be successfully delivered. There may be other reasons for rejection.
These guidelines may be updated at any time. Please check back for updates.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Q: I tried to send an email message to UCLA, but it bounced and said to visit this URL. Why?
A: You sent your message to an email address at UCLA that is handled by the campus SMTP gateway. The gateway disallows direct connections from residential broadband systems, from other dynamically allocated IP addresses, or from hosts with "generic" reverse DNS entries (ie, a variation of A-B-C-D.isp.com for D.C.B.A). Your message was delivered to one of the gateway machines via such a connection. You will need to configure your mail client to use your ISP's SMTP servers, arrange to send your email using a server that has a non-generic reverse DNS entry, or have your outbound mail host(s) added to the SMTP gateway allowlist. - Q: Why can I send email to some address at UCLA without any problems, but others always tell me to visit this URL?
A: The SMTP gateway servers do not handle email messages for all UCLA departments. If the mail exchanger (MX) DNS entry for the domain you are sending email to is pointing to smtp.ucla.edu, any email messages you send will be processed by the SMTP gateway servers. If the MX record does not point to smtp.ucla.edu, the email message will not be handled by the gateway. - Q: What is a residential broadband IP address?
A: Residential broadband IP addresses are assigned to customers of Cable and DSL Internet Service Providers from specified ranges of addresses. Residential customers of an ISP should use that ISP's SMTP servers. Please contact your ISP if you need help configuring your email client. - Q: I am using business class broadband service and have a static IP address. How can I send email to UCLA?
A: We operate an allowlisting service that is available if your system meets certain criteria. Please contact the IT Support Center at +1-310-267-4357, via email at help@it.ucla.edu, or use our contact form for further assistance. To have your system added to the allowlist, please be prepared to provide the following information: ip address; mail domain name; and the administrator's name, email address, and telephone number. Note, only systems with statically assigned IP addresses will be added to the allowlist. - Q: How can I find out if my mail server is hosted on a static IP address?
A: You will need to contact your system administrator for this information. If he/she does not know, please have them contact your Internet Service Provider. Most business class connections provide static addresses but that is not always the case. Please doublecheck this before requesting to be put on the allowlist. - Q: What is the difference between a static and a dynamic IP address?
A: A static IP address is permanently assigned and does not change. A dynamic IP address is assigned via the DHCP or BOOTP (or some other) protocol, in a dynamic fashion, usually when a server connects and is only valid until the "lease" period runs out. Dynamic addresses are ephemeral and are not guaranteed to be the same each time you connect. Note, it is possible for a dynamic IP address to be the same for many days or weeks at a time. This does not mean that it is a static IP address, and does not make it eligible for the allowlist. - Q: How long will it take for my server to be allowlisted?
A: It will take at least one business day for your request to be confirmed. You will receive an email notification indicating the status of your request when it has been processed. - Q: I don't think my mail server qualifies to be on the allowlist. Is there anyway for us to still send email to the ucla.edu domain?
A: If your system does not qualify for the allowlist, you will need to utilize your ISP's SMTP servers to send email messages to addresses at UCLA that pass through the SMTP gateway. Please contact your ISP if you require assistance. - Q: Who can I contact if I still have questions?
A: You can either email your questions to help@it.ucla.edu, use our contact form, or call the IT Support Center at +1-310-267-4357.
Contact Us
The IT Support Center is located in Kerckhoff Hall, Suite 124. If you are not able to visit in person, please phone at +1-310-267-4357. You may send mail via US Postal Service to (please include an email address or telephone number):
IT Support Center
UCLA IT Services
BOX 957216, 124 Kerckhoff Hall
Los Angeles, CA 90095-7216
You may send email to help@it.ucla.edu, or use the form below if your messages are being blocked.
If you are requesting that your mail server be added to the smtp.ucla.edu allowlist, please make sure to include the following information: ip address; mail domain name; the administrator's name, email address, and telephone number; and a copy of any bounced email message received. Note, only systems with statically assigned IP addresses will be added to the allowlist.