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Re: Minor is. It's not a pardigm change

2008-03-30 17:51:04

To run an email server, today, an existing host only needs to make the server software operational. No other change is required. For example, no coordination with DNS administration is required.

I suppose that's still true in theory, but when's the last time you saw a non-spam message sent to someone(_at_)[12(_dot_)34(_dot_)56(_dot_)78] or saw an MTA deliberately configured to accept mail to dotted quad addresses? Every useful mail server has at least an A record.

In other words, the change moves the MX from being an administrative convenience to instead being a core requirement, ie, barrier to deployment.

Quite true. If the goal is to maximize the total amount of mail delivered to mail servers, legit mail, spam, blowback, phishes, whatever, then fallback to AAAA is definitely the right thing to do. But is that really what we're trying to accomplish?

Regards,
John Levine, johnl(_at_)taugh(_dot_)com, Taughannock Networks, Trumansburg NY
"I dropped the toothpaste", said Tom, crestfallenly.