making php mail() use external smtp server

[Red Squirrel]

I have this custom mailing list script I made and it uses mail(). One thing is php mail() uses the local server as smtp. Lot of spam blockers will block that since it looks like its a spammer sending locally. I want to specify an external smtp server. How would I go about doing that? theres options in php.ini but for some reason its win32 only.

 

[Nothinman]

Why not just setup your local SMTP server to relay through your ISP's SMTP server?

 

[Netopia]

Originally posted by: Nothinman
Why not just setup your local SMTP server to relay through your ISP's SMTP server?

:thumbsup:

 

[Red Squirrel]

Thats how its setup now, but I want to totaly bypass my local SMTP server. I had to recently change the way I send mail (used to do it locally) due to more and more spam filters looking for that, which really makes sense since lot of spammers probably setup their own servers.

A mail header right now shows that its been relayed through my local domain and my local internal IP. I don't want that, I want it to show up as either my ISPs, or my web host's. (probably my web host, for my case)

I'm thinking I need to use a sendmail argument to specify smtp, just not sure what.

 

[Nothinman]

No SPAM filter that I know of cares where the first or any intermediary hops come from, just the server that's connecting directly to them to deliver the message.

 

[whoiswes]

edit phi.ini - http://us3.php.net/mail

 

[Nothinman]

edit phi.ini - http://us3.php.net/mail

Uhh, no.

SMTP string

Used under Windows only: host name or IP address of the SMTP server PHP should use for mail sent with the mail() function.
smtp_port int

Used under Windows only: Number of the port to connect to the server specified with the SMTP setting when sending mail with mail(); defaults to 25. Only available since PHP 4.3.0.

 

[whoiswes]

sorry, didn't read that one thoroughly.

a few minutes on google found these:

create your own mail function, use that in place of built-in mail() => http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum40/1178.htm

use sendmail as a relay agent - this may or may not fit your needs for header modification => http://cri.ch/linux/docs/sk0009.html

personally I like the first - it's quick and easy and you KNOW it will work (provided you can hit your external SMTP system through a socket)

again, sorry for the oversight.

 

[LuckyTaxi]

use phpmailer!