Configuring a local mail server for BitFaster

In our previous blogposts, help files and other relevant documents, we have spoken sufficiently on the benefits of email marketing; the benefits that BitFaster offers in terms of its user-friendly features, have also been dealt with. In this post, we seek to present briefly, the procedure to configure a local email server on your BitFaster software. This feature is of significant importance as it lets you send mails without a web browser.

As most of you would be knowing, email works on the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP). The sequence of steps would be :

1. A sender generates the content of the mail using a Mail User Agent (MUA).

2. The MUA contacts the local mail server, which in turn contacts the destination mail server using the destination MUA as the basis. If the destination MUA is the same as that of the sender, then the mail transfer is said to be expedited locally.

3. The destination server maintains an inbox to which the mail is transferred after the destination address is verified.

4. The intended recipient gets to access his inbox on the server and is able to view the mail using the POP3 protocol.

Gaining access to the local server requires you to create a login account in it. Once you do so, you would be able to route your mails through it. However, the scenario here is slightly different; you already have access to your local server but need to tell BitFaster about it. In other words, you need to provide access to the local mail server of your organization to BitFaster so as to be able to create and run email campaigns or other general mails.

So how do we configure a local mail server with BitFaster?

1. In the tree view of your BitFaster page (on the left side), click SMTP Servers.

2. The window shown below opens up.

3. Server Name could be the name you wish to give the server. Eg, if you wish to dedicate server for email campaigns, then you could consider calling it Campaign Server.

4. Host Address would be the address of your local mail server. This invariably takes the form smtp.companyname.com. You could always contact the IT department of your organization to get details about your local email server.

5. Username and Password would be the ones provided to the company to the user (who would send out mails).

6. SMTP Port shall always be 25. This is because SMTP Servers use port number 25 on the TCP socket to expedite mail transfer from the client to server.

7. In the event of a client not being able to establish a connection with the server, then the server usually ‘times out’ or stops sending signals. The connection could be kept active for a certain duration entered in the Server Timeout field. This value is usually restricted to 20 or 30 seconds.

8. Confidential information being circulated through mail could be secured through encryption. BitFaster allows the user to choose between SSL and TSL standards of encryption.

9. If required, an active server can be deactivated by clicking the appropriate checkbox. BitFaster even allows the temporary deactivation of the server settings. The settings of one server could also be reproduced in another or even deleted completely.

If you’ve done all the above, then you are through!! You could start off with your first email right away!