The College of Engineering outgoing mail server (smtp.engr.ucsb.edu) will only transfer mail which either:

(a) originates in the College of Engineering; or

(b) is to be delivered to College of Engineering addresses.

Sending mail from outside of the College of Engineering to destination addresses also outside of the College of Engineering is called relaying. Only College of Engineering users may relay through our mail server. A very good general description of the relaying issues can be found here.

If you are connecting from outside the College of Engineering, you may still use smtp.engr.ucsb.edu as your outgoing mail server to relay if you meet the following conditions:

1. Your computer must have a legitimate forward and reverse registration in the Domain Name System (DNS). This is assigned by the network administrator of your network provider.

2. Prior to sending your mail you must authenticate yourself (i.e., prove your identity). Our mail server supports the standard AUTH control described in RFC 2554); most email programs also support this. Usually there is a configuration option in your email program to use a username and password with the SMTP server. Only after successfully authenticating will smtp.engr.ucsb.edu grant you permission to send mail. You must have an account on the College of Engineering computers to do this.

More information about how to set up AUTH (authentication) on common email programs can be found here.
Your mail session must also be encrypted as described here.

4. Some ISPs (such as Cox High Speed Internet) may block outgoing mail traffic on port 25. If your ISP blocks port 25, then you may still be able to relay through our mail server on port 587 using STARTTLS/SSL, or on port 465 with SSL only. Most mail programs will allow you to specify the port under their "Outgoing mail server" configuration area.

If you have any questions about how our mailer in the College of Engineering is configured, we will be happy to answer them. If you need technical assistance configuring your system to use your ISP's mail relay, please contact the technical support people at your ISP.