By default, the "From" address for the email notifications that Fluid Topics sends to end-users is as follows:
no-reply@fluidtopics.net
End-users might wonder why they are receiving a message from this address, since they typically do not know that they are using a Fluid Topics portal. In order to display information that users can easily recognize, it is possible to configure a custom "From" address. This implies configuring Fluid Topics so that an external domain can send emails on its behalf.
Activating the Customize From address toggle in the Email administration interface displays a section where authorized Fluid Topics administrators can enter the following information:
- An email to display as the custom "From" address.
- A DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) private key.
- A DKIM selector.
- An optional email for testing purposes.
First step: Request assistance from your DNS administrator
When Fluid Topics sends an email on behalf of mail server, the user's email client could potentially identify the email as spam. To prevent this from happening, your domain's DNS administrator must configure your Domain Name System (DNS) by adding a Sender Policy Framework (SPF) record. When an SPF record is available, the user's email client considers that a secure and verified entity sent the email.
To add Fluid Topics to the SPF record, your DNS administrator needs to add the following text to the record (starting with v=spf1):
mx:antidot.net
It is necessary to wait at least 24 hours for the new DNS configuration to apply.
Your DNS administrator must also generate DKIM keys that certify that the Fluid Topics email server and your domain know each other. The public key is stored in your domain's DNS configuration interface. The private key is stored in Fluid Topics, and your DNS administrator needs to share it with you.
Along with generating these DKIM keys, your DNS administrator must define a name for the DKIM selector. This is an arbitrary name that identifies the context in which the DKIM keys apply, for example, fluid-topics or custom-from-address.
- Only one public key/private key couple per selector is allowed in your DNS configuration.
- The domain used to send a notification message (for example, no-reply@mydomain.com) must include a valid MX record in its DNS configuration
Second step: Configure Fluid Topics
In Fluid Topics, an authorized administrator must perform the following actions:
- In the From address field, define a custom "From" address.
- In the DKIM - DomainKeys Identified Mail field, paste the private key that the DNS administrator shared.
- In the DKIM selector field, copy the name of the DKIM selector that the DNS administrator shared.
The following image shows an example of configuring a DKIM private key and selector:
Third and final step: test configuration
If the DKIM private key, selector, and/or SPF record is not valid, it is impossible to save a custom From address. Previewing the configuration by sending a test email can help troubleshoot any issues that may occur.
Troubleshooting
For configurations using Microsoft Office 365, the Fluid topics mail server may sometimes display the following message:
SMTP error from remote mail server after pipelined sending data block: 550 5.7.750 Service unavailable.
Client blocked from sending from unregistered domains.
For more information please go to http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=526653
In this case, the owner of the From address must read the suggested documentation and update their Office 365 configuration.