Can I bypass Exchange Server?

Question

Our company has Exchange Server for internal emails using domainX.com. We also have internet email, also using domainX.com. Our local Exchange server queries the internet, pulls the messages down. I have no idea if this is the best way to do it or not: I didn't set it up, I just have to make use of it.

I have created an application that allows our customers to send an email to [e-mail], and it works really well. However, when I try to do it, because I am connected to Exchange, the delivery fails: "support" doesn't exist in Exchange, only on the internet server.

So that I can make use of my own system, can I bypass Exchange when sending mail to "support?"

Answer 1

the likely answer is no.



1 Very key concept to understand.



I'm going to assume that you have an ISP/hosting provider and/or internal server that allows you to change around your DNS information.

Where ever you have your DNS information hosted either locally or external there's a key part of the DNS record called the MX record (it's short for mail exchange).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MX_record



Now whenever your customer emails [e-mail], their dns does a lookup for the MX record for your company. This MX record is pointed towards one of your public IP address. This record serves as a way to know where the email is going. Whatever IP address your company MX record points to is probably the exchange server.

So there's no way to tell [e-mail] goes to this email server, and anything else goes to the exchange. It all points to the exchange, it's just how things work



Now there's some fancy internal DNS tricks you can play around with, but it's pretty difficult. there's the potential to make the support type email go to a different email server. You need to talk with your sys admin team to see if this is possible.



Also don't assoicate Exchange with email type. It's either IMAP, or POP3. those are the 2 types.



Edit.



If your MX record points to the ISP. Make sure you can recieve [e-mail] at the ISP level. If that's good, then create a forwarding address at the ISP level to either your account on exchange or create a dummy email address on the exchange server that auto forwards any email it gets to your email address on the server.

Answer 2

Ask your administrator if he enable POP3/SMTP services. If he does, just get the login credential and setup POP3/SMTP setup instead of Exchange Services.



Add: Create a SMTP Server, IE (IIS) on a separate server/computer and create internal MX record to manipulate where you want the SMTP Server to deliver the mail. This should solve your problem. Better yet, if you can get a copy of Trend Micro Messaging Suite(SMTP service), you can manually route your mails.

Answer 3

It's a great question