Outgoing mail via multiple smart hosts?



Hi Group:

We run SBS2003 (2003 Server SP2) with Exchange 2003 SP1. The SBS machine sits behind a NAT with no direct connection to a public IP, and all outgoing external email is routed via a smart host at our ISP.

We sometimes switch ISPs temporarily, from a DSL to a 3G route, when there are DSL connectivity problems at our location. So I need to know how to reconfigure Exchange to use multiple outgoing mail services. (Incoming mail is fine, as all incoming is routed via a POP box and the POP connector.)

Looking into the Exchange configuration for outgoing mail has confused me mightily, and I would be grateful for answers to any or all of the questions below...

1: I currently have our ISP's Smart Host name entered into Exchange in two fields of the Default SMTP Server setup - under
"Messages > Forward all mail with unresolved recipients to host:" AND
"Delivery > Advanced > Smart Host.
Is this correct for a setup like mine? I've read that I should really use smart hosts via an SMTP connector, not a VS, but I'm really not clear on the difference between a SMTP VS and a Connector...? If I want to use two ISPs, should I set up two virtual servers, two connectors, or something else?

2: I am confused about what to enter in the Fully Qualitfied Domain Name box - this server's FQDN is "server.domain.local", but if I put that in the box, outgoing mail is returned with a "Server server.domain.local requires authentication." error. I'm not sure how to interpret this, since I'm not sure what the FQDN box does in the first place..?

3: If I need to switch ISPs, I need to enter a different Smart Host - but our auxiliary ISP only provides SMTP server addresses as numeric IPs. When I enter a numeric IP in the Smart Host box (in the Default Virtual Server config), the setting is rejected because "the domain is not valid". Why can't I enter a numeric IP as an outgoing SMTP server?

4: Isn't there a really simple way of giving Exchange a list of SMTP servers (smart hosts) to try, in order of preference?

Thanks for any wisdom!
nik
.



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