Start/notes.ini Parameters/SMTPSaveImportErrors

SMTPSaveImportErrors

SMTPSaveImportErrors instructs the Domino SMTP listener to save a copy of an inbound SMTP message for later analysis when its import into the Notes store fails.

Profile

Parameter
SMTPSaveImportErrors
Component
Server (SMTP listener / mail conversion)
Category
Mail / Router (diagnostics)
Available since
9.0.x (per KB0032184)
Default
0 (no saving)
Values
0, 1, 2
Storage location
<notesdata>/IBM_TECHNICAL_SUPPORT/

Values per KB0032184

Value
Meaning
0
Disabled (default) – failed imports are not saved
1
Saves only the (partially) converted Notes form of the message
2
Additionally saves the RFC822 source file of the incoming message

Description

When Domino cannot successfully ingest an inbound SMTP message into the Notes store — for example due to a broken MIME structure, invalid headers, encoding errors, truncated attachments, or conversion problems — it typically results in an error in the SMTP log and log.nsf. Without further configuration, the problematic message is then lost, which makes root-cause analysis difficult.
SMTPSaveImportErrors enables saving these failed messages:
  • Value 1 – Domino saves the (partially) converted Notes document for inspection.
  • Value 2 – Additionally, the original RFC822 source is saved as a text file. This makes it possible to analyze the exact MIME/header content or send it to HCL Support.
The files are written to the Domino data directory under IBM_TECHNICAL_SUPPORT/ — the standard directory for diagnostic artifacts.

Examples

SMTPSaveImportErrors=2
Enable dynamically at runtime:
set config SMTPSaveImportErrors=2
(Domino accepts the value without a restart; after a reproduction run, check the IBM_TECHNICAL_SUPPORT/ directory.)
Deactivate:
set config SMTPSaveImportErrors=0

Notes

  • Check the directory – On overloaded servers, IBM_TECHNICAL_SUPPORT/ can fill up quickly if defective mail keeps arriving (e.g. spam with broken MIMEs). After analysis, clean up old files.
  • Privacy – The saved RFC822 sources contain the complete content of the affected messages, including attachments. Restrict access to the directory accordingly.
  • Complement to logs – Useful complement to SMTPDebug/SMTPDebugIO: while SMTPDebug shows how the message arrived, SMTPSaveImportErrors shows what Domino could not convert.
  • HCL Support – For mail conversion problems, HCL often requests exactly these files (RFC822 source from IBM_TECHNICAL_SUPPORT/) for reproduction.
  • Not to be confused – This parameter has nothing to do with bounce/NDR functionality; it only saves messages whose Notes conversion failed.

Sources (HCL Product Documentation)