Everyone expects their emails to work perfectly, but that doesn’t always work.
Sometimes, emails bounce with strange errors. And, one such error is “user unknown in virtual mailbox table” in Postfix servers.
What’s this virtual mailbox table? How can I add the user in this table? Many of these questions may arise in your mind.
At Bobcares, we help server owners resolve such complex email errors as part of our Server Management Services.
Today, we’ll discuss the top 4 reasons for this error and how we fix them.
“User unknown in virtual mailbox table” in Postfix – What this error means?
This is one of the common errors in Postifx mail servers when users send emails to their local mailboxes. The exact bounce message looks like this:
[postfix]550 ..: Recipient address rejected: User unknown in virtual mailbox table
So, here our Support Experts check the Postfix email logs(/var/log/maillog) to find the origin of the problem. For instance, the email logs shows the error message like this:
postfix/smtpd[14568]: NOQUEUE: reject: RCPT from domain.com[1xx.15x.12x.3]: 550 5.1.1 <test@example.com>: Recipient address rejected: User unknown in virtual mailbox table; from=<postmaster@domain.com> to=<test@example.com> proto=ESMTP helo=<domain.com>
This error message shows that emails are not delivered to the mailbox test@example.com. Because, the mail server can’t find this email account on the server.
In other words for the emails to work properly, the mail server must know the exact mail delivery path of a domain. If the exact email delivery path of the domain can’t be found, it throws this error.
“User unknown in virtual mailbox table” in Postfix – Causes & Fixes
Now, we’ve a clear understanding of this error. Let’s now discuss the main reasons for this error and how our Support Engineers fix them.
1)Typo in Recipient address
If the recipient mail server can’t find the recipient email account, it would throw the error “User unknown in virtual mailbox table” in Postfix. In other words, a typo in the email address like extra space, dot, missing alphabet, etc. can lead to this error.
Similarly, there are instances where an email account existed on the server got removed or disabled by the customer, or it may moved to another server. In such cases, the recipient server can’t route the emails.
How we fix?
Firstly, our Support Engineers confirm that there are no typo errors in the email address given by the customer. Also, we confirm that the email account is a valid one.
For example in Plesk Postifix servers, we use the below command to check if the email accounts exists or not.
postmap -s /var/spool/postfix/plesk/vmailbox | grep test@example.comIf not, we’ll manually add the email account under the domain. In addition to that, we check the DNS connectivity of the domain using tools such as dig, traceroute, etc. and confirm that the domain resolves to the correct server.
2) Email routing issues
The email delivery path can be either Local(mailbox within in the server) or Remote(mailbox outside the server). That is, emails are delivered outside the server if the email delivery path is set as remote.
Most mail servers offer the option of specifying the mail delivery path of the domains. But, misconfiguration in the Email routing of these domains can also lead to error.
For example, consider the domain example.com that uses remote mail server Gmail. But, if the Email Routing is set to Local, the mail server tries to treat the domain example.com as local. However, there are no mailboxes on the server. As a result, the mail server rejects the email with error “User unknown in virtual mailbox table“.
How we fix?
Firstly, our Support Specialists check the MX records of the recipient domain using the dig command.
dig example.com MXIf the email service of the domain is handled remotely, we’ll disable the email service on the local server to ensure that the email works fine. For example in Plesk servers, we disable the email service of a domain using the below command.
plesk bin mail --off example.comLikewise in Postfix servers, we modify the mydestination parameter in the Postfix configuration file /etc/postfix/main.cf to ensure that the server only handles emails for the intended domains.
Most importantly, we make sure to backup the Postfix configuration file before making these changes.
[And, do you need help in fixing this error? Our Support Experts can fix it for you.]
3) Bad DNS records
Similarly, “user unknown in virtual mailbox table” error can occur when the MX records of the domain aren’t resolving or the MX record of the domain doesn’t point to the correct server.
We’ve seen instances where the domain holds wrong MX entries after domain migration, IP address switches, etc. In such cases, recipient mail server can’t find the domain on the server and reject the emails.
How we fix?
Our Support Engineers verify the MX records of the domain using the below command.
dig domain.com MXAnd, if we notice missing MX entries or DNS errors, then we correct the DNS entries of the domain to get it fixed.
4) Corrupted Mail server configuration
Moreover, the configuration mistakes on the mail server such as SMTP settings, SSL settings, etc. can also lead to this error.
For example in Plesk Postfix servers, we’ve seen cases where incorrect/invalid entries of a domain in the /var/spool/postfix/plesk/virtual file result in this error.
How we fix?
Our Hosting Engineers check the validity of the domain entries in the mail server configuration files. For example, in Postfix servers, we use the following command to see if the domain is properly added in the /var/spool/postfix/plesk/virtual file.
postmap -s /var/spool/postfix/plesk/virtual | grep example.comIf the domain is missing, we backup this file and add the domain to this virtual.db file.
[Messed up mail server configuration? Get one of our Server Experts to look into your issue and fix it for you.]
Conclusion
In short, “user unknown in virtual mailbox table” error in Postfix can occur due to bad DNS records, email routing issues, and more. Today, we’ve discussed the top 4 reasons for this error and how ourSupport Engineers fix them.
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I have a server using Paralells 11.09 on a Centos 6 server, and my email account is hosted on there. About 2 weeks ago while emailing a client I received the following message from Evolution (my email client):
The reported error was «RCPT TO <usersemail@domain.com> failed:
<usersemail@domain.com>: Recipient address rejected: User
unknown in virtual mailbox table».
I thought it was an error with Evolution so I tried to send the email from my webmail account. But I received the same error when sending an email to that address.
I’ve tried sending emails to other accounts from the email account held on the server and they send fine and do not come up with this error. This error only occurs when I email this particular client from my email account on this server. If I send an email to his account from an alternative account held elsewhere I don’t get this error.
What is going wrong?
Braiam
4,6893 gold badges25 silver badges57 bronze badges
asked Apr 19, 2014 at 18:42
mickburkejnrmickburkejnr
1,4875 gold badges28 silver badges38 bronze badges
RCPT TO failed: : Recipient address rejected: User unknown in virtual
mailbox table
This error comes from Postfix attempting a local delivery of the message.
If it happens immediately when trying to send (as opposed to coming back later in a bounce message from a mailer-daemon), it would mean that your SMTP server «thinks» of itself as the final destination for the domain of your client. This is a misconfiguration if your client’s mail is not hosted here.
On the other hand, when you send the mail from another account using another SMTP server, the mail is routed to the correct destination based on the DNS MX records of your client’s domain.
Maybe the misconfiguration happened by entering your client’s domain in Parallels for another purpose and it crept into the mail configuration as a mail domain.
A similar issue is answered here:
Mail/Domain config issues — User Unknown in virtual mailbox.
Essentially it’s about unchecking a box indicating that that domain’s mail is handled by this Parallels instance.
answered Apr 20, 2014 at 19:29
1
In case of Postfix, run sudo postmap /etc/postfix/virtual_mailbox_maps after ensuring the target address in in there.
answered Mar 31, 2020 at 18:00
Cees TimmermanCees Timmerman
1,6672 gold badges20 silver badges45 bronze badges
In my case, It worked after I have changed «Local Mail Exchanger» to «Remote Mail Exchanger» in Email Routing.
answered Aug 24, 2022 at 4:27
Everyone expects their emails to work perfectly, but that doesn’t always work.
Sometimes, emails bounce with strange errors. And, one such error is “user unknown in virtual mailbox table” in Postfix servers.
What’s this virtual mailbox table? How can I add the user in this table? Many of these questions may arise in your mind.
At Bobcares, we help server owners resolve such complex email errors as part of our Server Management Services.
Today, we’ll discuss the top 4 reasons for this error and how we fix them.
“User unknown in virtual mailbox table” in Postfix – What this error means?
This is one of the common errors in Postifx mail servers when users send emails to their local mailboxes. The exact bounce message looks like this:
[postfix]550 ..: Recipient address rejected: User unknown in virtual mailbox table
So, here our Support Experts check the Postfix email logs(/var/log/maillog) to find the origin of the problem. For instance, the email logs shows the error message like this:
postfix/smtpd[14568]: NOQUEUE: reject: RCPT from domain.com[1xx.15x.12x.3]: 550 5.1.1 <test@example.com>: Recipient address rejected: User unknown in virtual mailbox table; from=<postmaster@domain.com> to=<test@example.com> proto=ESMTP helo=<domain.com>
This error message shows that emails are not delivered to the mailbox test@example.com. Because, the mail server can’t find this email account on the server.
In other words for the emails to work properly, the mail server must know the exact mail delivery path of a domain. If the exact email delivery path of the domain can’t be found, it throws this error.
“User unknown in virtual mailbox table” in Postfix – Causes & Fixes
Now, we’ve a clear understanding of this error. Let’s now discuss the main reasons for this error and how our Support Engineers fix them.
1)Typo in Recipient address
If the recipient mail server can’t find the recipient email account, it would throw the error “User unknown in virtual mailbox table” in Postfix. In other words, a typo in the email address like extra space, dot, missing alphabet, etc. can lead to this error.
Similarly, there are instances where an email account existed on the server got removed or disabled by the customer, or it may moved to another server. In such cases, the recipient server can’t route the emails.
How we fix?
Firstly, our Support Engineers confirm that there are no typo errors in the email address given by the customer. Also, we confirm that the email account is a valid one.
For example in Plesk Postifix servers, we use the below command to check if the email accounts exists or not.
postmap -s /var/spool/postfix/plesk/vmailbox | grep test@example.comIf not, we’ll manually add the email account under the domain. In addition to that, we check the DNS connectivity of the domain using tools such as dig, traceroute, etc. and confirm that the domain resolves to the correct server.
2) Email routing issues
The email delivery path can be either Local(mailbox within in the server) or Remote(mailbox outside the server). That is, emails are delivered outside the server if the email delivery path is set as remote.
Most mail servers offer the option of specifying the mail delivery path of the domains. But, misconfiguration in the Email routing of these domains can also lead to error.
For example, consider the domain example.com that uses remote mail server Gmail. But, if the Email Routing is set to Local, the mail server tries to treat the domain example.com as local. However, there are no mailboxes on the server. As a result, the mail server rejects the email with error “User unknown in virtual mailbox table“.
How we fix?
Firstly, our Support Specialists check the MX records of the recipient domain using the dig command.
dig example.com MXIf the email service of the domain is handled remotely, we’ll disable the email service on the local server to ensure that the email works fine. For example in Plesk servers, we disable the email service of a domain using the below command.
plesk bin mail --off example.comLikewise in Postfix servers, we modify the mydestination parameter in the Postfix configuration file /etc/postfix/main.cf to ensure that the server only handles emails for the intended domains.
Most importantly, we make sure to backup the Postfix configuration file before making these changes.
[And, do you need help in fixing this error? Our Support Experts can fix it for you.]
3) Bad DNS records
Similarly, “user unknown in virtual mailbox table” error can occur when the MX records of the domain aren’t resolving or the MX record of the domain doesn’t point to the correct server.
We’ve seen instances where the domain holds wrong MX entries after domain migration, IP address switches, etc. In such cases, recipient mail server can’t find the domain on the server and reject the emails.
How we fix?
Our Support Engineers verify the MX records of the domain using the below command.
dig domain.com MXAnd, if we notice missing MX entries or DNS errors, then we correct the DNS entries of the domain to get it fixed.
4) Corrupted Mail server configuration
Moreover, the configuration mistakes on the mail server such as SMTP settings, SSL settings, etc. can also lead to this error.
For example in Plesk Postfix servers, we’ve seen cases where incorrect/invalid entries of a domain in the /var/spool/postfix/plesk/virtual file result in this error.
How we fix?
Our Hosting Engineers check the validity of the domain entries in the mail server configuration files. For example, in Postfix servers, we use the following command to see if the domain is properly added in the /var/spool/postfix/plesk/virtual file.
postmap -s /var/spool/postfix/plesk/virtual | grep example.comIf the domain is missing, we backup this file and add the domain to this virtual.db file.
[Messed up mail server configuration? Get one of our Server Experts to look into your issue and fix it for you.]
Conclusion
In short, “user unknown in virtual mailbox table” error in Postfix can occur due to bad DNS records, email routing issues, and more. Today, we’ve discussed the top 4 reasons for this error and how ourSupport Engineers fix them.
I had Migrated exchange 2007 to exchange 2010.
Now not able to recieve mail from outside for newly created mailboxin exch 2010. MX record was pointed to new exchange.
The thing is the mailbox which was migrated from exch 2007 to 2010 are able recieve mail but newly created mailbox in 2010 not recieving mail I
am getting bounce back mail as below.
Delivery to the following recipient failed permanently:
administrator@silk-crafts.com
Technical details of permanent failure:
Google tried to deliver your message, but it was rejected by the recipient domain. We recommend contacting the other email provider for further information about the cause of this error. The error that the other server returned was: 550 550 5.1.1 <administrator@silk-crafts.com>:
Recipient address rejected: User unknown in virtual mailbox table (state 13).
—— Original message ——
DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed;
d=gmail.com; s=20120113;
h=mime-version:date:message-id:subject:from:to:content-type;
bh=+JGsIhSUZQQPVCUhLBWKGtGAESLIXAbzK+0LifBog7c=;
b=auu7vjTZMflOQmL/2PCd82JyDa2FkucofhGoISTT6QfwFCzlMFnFRALA9/FGsEFNL7
kJsYQK5vHQNrmLVLZcYao3dCjWyyGi7hv4Ntmlf1VK13n4DgJszbF0kUbFVp/uVXlBtf
9ykDDJNDNmoUPb1NBbQi10wcfTzyLevOTUZjjjq3KZ9A7VtDorp4q5xReaB2V2bj+ig/
jw6KIO4xA7ekOc9h2Rpa8p3YIvIKCI3tmIELICXeohC6WrS1+X0y1oFo+IMVLqifROIm
g1Z9J5oh6WEGrWGl8GxaYw7crnGtq59FMbUrCuyIpaFGysyQOgdsBowoK+1XmN/c0a28
8hHg==
MIME-Version: 1.0
Received: by 10.60.6.73 with SMTP id y9mr38470930oey.17.1341766088564; Sun, 08
Jul 2012 09:48:08 -0700 (PDT)
Received: by 10.60.125.3 with HTTP; Sun, 8 Jul 2012 09:48:08 -0700 (PDT)
Date: Sun, 8 Jul 2012 22:18:08 +0530
Message-ID: <CAB4Xy=i7CHHnak6KUwmw1GkMG4tL93A4fwxOTaxBoguZOUGXNw@mail.gmail.com>
Subject: test
From: «Moh@n» <mohan.6968@gmail.com>
To: administrator@silk-crafts.com
Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary=e89a8ff25014149f0e04c454431b
Further to thi below is the email dossier detail from two mailbox(Old mailbox which was moved from 2007 to 2010 and newly created mailbox in 2010)
Validating
mohanb@silk-crafts.com…
Validation results
|
confidence rating: |
0 — Bad address |
|
error : |
RecipientRejected — Mail server rejected the email address. |
|
canonical address: |
<mohanb@silk-crafts.com> |
MX records
|
preference |
exchange |
IP address (if included) |
|
10 |
silk-crafts-com.p10.spamhero.com |
|
|
20 |
silk-crafts-com.p20.spamhero.net |
|
|
30 |
silk-crafts-com.p30.spamhero.net |
|
|
40 |
silk-crafts-com.p40.spamhero.net |
SMTP session
[Resolving silk-crafts-com.p10.spamhero.com…]
[Contacting silk-crafts-com.p10.spamhero.com [108.60.195.222]…]
[Connected]
220 bolt7a.mxthunder.net ESMTP Postfix
EHLO hexillion.com
250-bolt7a.mxthunder.net
250-PIPELINING
250-SIZE 524288000
250-ETRN
250-ENHANCEDSTATUSCODES
250-8BITMIME
250 DSN
MAIL FROM:<HexValidEmail@hexillion.com>
250 2.1.0 Ok
RCPT TO:<mohanb@silk-crafts.com>
550 5.1.1 <mohanb@silk-crafts.com>: Recipient address rejected: User unknown in virtual mailbox table
[Address has been rejected]
RSET
250 2.0.0 Ok
QUIT
221 2.0.0 Bye
[Connection closed]
For working mailbox
Validating
rs@silk-crafts.com…
Validation results
|
confidence rating: |
3 — SMTP |
|
canonical address: |
<rs@silk-crafts.com> |
MX records
|
preference |
exchange |
IP address (if included) |
|
10 |
silk-crafts-com.p10.spamhero.com |
|
|
20 |
silk-crafts-com.p20.spamhero.net |
|
|
30 |
silk-crafts-com.p30.spamhero.net |
|
|
40 |
silk-crafts-com.p40.spamhero.net |
SMTP session
[Resolving silk-crafts-com.p10.spamhero.com…]
[Contacting silk-crafts-com.p10.spamhero.com [208.53.48.191]…]
[Connected]
220 bolt7b.mxthunder.net ESMTP Postfix
EHLO hexillion.com
250-bolt7b.mxthunder.net
250-PIPELINING
250-SIZE 524288000
250-ETRN
250-ENHANCEDSTATUSCODES
250-8BITMIME
250 DSN
MAIL FROM:<HexValidEmail@hexillion.com>
250 2.1.0 Ok
RCPT TO:<rs@silk-crafts.com>
250 2.1.5 Ok
RSET
250 2.0.0 Ok
QUIT
221 2.0.0 Bye
[Connection closed]
Any one kidly help on this.
I install an application, that it needed smtp information for sending mail, I provide smtp user, password and host for that application, but when it tried to send mail this error had occurred in the application:
"SMTPRecipientsRefused: {'ash.mavi@gmail.com': (550, '5.1.0 <bounce-14-res.users-5@aaslaam.com>: Sender address rejected: User unknown in virtual mailbox table')} ".
what should I do?
mail server log:
Apr 29 13:41:41 ns3 postfix/smtpd[30281]: connect from unknown[xx.xx.xx.xx]
Apr 29 13:41:41 ns3 postfix/smtpd[30281]: NOQUEUE: reject: RCPT from unknown[xx.xx.xx.xx]: 550 5.1.0 <bounce-15-res.users-5@aaslaam.com>: Sender address rejected: User unknown in virtual mailbox table; from=<bounce-15-res.users-5@aaslaam.com> to=<ash.mavi@gmail.com> proto=ESMTP helo=<ns1.webmart.com>
If you need to know more information, let me know.