Last week we ran a spell check on our site to ensure that all the spelling mistakes were removed. This week we will focus on adding a secondary MX record. MX stands for Mail eXchange and is used by DNS to route email to the proper mail server. In the off chance that our mail server is dead you could possibly loose emails. One way to prevent that is to use a secondary MX.
Mail delivery is first attempted to be delivered to the primary mail server. If that server is not reachable then the mail will be attempted to be delivered to the mail server with the second lowest MX level. If the second lowest mail server in priority can not be reached then the mail will be delivered to the mail server with the third lowest MX level and so on.
If no mail servers can be reached then mail is sometimes queued but is usually just bounced back to the sender. This can lead to lost sales and lost revenue and worst of all lost of communication and respect.
To setup a second MX the easiest is to purchase the service through DNS Made Easy. The cost is only $12.95 for a year. Once you have purchased it they will provide you with a list like the following…
20 mx1.dnsmadeeasy.com
30 mx2.dnsmadeeasy.com
40 mx3.dnsmadeeasy.com
Open a ticket with our support and ask them to setup the additional MX records in your DNS. You are now prepared encase of an emergency that your emails will not be lost.
Bev
March 9, 2008 7:58 am
I just wanted to let you know that I think these ‘weekend projects’ are one of the best ideas you’ve come up with in a long time. Useful and helpful – especially for those new to building a site.