Did Eudora smtp auth change?

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Yesterday, My Eudora client stopped retrieving my webmail from Earthlink.net suddenly after decades of continuous use. Midday, the Eudora “Check mail” function produced an error message that included: “There has been an error transferring your mail. I said    MAIL FROM [User @sprintmail.com>  and then the SMTP server [smtpauth.earthlink.net] said  550 5.5.1 Authentication Required”.  I had not changed any setting before the breakdown.

The option for setting “Secure sockets when receiving” is set to “Never”; but it always has been that settting and no change occurred yesterday.

Earthlink support did  not help. The webmail service in the cloud is functioning.  Earthlink does not support the Eudora client.  Folks, I am in a jam.  Can anybody here trouble shoot and help me?

 

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[GoneToPlaid]

What version of Eudora are you using? I figure that you are using Eudora 7.1.0.9.

It is obvious that Earthlink is now requiring SSL for send and receive. This means that you will have to enable STARTTLS in Eudora both for sending and receiving email. This webpage shows how to configure Eudora for use with Earthlink.net:

https://getmailspring.com/setup/access-earthlink-net-via-imap-smtp

In Eudora in Options and then under Checking Mail, you will need to set Secure Sockets when Receiving to Required, STARTTLS. Configure Sending Mail in the same way.

Even after configuring Eudora to use the correct settings, Eudora still might not work correctly. This is because you most likely will need to download and install the Hermes Mail files which will upgrade Eudora’s root certificates and which will upgrade one of Eudora’s DLLs to use the new root certificates and to use TLS version 1.2. This is what I had to do over two years ago when my email provider upgraded their email server’s security settings. Here is where to get the Hermes Mail package for Eudora:

https://sourceforge.net/projects/hermesmail/files/

The Readme.txt file in the Hermes ZIP file contains the instructions for upgrading your Eudora to properly support the newer SSL standards and to use the updated root certificates. Unfortunately, these instructions are not very good.

See this SourceForge post which has better instructions:

https://sourceforge.net/p/hermesmail/discussion/general/thread/407979bc26/

Or use my instructions:

1. Close the Eudora program.

2. Install the Microsoft Visual C++ 2015 Redistributable (vcredist.exe which is in the Hermes ZIP file). This is the x86 version. There is also an x64 version. Either may already be installed on your computer. Simply look under Installed Programs. Attached is a screen capture which shows that I have both the x86 and x64 versions installed. Eudora requires the x86 version.

3. Go to your Eudora program folder and rename the “QCSSL.dll” to “QCSSL.old”.

4. Copy the four files (highlighted in my second attached screen capture) from the extracted HermSSL.zip file to your Eudora program folder.

5. That’s it! Now all you need to do is to configure Eudora to use STARTTLS when either checking or sending mail.

• This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by GoneToPlaid. Reason: minor edit

2 users thanked author for this post.

Ian C, Trainpacer

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Gone To Plaid,

Thank you taking an interest in my post and replying with pertinent information and accessible documentation.  Yes, I confirm that I am using Eudora 7.1.0.9.

I accessed the sources you indicated, downloaded the zip files you listed, read the read me file you specified, closed Eudora, confirmed that I already had installed both x86 and x64 versions of MS Visual C++ 2015 Redistributable in my computer (so I did not reintall those apps), I renamed “QCSSL.dll” to “QCSSL.old” in my Eudora program folder as you wrote, and copied four files you listed from the extracted HERMES file folder to my Eudora program folder.  Then I configured my Eudora app to use STARTTLS when checking or sending mail. I think I performed all the steps you suggested.

My results now differ from the error messages I had before.  When I check mail, the error message is: “Logging into POP Server CAPA <time> Server does not support SSL”.

When I tried to send mail – as a test of interim progress -the error message was: Connecting to the Mail Server  SSL negotiation Failed  The connection with the server has been lost.”

After I installed the extracted four files from the HERMES directory, the error message is:

Server SSL Certificate Rejected <+ more>

You are likely familiar with the < + more>. The reason given is: Certificate Error: Unknown unprovided root certificate.  Do you want to trust <etc.>

The time period data is “Not before Jan 1:00:00:00 2004 GMT  Not After Dec 31 23:59:59:59 2008 GMT.”

Does it appear to you that I installed an obsolete root certificate?  Do the new error messages suggest a further path for successful repair?

Do you have a tip jar?  Your help deserves reward.

Trainpacer

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Gone To Plaid,

An update: I succeeded to change the password of the Eudora dominant personality, and after that I succeeded to check and retrieve POP mail from web mail server. One half of success.

Sending mail still fails. Error message is:

“”Connecting to the Mail Server”..<computer name  server [time] SSL Negotiation Failed. The connection with the server has been lost.   Cause   (5)”

Is a stale or obsolete root certificate possibly the current problem?

Trainpacer

1 user thanked author for this post.

GoneToPlaid

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Hi Trainpacer,

I will post some screen captures of a few things to check in your Eudora send and receive settings. It might take me a day or two to get around to it since I am busy with work.

Best regards,

–GTP

 

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Gone To Plaid,

I succeeded to change the password for my dominant personality, and I succeeded to check mail and retrieve web mail from the server. So that is one half success.

I also changed under Tools Options Sending mail by altering the setting for Use Secure Sockets layer back to “Never”, which it was before my trouble began. The result is that mail queued to send for 36 hours was sent.  That is the other half of success.

Something you pointed me to appears to have succeeded.  Thank you.

Trainpacer

1 user thanked author for this post.

GoneToPlaid

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Gone To Plaid,

Thank you for your post on (December 14, 2021 at 3:29 pm) with your instructions for upgrading your Eudora to properly support the newer SSL standards and to use the updated root certificates.

I would like to try to follow your instructions — but I am not finding the 2 screen captures referenced in your instructions — as I write this on April 16, 2022.

Would you please re-post the screen captures referenced in your instructions?

Thank you for helping many people who want to keep using Eudora 7.1.0.9!

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Attachments are visible to registered users.

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In Step 4 of my instructions, the four files in the HermSSL.zip file which you need to copy to your Eudora program folder are:

libeay32.dll
QCSSL.dll
rootcerts.p7b
ssleay32.dll

 

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Ian C

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Thanks for this. I have the same problem. I think I have followed the instructions but still cannot send mail.

I cannot see the screenshots, could you repost, or list the necessary settings.

My visual C is a few years old, could that matter?

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The attachments should be visible once you log in.

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This worked perfectly! Thank you GoneToPlaid!

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Thanks so much for these instructions!  (And to Hermes project team!)  My email provider is dropping TLS 1.0 and I thought I was sunk… been using Eudora for over 20 years, never wanted anything fancier.  This allows me to continue!   And it works!  (Did have to specify “Required,Alternate Port” for whatever reason.)

 

 

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Wait, it works!

As someone else found, it needed Required use alternate port (not Required STARTLS) and Never for incoming mail.

Strange but true.

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solution worked

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Yesterday, I needed to update the certificate to use a freshly-issued certificate for Eudora 7.1.0.9.  Today, I used the above procedure to allow TLS 1.2 certificates to be used. Thank you for this information.

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I’ve been doing all my email correspondence with Eudora ever since 2004 – perhaps even earlier.  Recently, Comcast started announcing that “older email programs” would no longer work after March 31st.  Comcast gives an address with which you can check whether your program will work following the change  – and my two Eudora setups (under Windows XP and Windows 7) both failed Comcast’s test.

Having already installed what’s being referred to here as a Hermes update, I figured I’d have to abandon Eudora after all these years.  Then I chanced to read messages on this forum referring to a simple change in a couple of Secure Sockets settings that for some reason I hadn’t needed to make before – from Required STARTLS to Required Used Alternate Port.  So in the main Eudora window, I went to Options, Checking Mail and Options, Sending Mail and switched the settings.  Voila!  Eudora immediately passed the Comcast test.

(Note that I didn’t have to change either setting to “Never” – but will remember this tip in case I run into future problems.)

It’s a huge relief that I won’t be forced to drop Eudora.  Many thanks to all who participated in this discussion, and particularly to the member who first posted the solution.

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I have had a message from my email hosting company saying they’re deactivating “the outdated TLS 1.0 and TLS 1.1 encryption protocols” and:
For email transfer between your device or program and our email servers to continue to work after deactivation, it must support TLS 1.2 or higher.

I followed the instructions in this thread to upgrade Eudora 7.1.0.9 and it is now checking/sending mail using SSL, but when I look at the Last SSL info it says TLSv1.

I downloaded and unzipped the Hermes files as described, renamed the existing files to .old and copied the new ones to the Eudora folder.
Can anyone tell me how to upgrade to v1.2?

 

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According to Hermes, you need the latest DLLs.
https://sourceforge.net/p/hermesmail/discussion/general/thread/ec308a9658/

cheers, Paul

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The link from Paul above will work, but “the latest” are at Pete Maclean’s download site at: https://www.maclean.com/downloads/QCSSL_Update.zip

BUT — the version he posted last Feb does not have rootcerts.p7b in it.

Pete is the Hermes coder [the only one].  This zip file also has detailed instructions on what to do with the files.  This was written shortly before Office365 MS email started to require OAuth2 for incoming email, which put an end to using Eudora with MS email.  There are work-arounds but they are not pretty.

Speaking of Hermes, Pete continues to work on Aurora, the “new” Eudora based on the original code but updated with fixes.  There is an alpha version that more or less runs like the last Qualcomm version, and Pete is working to fix the handling of UTF-8 characters.  There are many remaining challenges there, and getting Aurora to work with OAuth2 is not in the immediate future.  But he keeps plugging along as his time allows.

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Thanks you so much, Paul & Georgea – really appreciate all this help with keeping Eudora on its feet. We’ve been using it ever since we first got on the internet (and that was a very, very long time ago!).

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Go to Control Panel and then Internet Options. In the Internet Properties popup window, go to the Advanced tab. Scroll down to the bottom of the settings. Make sure that Use TLS 1.o, Use TLS 1.1 and Use TLS 1.2 have check marks. Yeah, everyone is supposed to disable Use TLS 1.0 due to a severe security issue if TLS 1.0 is enabled on a local network, yet disabling TLS 1.0 breaks the functionality of older printers and causes some computers to not show up in the network.

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Today my ISP IONOS switched off TLS and are forcing use of SSL port 465.

Is there any way to implement that in Eudora.

Thanks

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Are you using Win7? If so, there is MicrosoftEasyFix51044.msi for Win7 SSL.

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See my April 2 post above.  The MS easyfix above won’t do it for Eudora.  The only fix is to use Pete Maclean’s QCSSL.dll update package from his HERMES Aurora work:

https://www.maclean.com/downloads/QCSSL_Update.zip

which now has the rootcerts.p7b file, and has a release notes pdf with instructions.  See also the Eudora-Win discussion list:<!–StartFragment –>  <mailto:join-eudora-win@hades.listmoms.net?Subject=Gazelle>
<!–EndFragment –>

 

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connected247

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Thanks for the fast responses! However I was a little too hasty in my panic.

Changing ‘Required, STARTTTLS’ to ‘Required, Alternate Port’ resolved the problem.

The help here has been phenomenal, thank you!

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I have an older version of Eudora, 6.2.1.2.  My server is going to discontinue TLS1.0.  When I try to copy over the 4 files, and click check mail, the system crashes.  It will work with the three new files plus the old QCSSL.dll, it works ok, so it’s the QCSSL.dll that’s the problem.  Changing the security setting from Required, Alternate Port to the other settings didn’t make a difference.

Any ideas?

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If used with Eudora 7.1.0.9, the dlls should not crash.  Is that practical in your case?

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I would be happy to try that, but is there a v. 7 install program floating around somewhere?

Thanks,

Pete

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Or, is there a tweak of the dll to make it work with v. 6?

Thanks.

Pete

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Wayback machine: https://web.archive.org/web/20140703173917/http://www.eudora.com/download/

Hermes Mail (a fork of Eudora): https://sourceforge.net/projects/hermesmail/

cheers, Paul

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Sadly, I have done all the above tweaks over the years and now am at the end of 2023 and, once again, am getting “SSL Negotiation Failed: The connection wit the server has been lost. Cause: (5). (see image)
I have been a faithful Eudora user since 1994 – I know… I know most of the tricks but today they don’t seem to work. I have:
1) Downloaded Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 / 2015-2022 (x64) & (x86)
2) Renamed QCSSL.dll to old
3) Installed the Hermes SSL files libeay32.dll, QCSSL.dll, rootcerts.p7b & ssleay32.dll (been using this hack since 2022)
4) Changed Secure Sockets when Sending to “Required, Alternate Port”
5) “Trusted” the latest Comcast Certificate (see image below marked in blue).
I now can no longer get to Properties by right clicking on my Persona (greyed out). I can access Certificate Manager but have not been able to resolve the authentication issue.
My email is through Comcast (sadly). If anyone can help it would be greatly appreciated.

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Several years back I had similar issues. And still do since my provider issues new certificates every 3-4 months or so. A few years back, there were threads about resolving this, but those comments now lead to a page that is no longer good.

If you can still get into the Certificate Manager, try again. You really have to dig down, expanding where possible. Look for a skull’n’crossbones image. that’s your clue to fix. I did a brief google search. Try the suggestions in this article.

https://blog.timeoff.org/rick/2015/09/09/revisiting-eudora-ssl-certificate-failures

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Comcast and the Hermes SSL updates works fine for me – no need to ever mark a cert as trusted.  The most recent version of that update package is here, not on the SourceForge Hermes page:  https://www.maclean.com/downloads/QCSSL_Update.zip

Pete Maclean is the Hermes coder.

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