PennNet Mailing Lists Documentation and FAQ

• LSoft Online Listowner Manual
• Table of PennNet Mailing Lists Options

• Email - A list owner or member of the list can get information about a list and make updates to the list by sending an email message to listserv@lists.upenn.edu and including listserv commands in the body of the message.
• List Management Application - A list owner can manage a list through a web application available at http://lists.upenn.edu/cgi-bin/wa.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can I administer my list through the web?
2. How can I get information about managing my list through email?
3. Why aren't my (Exchange) Attachments being delivered?
4. How do I stop Listserv from preventing duplicate messages?
5. Why do messages distributed by Listserv have a different From: and CC: header?
6. How do I transfer ownership of a LISTSERV list?
7. For what kinds of things should a LISTSERV list be used?
8. I'm a new listowner. How do I start?
9. What are the list specifications?
10. How do I make changes to my list?
11. How do I add a co-owner to my list or change owners?
12. How do I get copies of messages sent to my list?
13. Bounced Mail?
14. I can't delete this address!!
15. What is "spamming"?
16. What is "spoofing"?
17. What is "spoofing"?
18. What is being "served out" and how do I fix it?
19. What does it mean when a list is "held"?
20. What are the alternatives to LISTSERV lists
21. How do I set up my list so that anyone can send mail to my list

1. How do I subscribe/unsubscribe from a list?
2. How do I know what lists are available?
3. I can't post because it tells me I'm not authorized, but I get mail just fine!
4. What are the basic subscriber commands?

Can I administer my list through the web?

Listserv's Web Interface allows a list owner to administer their mailing list through an easy- to-use web interface.

If this is your first time using Listserv's Web Interface, you will need to create a new Listserv password.

How can I get information about managing my list through email?

A list owner can get information on how to manage the lists by sending an email message to listserv@lists.upenn.edu and in the body of the message include the text info listownr. A list member can also get information on how to use the lists by sending an email to listserv@lists.upenn.edu and in the body of the message include the text info refcard. This will request from the listserv a reference card on how to use the service.

Why aren't my (Exchange) Attachments being delivered?

Listserv's default setting is to block Exchange attachments. You may configure your mailing list to allow Exchange attachments by adding the following Keyword to your list header:

Language=Exchange

Why do messages distributed by Listserv have a different TO: and CC: header?

By default, Listserv removes all addresses from the TO: and CC: headers other than the list itself. For example, if a user sends a message such as:

TO: testlist@lists.upenn.edu, billgates@msn.com
CC: stevejobs@apple.com

When it is distributed to the subscribers of testlist@lists.upenn.edu, those recipients only see the following:

TO: testlist@lists.upenn.edu

This behavior can be changed to retain the contents of the TO: and CC: headers, but it is configured on a subscriber-level basis, meaning that each individual subscriber may change their own personal setting. As as listowner, you may change the default setting which all subscribers receive when they are are subscribed. You may also bulk change the setting for all existing subscribers.

The change the default setting for your list, add the following keyword to your list header:

Default-Options= IETFHDR

To change the settings for your existing subscribers, send the following command to listserv@lists.upenn.edu:

QUIET SET yourlistname IETFHDR FOR *@*

How do I stop Listserv from preventing duplicate messages??

Listserv's default setting is to block duplicate messages that are sent to a list. This is to prevent looping, and well as to intercept SPAM. You may configure your mailing list to disable the duplicate check by adding the following Keyword to your list header:

Loopcheck=NoCRC

How do I transfer ownership of a LISTSERV list?

This procedure is for an existing owner to add or change owners. One should take great care not to change other keywords, or make typographical errors in a list header.

The main list management URL on our campus is: http://lists.upenn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?LMGT1

Enter your listname in the List Name: box and click the Configuration tab. If you've not used this interface before, you'll see links to create a Listserv password. If you have a password, enter it where prompted and then you'll be at the Edit list header page for your list. Find the section with Owner keywords like the following:

OWNER=some-user@host.upenn.edu

OWNER=QUIET:

OWNER=another-user@host.upenn.edu.edu

The main owner who will respond to list requests and bounce messages should be above the quiet line. Those that need to be able to add/remove subscribers etc. but don't handle normal mail, should be below. Add or edit the entries in the text box so that everyone who needs to control the list can. Any owner can then add/remove other owners. You must have at least one non-quiet owner.

For what kinds of things should a LISTSERV list be used?

LISTSERV lists are best used for projects where the team membership may be subject to change or where the mailing should be restricted to only a specified group of people or if there is a need to have a common archive of all list mailings.

Please see our List Management Checklist for more information and alternatives to listserv.

I'm a new listowner. How do I start?

Mail you want to be distributed to the people subscribed to the list should be sent by using the list's name as the userid. Mail to be distributed to the list "PENN-L" should be mailed to PENN-L@lists.upenn.edu

To add new members to your list, send a mail message to LISTSERV@lists.upenn.edu. If you want to add John Doe, who has an email address of johndoe@pobox.upenn.edu, to the list PENN-L, your message should be

add PENN-L johndoe@pobox.upenn.edu John Doe

To delete exisiting members from your list, send a mail message to LISTSERV@lists.upenn.edu. If you want to delete John Doe from PENN-L, your message should be

delete PENN-L johndoe@pobox.upenn.edu

What are the list specifications?

Subscription - how people are added to the mailing list

By Owner

Subscription requests are sent to owner who may then add user if desired.

Open

Any user may subscribe to the list without assistance.

Closed

User is notified that subscriptions are not allowed . Owner is not notified.

Owner(s)

Only the owner(s) can see the subscribers or the list header (Why? See What is list vacuuming?)

Private

Only people already subscribed to the list can see who is on the mailing list.

Public

Any user may see the list of subscribers.

Private

Only people already subscribed to the list can post mail to the mailing list.

Public

Any user may post mail to the list.

Editor

Postings are sent to editor(s) for submission to the list. (List owner is assumed to be the editor/moderator unless otherwise specified.)

List

When someone replies to a posting, it is directed back to the entire list (unless the original poster has specifically directed it elsewhere).

Sender

Replies to postings are directed to the original poster, not to the entire list (unless the original poster has specifically directed replies elsewhere).

Yes

Only people already subscribed to the list will be able to see the listname returned when LISTSERV is queried about existing lists.

No

Anyone querying LISTSERV can see the name and title of the list.

Service

Only those querying LISTSERV from the selected service area will see that the list exists.

No

Postings are not saved (Default)

Monthly

Each month of messages is saved in a different archive named listname LOGyymm

Yearly

Each year of messages is saved in a different archive named listname LOGyyyy

Weekly

Each week of messages is saved in a different archive named listname LOGyymmw (Not recommended.)

No

Sender does not get the message mailed to him by LISTSERV

Yes

Sender is included in the outbound mailing

UPENN only

Given the limits of other specifications, only users in the upenn.edu domain can see subscribe, post, etc. A service area limited to UPENN only will automatically limit lists with open subscription to upenn.edu sites (unless the owner specifically adds someone from an outside site).

No Limitation

Given the limits of the other specifications, any user from any site can see, subscribe, post, etc. the list.

How do I make changes to my list?

You will need to use e-mail to send commands to LISTSERV. Send the mail to:
listserv@lists.upenn.edu
The command and parameters will begin on the first line of your mail. You can send multiple commands in one piece of mail by using a new line for each command. LISTSERV will process the commands in order and then send back a confirmation of how each command executed. In this manner, you can make either list specification changes or list membership changes to your list.

To change list specifications, you must first get the list's header from LISTSERV. The header is where the information regarding the list set-up is kept. The command to send to LISTSERV is:
GET listname (HEADER
LISTSERV will send via return mail (or as a file if you used an interactive command) the header of the list with all the specifications.

You can just change the specification for a given keyword assuming the specification is a valid one for the keyword. (Refer to Appendix B of the List Owner's Manual to learn about the various keywords and specifications.) When you're done making changes, send the changed header back to LISTSERV via mail. When you send the header back, make sure the first line contains the PUT listname.LIST ... This is the command for LISTSERV to replace the old header with the new one. Also make sure that each line of the header information begins with an asterisk (*). LISTSERV will send a confirmation to you that the header was successfully replaced. A header will look something like this:

PUT MYLIST.LIST PW=xxxxxxxx * * My List * * Owner=myuserid@mynode.mydomain.edu (My Name) * * Subscription=By_owner,Confirm * Review=Owner * Send=Private * Editor=Owner * Reply-to=List,Respect * Confidential=Yes * Notebook=No * Default-options=NoRepro,Review *

How do I add a co-owner to my list or change owners?

Using the above methods of obtaining the list's header, just add a line under the line that says:

*       Owner=myuserid@mynode.mydomain.edu (My Name)

formatted in the same manner. Replace your mailing with your new co-owner's mailing address and your name with theirs. Send the new list header back to LISTSERV. Your co-owner can now add and delete people and make changes to the list headers.

You can also change your list's owner or your own owner address in this same manner by adding or changing the appropriate lines. Remember to leave an address that you know works while testing the new owner addresses!

Be careful that your owner address lists the exact same address your outgoing mail headers list otherwise LISTSERV will not recognize you as the list's owner and will not let you make changes to your list!!

How can I get a copy of messages that were sent to the list?

We do archive all messages that have been sent to each list and store these messages monthly. If you would like to get a copy of messages that were sent t o a list for a particular month, send a message to "listserv@lists.upenn.edu" and in the body of the message put get [listname].logYYMM, specifying the name of your list and the year and month that the messages were sent.

For example, if you are looking for all messages sent to PENN-L for Oct ober, 1996, you would send a message to "listserv@lists.upenn.edu" and put in your message

get penn-l.log9610

Bounced Mail?

Bounced mail is one of the most time-consuming tasks a list owner can have and may be one of the more confusing issues, since mail bounces back with as many different error messages as there are mail systems. The list owner can pretty much ignore the initial message that LISTSERV sends saying that the mail has been directed to the listname-owner mailbox because of an error. The error itself will be farther down in the message past the second set of mail headings that usually appear. Generally the error content will mention one of just a few things. The wording may not be exactly the same, but the concept will be. Remember, too, that you will get an error for *every* posting that goes to that address, so you may have multiple errors for the same address, especially if you own a high traffic list. It also may take a day or so for the errors to flush out of the system once you've deleted the problem address.

Host unknown

The system to which this mail was addressed has left the Internet. The only thing you can do is delete the subscriber from the list. There is no easy way to track if the subscriber has a new mailing address on another system.

User unknown

The userid to which this mail was addressed has been purged from the receiving system. The only thing you can do is delete the subscriber from the list. There is no easy way to track if the subscriber has a new mailing address on this or another system.

Host unreachable

The system to which this mail was addressed is off-line (for perhaps an indeterminate amount of time). Most systems come back up after a few days. It may be a break or a holiday. You can ignore this error unless it becomes overwhelming, then the answer is to either delete the subscriber or set them to NOMAIL (SET listname NOMAIL FOR userid@node.domain).

User's mailbox full

The subscriber has exceeded the disk quota on their machine. You can ignore this error, or, if the error messages become overwhelming, delete them from the list or set them to NOMAIL (SET listname NOMAIL FOR userid@node.domain).

"Sender:", "From:" or "Reply-To:" field pointing to the list has been found in mail body.

This is a very specific error message that occurs when a list member tries to forward a mail message to the list. When forwarding the message, the original header is included in the forwarded message. LISTSERV will not permit forwarding the original header since this may cause a looping problem depending on how your mailer handles forwarding messages. In order to send a forwarded message, your list member must delete the original mail header before sending to the list.

I can't delete this address!!

Many times a subscriber will have their mail forwarded to another system or site. The mail bounce actually comes from that site rather than the one from which the person subscribed. The solution to this is to REView the list and look at the names and userids of the subscribers to try to find a name match to the person getting the bounced mail. Then you can delete that address from your list.

The other problem you may find is that someone has started a local list and subscribed it to your larger list. You then have subscribers getting mail from a secondary site. Bounced mail will pass from their real mailing address, but that address doesn't appear on your list of subscribers, the local list does. You can try to match site names, but often this doesn't work. You can try to keep local lists off your list (but this is really counterproductive since local distribution lists are less wasteful of resources) or make sure you have a valid address for the person responsible for the local site list. In any circumstances, it can be difficult. The first things to do, though, are to scour your list of subscribers for matches.

What is "spamming"?

A "spam" is a message sent to numerous lists (usually at numerous sites) that is generally completely off-topic of most (if not all) the lists to which it is sent. "Spams" are annoying because they are of no interest to the vast majority of (if not all) subscribers, waste people's time and waste valuable network resources (and money). Even "anonymous" spams can usually be traced back to the poster thanks to net guidelines requiring audit trails. If you want to complain about a spam, remember first that you certainly will not be the only person complaining, so be patient. Also, complaining to your local postmaster generally won't help (unless the spam originated from your site). Check the return address (which may or may not be legitimate) and address your mail to postmaster at the site listed.

An owner can make a list more "spam-resistant" by using the "Send= Private" keyword, using list moderators or limiting the list's service area. Needless to say, "spamming" is in violation of net guidelines and can cost a user their computing privileges. In some areas, "spamming" is a violation of the law.

What is "spoofing"?

"Spoofing" is when a user tries to subscribe to a list using someone else's or a bogus e-mail address. If the "spoof" is successful, the list owner will receive error messages about the bogus address from each posting that is made to the list (until the owner deletes the bogus address). Most of the time, a spoofer feels they can't be caught, however, e-mail audit trails are easily followed.

A list can be "spoof-proofed" (or at least made "spoof-resistant") by using the "Confirm" option on the Subscription keyword, using owner-only subscriptions (or closed subscriptions), or limiting the service area of the list. Like "spamming", "spoofing" can cost a user their computing privileges and is legally actionable in some areas.

What is "vacuuming"?

A recent trend in "spamming" has been to collect lists of e-mail addresses from various places and sell the lists to commercial entities who spam individuals rather than entire lists, thereby bypassing the spam filter built into LISTSERV. One of the primary sources of these e-mail address lists is LISTSERV subscriber lists. Some have even gone so far on lists where Review=Private as to subscribe to various lists, set their subscription to NOMAIL and then REVIEW the list for the addresses. By using Review=Owner, the list of subscribers is unavailable even to members of the list. The owner of the list can, of course, send out the list when requested, but has the chance to check on the legitimacy of the request.

If you do not want to set Review=Owner, you should remind your subscribers that they have the option to CONCEAL their e-mail addresses with the SET listname CONCEAL command.

What is being "served out" and how do I fix it?

When LISTSERV receives more than 9 commands in a row that contain errors, it "serves out" the account from which the commands were received. If you you have another account, you can send e-mail to listserv@lists.upenn.edu with the following command as the first and only line of the mail:
SERVE userid@node.domain
If you do not have another account other than the one that has been served out, contact your local support provider and ask to have your account served in. Make sure you have your address on hand. There will be a delay from the time you call to the time your account can be served in.

What does it mean when a list is "held"?

When a list exceeds the maximum number of posts allowed in a day (default: 100(?)), LISTSERV "holds" any subsequent postings sent to that list. The reasoning behind this is two-fold. One, if a loop occurs in a manner that LISTSERV doesn't catch, this keeps the number of posts down that would fill up subscribers' mailboxes. The site's postmaster can be notified to try to flush the rest of the looped posts out of the queue. Two, most subscribers get overwhelmed on high traffic lists, so holding the list automatically helps them in managing their use of resources as well.

To release a held list, send LISTSERV the command: FREE listname

When the list has been freed, LISTSERV will tell you how many posts have been held. If this number exceeds the number of maximum allowable posts in a day, the list will get held again, and you will need to issue the FREE command to LISTSERV again.

What are the alternatives to LISTSERV lists

A discussion of the alternatives to listserv is available.

How do I set up my list so that anyone can send mail to my list

If you want to set up your list so that anyone can send mail to the list, you must recognize that this makes your list vulnerable to spamming. If you choose to go ahead and make your list open, you will need to change your list header. (See How do I make changes to my list above.) The option that you need to change is "Send=". Send an email to listserv@lists.upenn.edu and in the body of the message include:

Send= Public

We recommend that even for open lists, you continue to leave your list as "Confidential". This will be some protection against spamming since keeping your list set to "Confidential" will prevent it from being included in the list of known lists that LISTSERV will return in reponse to a LIST request.

How do I subscribe/unsubscribe from a list?

All commands (e.g. SUBscribe, UNSUBscribe, REView, GET, etc.) should be sent to LISTSERV@lists.upenn.edu. You send the commands via e-mail. Multiple commands can be sent within one e-mail, but each command must appear on a separate line.

Mail you want to be distributed to the people subscribed to the list should be sent by using the list's name as the userid. Mail to be distributed to the list "PENN-L" should be mailed to PENN-L@lists.upenn.edu

To subscribe to a list, send mail to "listserv@lists.upenn.edu" with the command:

SUBscribe listname
To leave a list, send mail to "listserv@lists.upenn.edu" with the command:

UNSUBscribe listname

How do I know what lists are available?

The commands you need to remember are LIST which will request a listing of all the local non-confidential mailing lists, and LIST GLOBAL which will request a listing of non-confidential mailing LISTSERV lists world-wide. Remember that these are LISTSERV commands and should be sent to listserv@lists.upenn.edu and not to a particular mailing list.

I can't post because it tells me I'm not authorized, but I get list mail just fine!

When lists are set to Send=Private, only those addresses actually subscribed to the list can post mail to the list. It is possible for your email server to be configured so that it is known to the world by multiple names but only one name is its "real" machine name. You must be subscribed to the list with your email server's real machine name. For example, you may have an email account "kerouac@english.upenn.edu" but the English mail server's real machine name is "dept.english.upenn.edu". In order to post and receive mail from LISTSERV, you must either be subscribed to your list as "kerouac@dept.english.upenn.edu" or you need to configure your mailer to reflect the email server's real machine name.

Lists that are Send=Public don't have this problem, but risk being spammed.

What are the basic subscriber commands?