220-1102 Question 299
Single answerEmail systemsA user reports that they can sign in to webmail and see new messages, but their smartphone email app suddenly stopped sending mail after the company migrated to a new email provider. Receiving mail on the phone still works. The user says they did not change their password. As the technician, which setting should you verify first to restore outbound email from the phone?
- A
The outgoing SMTP server name and port in the mobile email app
- B
The incoming IMAP server password in the mobile email app
- C
The user's mailbox storage quota on the mail server
- D
The DNS A record for the company's public website
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A
Explanation
This question tests practical email troubleshooting in a migration scenario. In real environments, users often retain access through webmail because the provider's web interface is already correctly configured, while manually configured mobile clients fail after a server change. When receiving still works but sending fails, the best first check is the outbound SMTP configuration: server name, port, SSL/TLS requirement, and whether SMTP authentication is enabled with the correct username format. Standard best practice is to compare the client settings against the email provider's documented configuration for SMTP submission, commonly using port 587 with STARTTLS or 465 with implicit TLS, depending on the provider. IMAP typically handles retrieval, while SMTP handles sending, so troubleshooting should focus on the specific service that is failing.
- A. Correct.
Correct. If the company migrated to a new email provider, the SMTP settings for sending mail commonly change. Because the user can still receive email, the incoming mail configuration is likely still functional, but the outgoing server, port, encryption setting, or authentication method may now be incorrect. Verifying the outgoing SMTP server settings is the most direct and appropriate first step.
- B. Incorrect.
Incorrect. If the incoming IMAP password were wrong, the phone would typically fail to receive mail as well. The scenario specifically states that receiving still works, which makes an incoming authentication issue less likely. A candidate might choose this if they assume send and receive always use the same credentials in the same way, but the problem points more specifically to outbound configuration.
- C. Incorrect.
Incorrect. A full mailbox quota can prevent new mail from being received and may generate bounce or over-quota messages, but it does not best explain why webmail works and mobile receiving still works while only sending from the phone fails immediately after a provider migration. This distractor reflects a common troubleshooting habit of checking storage issues first, but it does not fit the scenario as well as SMTP settings do.
- D. Incorrect.
Incorrect. The DNS A record for the company's website controls resolution for the website host, not the mail app's outbound mail configuration. Email sending is more closely tied to SMTP server settings and related DNS records such as MX for inbound routing, but even MX would not be the first setting to check on a phone that can receive mail already. This option targets the misconception that any DNS record problem would equally affect all email functions.