iDRAC 9 Enterprise SMTP Alerts with Office 365 – Configuration Guide

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I'm running a Dell PowerEdge T440 with iDRAC9 Enterprise. I'm attempting to setup SMTP alerts using Office 365. I have been unable to successfully send a test e-mail at all. I receive the error: RAC0225 every single time I sent a test e-mail.

This is the setup so far, any help would be super appreciated because I'm at a loss.

iDRAC Settings -> Connectivity -> Network -> Common Settings
Register iDRAC on DNS: Enabled
DNS iDRAC Name: iDRAC-ServiceTag
Auto Config Domain Name: Disabled
Static DNS Domain Name: xxx.userdomain.com
Connection View: Enabled

Configuration – > System Settings -> Alert Configuration
Alerts: Enabled

Configuration -> System Settings -> SMTP (Email) Configuration
Email Alert 1: my.email@emailaddress.com

Configuration -> System Settings -> SMTP (Email) Server Settings
I've attempted various configuration settings in this area such as:
SMTP (Email) Server IP Address or FQDN /DNS Name:
Public WAN IP
domain-com.mail.protection.outlook.com.
I created an IIS Server with SMTP enabled and followed this guide: http://www.ponjavic.com/wordpress/2016/06/16/configure-smtp-relay-server-for-office-365/ for the setup

I'm complete at a loss of how to set it up. Even if I'm not able to, or it's an extremely small oversight I missed I just want to know if it's possible, and how people have had luck setting it up because I haven't had any.

Thank you so much.

Best Answer

On iDRAC 9 firmware version 4.40 and newer, you can now configure a custom sender address and SMTP connection encryption in the web GUI. The settings required for Office 365 are as follows:

  • SMTP server settings: smtp.office365.com, port 587, STARTTLS
  • Sender Email Address / Username: Same email address in both fields.
  • Two-factor authentication needs to be disabled on the sender/authentication mailbox in the Office 365 settings console.

With older firmware versions (and with iDRAC 6/7/8), sending email alerts to cloud-based mail services via the iDRAC is a bit more complicated. Outbound SMTP connections on all iDRAC firmware versions older than 4.0 are unencrypted, and the "From:" address on the alert email is based on the DNS name and domain name assigned to the iDRAC. For example, email alerts sent from your iDRAC would come from "iDRAC-ServiceTag@xxx.userdomain.com".

You'll need to use the following settings for Office 365 on older iDRACs:

  • DNS iDRAC Name: Should match the name portion of the authentication email address.
  • Static DNS Domain Name: Should match the domain portion of the authentication email address.
  • SMTP server settings: The SMTP server will be the MX endpoint address of your email domain on port 25. The URL will look something like "contoso-com.mail.protection.outlook.com".
  • Two-factor authentication needs to be disabled on the authentication mailbox in the Office 365 settings console.

Connecting directly to O365 with these settings is a less-than-ideal solution; using a local SMTP relay to forward the alert would be preferable.

I'd recommend verifying the following settings, if you haven't already:

  • Make sure the iDRAC has a valid DNS server address configured.
  • Check the "State" box next to Email Alert 1.
  • Verify that the port/authentication settings in the iDRAC match what's configured on the SMTP relay server (port 25 with authentication set to Disabled, if you're going by the article).

If the email still fails after that, you might be able to get more details on why it's failing by enabling logging on the SMTP site properties in the IIS6 console.

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