How to make email not be categorized as SPAM

[Chris]

Simple story, you use mail() function to send emails from your game server (account validation, password reminders, inactivity reminders, news). How to make such emails not be marked as spam?

Below headers from several games/maillists. The most important is the last parameter "SOMETHING-Spam", it should be "NO". So, in short, how to make it so that parameter is set to "NO"



GOOD

Code: [Select]

DomainKey-Signature: a=rsa-sha1; q=dns; c=nofws;
        s=s1024; d=playa-mail.com;
        b=evW16KxNauc+4wcuq/tghAZ9iSKk+5JR71tMiatdip3PwfnTG/ljChsW5jsDn+A1LnlaqIf/5eB2E93ij4Xo340WvvfwK+NiK5wwAY9T6Ql0rfyLvzZCz7uDok09d6Kiu56Pzl1ZcniazVkDXf4/WuDevjKCxcPIXu8Qx279P4U=;
        h=To:From:Reply-To:Subject:X-EMID:X-EMGUID:X-EMMAIL:Content-Type:Message-Id:MIME-Version:Date;
To: PLAYER@EMAIL
From: "SoccerStar" <support@playa-mail.com>
Reply-To: "Playa Mail" <support-GUIDK64RNXU52G53BXCMB56A@playa-mail.com>
Subject: Brak nam Ciebie!
X-EMID: 1A001BV03GQ10LA001RRE6P
X-EMGUID: K64RNXU52G53BXCMB56A
X-EMMAIL: PLAYER@EMAIL
Date: Fri, 27 May 2011 17:11:23 +0200
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Version: 4089
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Info: 001 26079 E00CEA21217A0 0.537013
X-ONET_PL-MDA-From: support-GUIDK64RNXU52G53BXCMB56A@playa-mail.com
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Spam: NO


DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha1; c=relaxed/relaxed; s=mimi; d=madmimi.com;
 h=Date:From:To:Message-Id:Subject:Mime-Version:Content-Type:List-Unsubscribe;
 bh=tTdZucZpSCoq+Usz1R+HqDYsOjg=;
 b=CcyEl05zlMDMr9joanq/563QS5mVPwzOgGnf1G1fXU3hq4yszU038QQf6sNuP+7vboyuj9T9lc6B
   TBIqoQ8JeNLYXv1TW7xBpxclerIgK1RQx21RLkVEL1BeIk/3rHVVZG5rCHlc2tMOp2mS+yVHRXCK
   BFYG/8sk/298AlE7dmg=
Date: Sat, 28 May 2011 14:03:50 -0400
From: Prisonblock Warden <noreply@froday.com>
To: PLAYER@EMAIL
Subject: Memorial Day Weekend @ PrisonBlock
Mimiaid: 3780619869
List-Unsubscribe: <mailto:mailman@mimimail1.com?subject=Unsubscribe 3780619869>, <http://go.madmimi.com/opt_out?fe=1&pact=3780619869&amx=296015091>
Precendence: bulk
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Version: 4089
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Info: 003 19937 702D99BCD0FB0 0.577230
X-ONET_PL-MDA-From: mailman@mimimail13.com
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Spam: NO


BAD

Code: [Select]

Date: 27 May 2011 16:49:21 +0200
To: PLAYER@EMAIL
Subject: [SPAM] Your character is dead.
From: (Medieval Europe) <noreply@medieval-europe.eu>
X-Sender: <noreply@medieval-europe.eu>
X-Mailer: PHP/5.2.10
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Version: 4089
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Info: 003 32520 B2E5D919B02F0 0.999941
X-ONET_PL-MDA-From: noreply@medieval-europe.eu
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Spam: YES


From: SitePro News <spn-h@sitepronews.com>
To: PLAYER@EMAIL
Subject: [SPAM] Website Redesign Best Practices - Part 2
Date: Fri, 27 May 2011 03:00:00 -0400
List-Unsubscribe: <mailto:leave-spn-html-1459170B@mailjayde.com>
Reply-To: SitePro News <spn-h@sitepronews.com>
X-IADB-IP: 69.9.175.179
X-IADB-IP-REVERSE: 179.175.9.69
X-IADB-URL: http://www.isipp.com/iadb.php
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Version: 4089
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Info: 004 08902 3F10BC56AB51C 0.995450
X-ONET_PL-MDA-From: bounce-spn-html-1459170@mailjayde.com
X-ONET_PL-MDA-Spam: YES


[chrisjenkinson]

Have a look at the tests which SpamAssassin carries out on emails - it will give you a good idea of things to avoid (or include) in emails to avoid them being marked as spam:
 --> http://spamassassin.apache.org/tests_3_3_x.html

[SpaceDoG]

I currently don't have emails being listed as spam. I'm running Ubuntu with Spamassassin, ClamAV, AmaVIS, Postgrey (greylisting), Postfix, Courier, and PostgreSQL. My server is set to not relay. I also have the rDNS properly configured (which a lot of places look for and reject if it doesn't properly resolve). I guess the main point is make sure you're running Spamassassin and anti-virus checks. Make sure relay is turned off. Make sure that if people want to send mail and aren't local they need to be using some sort of auth to the server. And lastly rDNS is key!