Don’t overlook security add-ons when troubleshooting Outlook issues
Even the most inexperienced Outlook
users know that they need protection from email threats. However, many administrators forget
that the protection achieved through third-party security add-ons can actually cause Outlook
problems. Let’s examine two security add-on products that may actually be hurting Outlook more than
they’re helping.
Outlook mail scanners
A popular email security feature that’s included with many PC protection suites is a mail scanner
add-on that’s installed into Microsoft Outlook. The
add-on scans email as it is sent and received by the Outlook mailbox for dangerous
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This was first published in January 2012
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The problem is that mail scanners can prove too intrusive and may actually prevent mail from
reaching your users’ mailboxes. The best strategy is to identify happy-mediums when configuring
your server-side security settings for spam and suspected spam scores.
Similar to other Outlook add-ons, additional problems can occur. A bad mail scanner add-on can
cause Outlook to freeze or even crash when your users click the send/receive button. Users are left
without an error message or warning, leaving you to guess what caused the crash. It couldn’t
possibly be the mail scanner; that’s supposed to be protecting Outlook, not breaking it, right?
If you suspect that your mail scanner might be the source of the problem, start Outlook in
safe mode. This is accomplished by entering the /safe switch in a Run command window. It will open
Outlook with only its most basic services -- and more importantly, add-ons are not enabled.
If everything looks good in safe mode, it’s safe to assume that the add-on the cause of the
problem. To definitively establish the mail scanner add-on as the root cause, disable it in the
registry of the PC.
Warning: Incorrectly using the Windows registry editor can prevent your operating system
from functioning properly, so use caution when making changes. Also, be certain to make a complete
backup of your registry and workstation prior to any registry changes.
- Open the registry editor on the local PC;
- Go to HKLM -> software -> Microsoft -> Office -> Outlook -> add-ons;
- Right-click the add-on that correlates to your scanner, then select Rename and add
“-disabled”;
- Restart Outlook
in normal mode.
If you no longer notice the problem, you’ve found its source.
Software firewalls for Outlook
Another feature built into PC protection suites is the software firewall. Although the firewall
plays an important role in protecting your users’ workstations, you may find it a pain point if you
don’t open the correct ports to allow mail traffic into the Outlook client.
In order for Outlook to function correctly, you must ensure that the following ports are
open:
- SMTP TCP port 25
- POP3 TCP port 110
- IMAP4 TCP port 143
If you’re using secure connections back to your service provider, you must open the following
ports:
- SMTP TCP port 465
- POP3 TCP port 995
- IMAP4 TCP port 993
If you’re using Outlook
Anywhere and having issues authenticating yourself back to an Exchange server, you may also
need to open UDP ports 6001-6004 for RPC communications to go through as required.
Software firewalls often allow traffic based on the application itself and the necessary ports are
already opened for you. However, many firewall providers -- such as McAfee’s Host Intrusion
Prevention Software (HIPS) and Check
Point’s ZoneAlarm -- use unique hashing algorithms that are assigned to the applications when
marked as allowed. If the application installs and is updated so that it no longer matches
its unique hash, it will be blocked unless those changes are accepted.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dave Leaver has worked in the IT industry for the last ten years as an IT support
engineer. He currently works for an IT support company in Cheltenham, UK, supporting over one
thousand users, spanning over forty companies. Leaver specializes in Microsoft system migrations
and Exchange Server. Leaver has also been a network administrator for the NHS and several large
construction companies throughout the UK.
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