OA34350: NETVIEW EMAIL DOES NOT COMPLY WITH RFC 2821/2822

Obtain the fix for this APAR.

APAR status

• Closed as program error.

Error description

• Among EXECs needing update include EZLESMTP, EZLESSMT
  Email does not comply with RFC 2821/2822.
  EMAIL dialog allows entry of a single period '.' on a line
  within the text.
  If it is the only value on the line, any subsequent text on
  on following lines is dropped.
  

Local fix

Problem summary

• ****************************************************************
  * USERS AFFECTED: All users of Tivoli NetView for z/OS who     *
  *                 make use of any SMTP mail service (such as   *
  *                 EZLEMAIL).                                   *
  ****************************************************************
  * PROBLEM DESCRIPTION: The EZLEMAIL and EZLESMTP programs do   *
  *                      not build email messages according to   *
  *                      RFCs 2821 and 2822 in the following     *
  *                      ways:                                   *
  *                      - The value on the MAIL FROM: header is *
  *                        not in the form "<userid@hostname>".  *
  *                      - The value on the FROM: header line    *
  *                        does not end with a value in the form *
  *                        "<userid@hostname>".                  *
  *                      - The values used for TO: and CC: are   *
  *                        not checked to ensure they contain an *
  *                        "at" sign ("@").                      *
  *                      - The values on the TO: and CC: lines   *
  *                        are not separated by commas.          *
  *                      - Lines in the message part which       *
  *                        contain a dot (.) are not prepended   *
  *                        with a dot. Since the target email    *
  *                        application strips off leading dots   *
  *                        from lines and considers a null line  *
  *                        the end of a message, a line          *
  *                        containing a single dot results in    *
  *                        the rest of the message being lost.   *
  ****************************************************************
  * RECOMMENDATION:                                              *
  ****************************************************************
  - EZLEMAIL does not build emails correctly in all of the ways
    described above.
  - EZLESMTP does not build the MAIL FROM: or FROM: header lines
    correctly, nor does it prepend a dot when a line starts with a
    dot.
  - The comments in EZLESSMT do not document the correct format
    for MAIL FROM:, FROM:, TO: or CC: header lines.
  

Problem conclusion

• EZLEMAIL is being changed to correctly build email messages by
  doing the following:
  - Get the correct TCP/IP hostname and build the value used on
    the MAIL FROM: and FROM: header lines in the format
    "<operid@hostname>".
  - Ignore any ID in the TO: or CC: line that does not contain an
    "at" sign ("@"), since that is a requirement.
  - Add a comma between IDs in the TO: and CC: lines.
  - Prepend a dot before any line in the text portion that begins
    with a dot.
  EZLESMTP is being changed to comply with the RFCs as follows:
  - Get the correct TCP/IP hostname and build the value used on
    the MAIL FROM: and FROM: header lines in the format
    "<operid@hostname>".
  - Prepend a dot before any line in the text portion that begins
    with a dot.
  EZLESSMT is being changed to have the correct formats on the
  comment lines for the "mail from:", "From:" and "To:" header
  lines.
  In order for EZLEMAIL and EZLESMTP to use the correct TCP/IP
  hostname, EZLESMTP (called by either EZLEMAIL or internally by
  EZLESMTP) is being changed to use a new value defined in
  CNMSTYLE or, if this is not defined, to use SOCKET calls to
  retrieve the TCP/IP hostname using the stack name defined on the
  TCPNAME CNMSTYLE keyword. The new CNMSTYLE keyword is
  COMMON.EZLsmtpHOSTNAME, which is described below.
  Sample CNMSTYLE is being changed to describe the new
  COMMON.EZLsmtpHOSTNAME keyword, and to have a commented-out
  line to show the format.
  Also, the Tivoli NetView for z/OS Administration Reference for
  V5R3 (SC31-8854-04) and V5R4 (SC31-8854-05) should be changed as
  follows:
   A new subsection, named COMMON.EZLsmtpHOSTNAME, should be added
   to section 2, CNMSTYLE Initialization Statements, which
   contains the following:
  
    COMMON.EZLsmtpHOSTNAME
  
    The COMMON.EZLsmtpHOSTNAME statement specifies the TCP/IP host
    name that is to be used in the FROM: and MAILFROM: header
    lines in e-mail messages sent to the SMTP server.
  
    The COMMON.EZLsmtpHOSTNAME statement has the following syntax:
  
    >>__COMMON.EZLsmtpHOSTNAME=tcpip_hostname___________________>>
  
    Where:
  
    tcpip_hostname
       A dotted name or IP address that identifies the TCP/IP host
       from which e-mail is being sent. If the keyword is
       specified, the value will be used as the host name on the
       FROM: and MAIL FROM: header lines. If it is not specified,
       the e-mail program (EZLEMAIL or EZLESMTP) will retrieve the
       value using SOCKET commands.
  
       Consider the following if you do not specify a value for
       COMMON.EZLsmtpHOSTNAME:
       1. The host name can only be retrieved if the host uses an
          IPv4 address.
       2. There may be a delay up to the number of seconds
          specified on COMMON.CNMIP.DNSTimeout for each SMTP
          invocation.
       3. The SOCKET calls use the stack name specified on the
          TCPNAME CNMSTYLE keyword.
       If any of these considerations pose a problem, specify a
       value for COMMON.EZLsmtpHOSTNAME.
  

Temporary fix

Comments

APAR Information

• APAR is sysrouted FROM one or more of the following:

• APAR is sysrouted TO one or more of the following:

  UA57981 UA57982

Modules/Macros

• CNMSTYLE EZLEMAIL EZLESMTP EZLESSMT
  

Fix information

• Fixed component name

  NETVIEW FOR Z/O

• Fixed component ID

  5697ENV00

Applicable component levels

• R53B PSY UA57981

     UP11/01/26 P F101

• R54B PSY UA57982

     UP11/01/26 P F101

Fix is available

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