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What to check if your Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 users are not receiving emailsUpdated a year ago

I’ve run across a few situations where Google Workspace admins reported that users have stopped receiving emails - either partially or completely.  So far, these issues have fallen into 2 categories.

Regardless of what is causing the problem, I usually start by checking the email logs.  If the email actually arrived at your provider's servers, it will be listed in the logs and you can almost always see the reason it never reached your user.


Category 1 : Problems with MX DNS records

Verify that your MX records still appear as they should to the internet at large.  Don’t bother logging into your DNS host to check, as sometimes the problem is that the host you THINK handles your DNS might not.  Instead, use the command line or head over to MX Tools to look up your MX records.

  • Verify your MX records using a public DNS checking service such as MXToolbox , Don't rely solely on what you see in your DNS control panel... use a tool that tells you what the rest of the internet sees.

  • Make sure the records exactly match what your email service provider recommends

  • Make sure you don't have any extra MX records beyond those required... having multiple email service providers in your list of MX records will definitely cause email delivery problems.


Category 2 : Check your email routing rules 

Check your routing rules to see if there are any rules that might be getting in the way of email delivery. 


Category 3 : Your Mailbox provider may be blocking the emails due to missing authentication mechanisms such as SPF, DKIM, and DMARC

Again, check your email logs.  Emails that are rejected, quarantined, or spam-holed will still show up in your logs and you can see the reasons they were processed that way:


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