Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) Interview Questions And Answers

Logging into your email account to retrieve email seems fairly simple. However, there is technology working behind the scenes, such as simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP) and internet networks to ensure you can send and receive email. Think about SMTP as a mail carrier, sorting and delivering messages to mail servers. These messages are then delivered directly to your email inbox.

Electronic messaging was created decades before the internet revolution. In the 1960s people were exploring how to communicate using mainframe computers. The U.S. Government was the first to create a server to transmit email. In the 1970s, the mailbox protocol was developed, which was an early version of SMTP. The modern version of this technology was developed in 1982.

SMPT is responsible for transmitting email across Internet networks (IPs). This technology is used specifically for sending outgoing email. Clients typically use applications such as Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) or Post Office Protocol (POP) to access to their email box. For example, if you send an email it goes to a mail server using SMTP. The mail client will then deliver it to the user’s mailbox.

SMTP is responsible for a little more then just deliver messages to servers. It performs several functions that streamlines the delivery process.

► It evaluates the configuration and grants permission to the computer who is trying to send a message.
► It can also track if the message was sent successfully. If it isn’t, an error message is sent to the sender.
► Extended SMTP is a little more advanced then older versions. It helps cut back on email spam.

Previous versions of this technology had limiting figures, such as the location of the client within the network. SMTP allows clients to submit emails quickly regardless of the recipients location. Thats because current SMTP technology uses a clients authentication (which are their accreditations) instead of the license IP address to send email.

In order for computers to communicate with one another, standard methods of information transfer and processing have been devised. These are referred to as "protocols" and some of the more common ones such as TCP, IP, UDP, POP, SMTP, HTTP, and FTP

The InterStream Transit Protocol (ISTP) is a secure protocol that allows Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to offer high bandwidth multimedia services over their networks. The ISTP application is installed as a new protocol handler into browsers. It includes components which enable Internet Service Providers to obtain incremental revenue from subscribers, advertisers, other ISPs, and streaming video providers in exchange for using premium bandwidth services on their networks.