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File-Server Glitch Causes E-Mail Problems for EarthLink Customers

Source: Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News Publication date: 2000-06-09

Jun. 9--ATLANTA--About 1.2 million EarthLink customers experienced problems sending and receiving e-mail Thursday morning.

By noon, the mail servers had been repaired, but a mail backlog made the system unresponsive for many users.

Only EarthLink customers with MindSpring addresses were affected. EarthLink and MindSpring merged in February, and some customers retained MindSpring addresses.

Harry Smoak, Atlanta site manager for systems operations for EarthLink, said no mail was lost but that a problem with a file server that stores customer e-mail caused the backlog.

"When customers want to check their mail, their mail client -- whether its Outlook Express or Eudora or another mail program -- it goes out and gets the mail," Smoak said.

But there was no mail to get, since the file server wasn't working. That's why users trying to send or receive mail received error messages. At the same time, other Internet users trying to send mail to MindSpring accounts received messages saying their e-mail to MindSpring.com could not be delivered. "All the mail started to pile up, and that caused the network problems," Smoak said. "It's a domino effect."

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-- (Dee360Degree@aol.com), June 09, 2000