Cannot get DKIM to work

Support
1

Hi
I am using a Mythic Beasts virtual server with Sympl.
My emails from the server work fine except that Googlemail rejects emails with the message that DKIM and SPF did not pass. Gmail requires all senders to authenticate with either SPF or DKIM.
My SPF is set to softfail.
My main problem is that I cannot get DKIM to work. I understand how to do it using TXT, but Mythic Beasts uses a locked CNAME. The Sympl wiki says how to instal DKIM using TXT but not a locked CNAME.
Can anyone help?
Kind regards
Robin

2

There’s useful discussions at the link:

I’m hosting Sympl on a MB vm. I purchase domains via 123 Reg and have resorted to adding the spf, dkim and dmarc settings to 123 -Reg’s dns servers which works fine. Some crystal clear Sympl documentation would be a dream. I find myself fishing for detail between Mythic and the Sympl Wiki. I failed to establish the dns setup correctly via MB so I decided to cheat and use 123 Reg’s dns servers ie circumvent the problem!

This is some really useful discussion here: Email deliverability question

Noteworthy - I hadn’t ever realised the importance of adding the server host’s name to spf records for domains being hosted. Every day’s a school day!

3

Hi
Many thanks for your response. I had included Mythic Beasts as the host name in the SPF but Gmail rejects my emails. I agree that it would be great to have more comprehensive Sympl documentation.
Regards
Robin

4

Try testing your domain settings using MX Toolbox or here DKIM Test - DKIM Verify - DKIM Validator

5

I’m not sure what you mean by:

I understand how to do it using TXT, but Mythic Beasts uses a locked CNAME

I’m using TXT records for DKIM on a Mythic Beasts VPS with Sympl. Why would you be using a locked CNAME?

6

I think the confusion is that the Mythic Shared Hosting setup uses CNAMEs, but this isn’t the same for machines running Sympl.

Admittedly the documentation should be expanded a bit, but to set up DKIM on a Sympl server, you’ll need to follow the instructions on the Sympl wiki.

7

Thanks for your feedback.
Eventually, I got everything to work by following the instructions in the Sympl documentation and then leaving the dkim file blank and inserting my ip4 address into the SPF.