Scan to Email Best Practice

Explanation/ Context

The purpose of this article is to document current considered best practice for configuring the scan-to-email feature on printers.

Historically we have seen, on a number of occasions, Microsoft would briefly classify email coming from leased Ricoh printers as spam. Microsoft's "fingerprint" identification of spam is cryptic and fluid, and while the classification was temporary, it has been disruptive. There is typically a period of confusion before the issue is identified by users and filtered up to the various support departments. Once identified as a campus-wide issue, there is little to be done about it beyond marking individual email as "not spam" and (on at least one occasion a work around; all of which fall upon the user's themselves. 

Heretofore, we've configured most printers' scan-to-email feature using the anonymous smtp.utdallas.edu. Given that this issue can come and go seemingly at random, and our lack of direct control over the classification process, we recommend using a service account to configure smtpauth.utdallas.edu for the scan-to-email function. 

SMTP Vs. SMTPAuth

Using smtpauth.utdallas.edu does not ensure email will never get flagged as spam, but it should greatly reduce the likelihood. In addition, there is an added layer of security as the email can now be encrypted. The primary difference between smtp and smtpauth is, as the name implies, smtpauth introduces the need for authentication. For this purpose we recommend creating a service account. One or many service accounts could be created depending on the situation, but we'd recommend a general-use service account per support dept to be used specifically for this purpose. For example, one service account for all OIT-supported printers. A single service account is less work to maintain, but this is just a general recommendation; you may have a reason or desire to use multiple service accounts. 

Service Account

You can request a service account via a Pearl request. You should request a Basic service account with Email:

Settings and Notes