Ed-- I ended up unsubscribing from the listserv  to stop the email from coming in.

Cecilia

-----Original Message-----
From: h+t--friends-bounces@chrispy.net [mailto:h+t--friends-bounces@chrispy.net] On Behalf Of Ed Christopher
Sent: Friday, July 12, 2013 10:15 AM
To: TRB Health and Transportation
Subject: [H+T--Friends] Out of Office Meltdown

I am the list administrator so let me first apologize for the meltdown yesterday.  Apparently Rajiv's "out of office" automatic response was not recognizing that it was causing a massive loop. I was surprised to see it happen since most email systems now have protections so infinite loops do not happen.  Technically it was either a poorly configured mailer or a purposeful out-of-office configuration that responds to every email forgetting that we get email from entities other than just people.

So how do we prevent it from happening again?  First, on your end make sure to check the setting in you out of office responders.  They are all different but there is usually a place where you can put exceptions in for who gets a response. I am sure no one on this list cares when you are out of the office.

On my end when I see people whose out of office response hits the list I go and put them under moderation.  What that means is when they post it gets delayed since I have to review it.  This is a manual process and sometimes hours can go buy before I check my email and review moderated posts.  I am also working to get one or two more administrators.

What I did yesterday, once I realized the melt down was happening was to shut down the list from all traffic.  I needed to let everything settle down.  I am not sure exactly when it all started but it was going on for about an hour or more before I realized it.  I was working offline and not monitoring email.

Again, I apologize and I feel bad that several people unsubscribed as a result.  Hopefully they will find their back.  Finally, if you use out of office responders take a look at all the configuration settings.  If anyone knows more about configuration settings and wants to share what people can do I am sure folks on this list would be happy to hear.

Remember if I see your out of office response get posted you will go under moderation.

--
Ed Christopher
708-283-3534 (V)
708-574-8131 (cell)

FHWA RC-TST-PLN
4749 Lincoln Mall Drive, Suite 600
Matteson, IL  60443
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