Email Catch-alls

[theanon3]

Who is deleting my threads when I ask about catch all email issue???:mad:

[HostPingPong]

Who is deleting my threads when I ask about catch all email issue???:mad:

I'm a brand new customer (moderators can verify with my email address) and am disturbed seeing these threads of valid customer concerns disappear. I originally was upset and wanted out based on the email change, but figured I can live with it. But now that I see how customers are being treated in the forum, I'm having second thoughts.

[undaunted]

I also had a valid request to the community about this issue which was deleted. I'm amazed that as a good paying customer, I'm being treated like this. Another reason why I'm taking my business elsewhere (a suggestion from the forum moderator).

[alligosh]

Who is deleting my threads when I ask about catch all email issue???:mad:

Threads get deleted for several reasons.

1) If they turn into gripe threads with no redeeming value to other users. I am all for customers discussing concerns and talking over issues, but when the discussion devloves into a "bluehost sucks" or some form of flame war (wheather against each other, or the company), then the thread accomplishes nothing but to foster negativity and will get deleted.

2) If the thread is advertising (spam, etc)

3) If the thread was about some major issue that was then resolved. This one doesn't always get deleted; it depends on the topic, and if the thread would cause concerns, problems, etc, with new users.

Having said all that, let me also say that you shouldn't do anything rash about the catch-all issue. There has been quite a response about it, with a lot of users being quite set on that feature, and Matt has always been really good at listening to customers and trying to balance what they want with how to give the best product. We will be looking into possible alternatives over the next few days, and although I cannot say if it will go away or not, I definately know that we will be spending a lot of time trying to find a better solution. At this point, disabling the catch-all email feature will be a last resort option.

-Steve

[HostPingPong]

Having said all that, let me also say that you shouldn't do anything rash about the catch-all issue. There has been quite a response about it, with a lot of users being quite set on that feature, and Matt has always been really good at listening to customers and trying to balance what they want with how to give the best product. We will be looking into possible alternatives over the next few days, and although I cannot say if it will go away or not, I definately know that we will be spending a lot of time trying to find a better solution.

That is the kind of even-handed response I'd like to hear as a customer. An even-handed response in a thread that is getting out of control, especially when the issue is being studied, would be to lock the thread and say what you just said. I hope you'll consider that as well going forward.

[kshep]

let me also say that you shouldn't do anything rash about the catch-all issue. There has been quite a response about it, with a lot of users being quite set on that feature, and Matt has always been really good at listening to customers and trying to balance what they want with how to give the best product. We will be looking into possible alternatives over the next few days...

With all due respect, that doesn't make any sense and contradicts what we were told in an earlier now-deleted thread by a forum moderator. That is, if we need catch-all we should move to a new provider and request a refund. (Of course having deleted that thread, it's now much easier to backtrack on that position.)

Unless I'm mistaken, we were told on Friday that this feature would be turned off on Tuesday. That's two business days notice. Perhaps it was "rash", but since I need this feature for my sites to work, I spent half the day yesterday finding a new provider and initiating the process of moving all my sites off your system.

You should let your remaining customers know NOW whether or not you'll really be turning off catch-alls on Tuesday.

By the way, you haven't missed the irony in your use of the term "rash", have you?

[theanon3]

Having said all that, let me also say that you shouldn't do anything rash about the catch-all issue. There has been quite a response about it, with a lot of users being quite set on that feature, and Matt has always been really good at listening to customers and trying to balance what they want with how to give the best product. We will be looking into possible alternatives over the next few days, and although I cannot say if it will go away or not, I definately know that we will be spending a lot of time trying to find a better solution. At this point, disabling the catch-all email feature will be a last resort option.

-Steve

Thanks for the response Steve. I don't know what state the thread eventually got into yesterday, and its the moderators responsibility to administer as per their rules.

I'm glad to hear there has been a good response about the catch-all proposal and that it is being reviewed with alternative solutions. However, as you state it is being looked at over the next few days, but the email notice received will be up in a couple of days. It would be nice to get some sort of response stating if and when catch all will be removed as I don't want to suddenly find it turned off without any further notice.

Like others, I spent a good deal of time yesterday looking at alternative providers. I don't want to move as BH has been good and offers features I look for - so I will monitor the situation with interest, but we need notice periods to ensure users don't jump ship in a rash fashion without good reason.

[ManasTungare]

I believe that any proposed change in policy that involves 3 business days' notice is already rash. If you are considering other options actively at the moment, I would expect to be told about it.

Also, I would never have bothered to post to a thread here had my support request been answered in a timely manner. My post to that thread was merely the support request, verbatim. And to this moment, that request has not been answered by BlueHost support.

This forum was my last recourse to try to get a response. And the thread got deleted without a response. This doesn't foster confidence in me.

[ManasTungare]

Since the plan (as far as I am aware) is to turn off catch-all aliases on Tuesday, with no official response from BlueHost, I am left in a tight spot.

Should I spend the time now to look at other options and move my site, or should I wait till I stop getting my email delivered to me? What are other BlueHost customers considering doing?

[dannys42]

I just sent this as a support request, but since there's some time sensitivity here, I figured some people on the forums might be able to help.

If I'm forwarding mail to my domain account... eg. I want my gmail account to be forwarded to my bluehost domain account, how do I setup my mail on bluehost to allow for this now that catch-alls are being eliminated? This is a rather basic and critical feature for me. Will this still be possible?

Thanks,
Danny

[alligosh]

Catch-all email accounts will NOT be disabled on wednesday as stated in the email. If the final decision is to deactivate them, anouther email will be sent to all the users that have catch-alls setup (which are the only ones that got the email on Friday).

We are looking into alternatives to turning it off, or perhaps adding restrictions to the catch-alls (like mailbox size, etc).

As discussed before, catch-all email addresses cause the servers to accept a LOT more spam than without them. That, in turn, causes the mail system to have to process that much more email, and especially increases the I/O usage of the drives, which causes all processes to slow down. This has been a major issue for quite some time, and the exponential spam increase this season has causes speed and processing issues across the board.

I have already discussed quite a bit of this with Matt, and he is quite willing to add servers and even more admins, as long as we can come up with a good solution.

Also, remember that the moderators in here are good at what they do, and while they represent BlueHost in here, they are not paid employees, nor generally part of the planning sessions. This can sometimes make them a bit aggravated by some of the threads in here, especially when my staff does stuff without letting him know it's coming. Please cut them a little slack, and know that Official BlueHost Policy decisions only come from Matt and the senior staff. If something doesn't sound right or offends, please send us an email.

[ManasTungare]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for your note, and glad to know that the timeline has been extended on this issue. +1 to BlueHost for listening to us and making amends to the proposed change in policy. :)

Thanks, Manas.