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2. A Short Digression

This memo does not specify how a client host enters mail into the transport system, although a method consistent with the philosophy of this memo is presented here:

When the user agent on the client host wishes to enter a message into the transport system, it establishes an SMTP connection to its relay host and sends all mail to it. This relay host could be, but need not be, the POP3 server host for the client host. Of course, the relay host must accept mail for arbitrary recipient addresses, a feature not all SMTP servers possess.

Glossary:

  • relay host: A server that forwards mail to its final destination
  • transport system: The mail delivery infrastructure
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