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Configuration

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Richard Kent Gates edited this page Jul 16, 2026 · 6 revisions

Configuration

Accessing Settings

Go to Settings > MXRoute Mailer in your WordPress admin dashboard.

Server Settings

Server

Your MXRoute server hostname. This is provided by MXRoute when you create your account.

Example: chocobo.mxrouting.net

Username

Your MXRoute email address. This is also used as the From address for all emails sent through the plugin.

Example: you@mxroute.com

The username field displays your full email address (e.g., you@example.com) with the domain derived from your WordPress site URL. If you enter just the local part (e.g., you), the domain is appended automatically.

Password

Your MXRoute account password. It is encrypted with AES-256-GCM using your site's WordPress auth salt before being stored in the WordPress database. The password is only decrypted when the plugin sends an email.

Test Email

Use the test email form to verify your configuration:

  1. To: Enter the recipient email address
  2. Subject: Defaults to "MXRoute Mailer Test"
  3. Body: Defaults to "This is a test email from MXRoute Mailer."
  4. Click Send Test Email

The response shows the full API request and response, which is useful for debugging.

Email Logging

Viewing Logs

Go to Tools > MXRoute Logs to view all emails sent through the plugin.

Log Details

Each log entry includes:

  • Timestamp - When the email was sent
  • Status - Success or failure
  • From - The MXRoute username (sender address)
  • Reply-To - The original sender address (if different from From)
  • To - Recipient email address
  • Subject - Email subject line
  • Message - Full email body
  • API Request - JSON payload sent to MXRoute
  • API Response - MXRoute's response

Filtering Logs

You can filter logs by:

  • Search - Subject, from, to, or reply-to address
  • Status - Success or failed
  • From email - Filter by sender address
  • Date range - Filter by date

Clearing Logs

Click Clear All Logs to delete all log entries. This action cannot be undone.

How Email is Sent

When any WordPress plugin or theme calls wp_mail(), MXRoute Mailer:

  1. Intercepts the email via the pre_wp_mail filter before WordPress invokes the default mailer
  2. Extracts the From header (if any), sanitizes it, and sets it as Reply-To
  3. Uses your MXRoute username as the From address
  4. Sanitizes the recipient (To) address before building the API request
  5. Sends the email through MXRoute's HTTP API
  6. Logs the full request and response
  7. Returns true to WordPress so the default mailer (sendmail/ssmtp/PHPMailer) is not also invoked

If the MXRoute API call fails, the plugin returns false and fires the wp_mail_failed action. If MXRoute Mailer is not configured, the plugin returns null and lets WordPress fall back to the default mailer.

Reply-To Support

When a plugin (like a contact form) sets a custom From header, the plugin:

  • Uses your MXRoute username as the actual From address (for deliverability)
  • Preserves the original sender address as the Reply-To header
  • Stores the Reply-To address in the email logs

This means replies to contact form emails go to the person who submitted the form, not to your MXRoute username.

Database

The plugin creates a database table {prefix}_mxroute_mailer_logs to store email logs. The table is created automatically on activation and updated automatically when new versions add columns.

Table Schema

Column Type Description
id bigint(20) Auto-increment primary key
timestamp datetime When the email was sent
from_email varchar(255) Sender address (MXRoute username)
reply_to varchar(255) Original sender address
to_email varchar(255) Recipient address
subject varchar(255) Email subject
message longtext Email body
api_request longtext JSON API request
api_response longtext JSON API response
success tinyint(1) 1 = success, 0 = failure

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