mom: does smtp retry?

the simple answer is no. mom 2000 nor 2005 handles retries when sending alerts via smtp. there are certain contingencies that can be followed since only one smtp address can be used.

1. utilize a smtp record through dns round robin (create a host record to multiple IPs). keep in mind that this is not really load balancing.
2. situate smtp behind a real load balancer.

we were using option 1 for quite awhile. a couple of years ago, we went with option 2 with very good success. the smtp servers that sit behind the load balancer are not mail store servers (is my exchange terminology right?). instead, they're bridgehead servers. in this manner, if the mail store is down, the messages can queue on the bridgehead servers. even this won't guarantee every message will make it but raises are chances of success.