How do I configure an external SMTP server so that RetailVista can send outgoing emails through that server?

Starting from the spring 2022 update of RetailVista, it is possible for RetailVista to use a specified SMTP server. This modification allows for outgoing mail to be sent via a custom mail server. It is then allowed to use a custom domain name as the 'from' address. Normally, this is not permitted as the emails are sent from a RetailVista SMTP server. The domain addition must be @retailvista.net. By sending through a custom mail server, this requirement is eliminated and the likelihood of the receiving party considering the email as spam is reduced.
To enable sending via a custom SMTP mail server, a new entity 'Outgoing emails' has been added to RetailVista. All emails to be sent are placed in this queue and then sent out one by one. Depending on the logging settings in the SMTP server configuration in RetailVista, the SMTP log is stored with each sent email. This allows for reviewing whether and how a delivery has taken place.

 Currently, only outgoing invoices are sent via this new route. Eventually, all outgoing emails will be sent in this manner, including purchase confirmations, password recovery emails, etc.

The following one-time settings need to be applied:

1 - Create an SMTP server definition in RetailVista via 'SMTP servers'.

The example below is for creating an SMTP server accessible at the hostname 'smtp.testdomain.com'.

Regarding authentication, in this example, 'Automatic' is chosen and a username and password are sent to this SMTP server when sending emails. The authentication and SSL settings vary per SMTP server. A customer who wants to use this functionality will need to request this information from the provider where the SMTP server is located. By initially choosing extended logging, it is possible to see whether the authentication was successful or not when sending an email. By the way, in case of authentication, a different TCP port than 25 is often used.

2 - Go to the settings of RetailVista

3 - Select the created SMTP server to use under 'SMTP Server'

3 - Specify a sender email address and optionally a full name (display name) under 'Task Scheduler'

For every outgoing email created from RetailVista, the 'from' email address is taken from the settings. Any subsequent changes in the settings will not affect the already existing outgoing emails, as the old 'from' address is already fixed.

Note: In a test environment, default security measures are active to prevent consumers from unintentionally receiving emails from that test environment. If a test environment is detected, only outgoing emails specified in the 'Allowed non-production email addresses' setting will be allowed.

In the Fall 2022 update of RetailVista, it will no longer be mandatory to select an SMTP server. If not specified, we will use the default SMTP server as specified in the config file setting of the task scheduler. This is a file on the hosting environment of NedFox that was already set up from the old situation without this new functionality.