Orange SMTP Error Codes
Master email delivery to Orange.fr and Wanadoo.fr. Understand OFR error codes, bilingual messages, and France's largest ISP requirements.
🇫🇷 About Orange Mail
Originally named Wanadoo when created in 1995 by France Telecom, rebranded to Orange in 2006. With over 40% market share, Orange is France's biggest ISP. Since 2007, only provides orange.fr email addresses, though wanadoo.fr remains active in the unified webmail.
Platform Details
- • Domains: orange.fr, wanadoo.fr
- • MX Record: smtp-in.orange.fr
- • France's largest email provider
- • Unified webmail since 2006
Anti-Spam Technology
- • Cloudmark Antispam Solution
- • Vade (ex-Vade Secure) dynamic filtering
- • Signal Spam FBL partnership
- • Reputation-based rate limiting
⚠️ Important Orange Updates
Mid-August 2025 Spam Threshold
Starting mid-August 2025, spam report rates of 0.6% or above might trigger protection mechanisms. This is a relatively strict threshold compared to other ISPs.
Large Sender Requirements
Senders of more than 1,000 messages per day must add the Feedback-ID header, as described by Gmail. This helps with campaign tracking and deliverability.
Orange SMTP Error Codes (OFR) Explained
Orange uses OFR error codes with syntax OFR_XXX or OFRXXX_XXX. Each code has a precise meaning. All messages are bilingual (French/English).
421 OFR004_104
Rate LimitingOrange slowed or closed the connection because the IP opened too many simultaneous sessions.
Orange ties connection concurrency to reputation. Testing tools or sudden bursts trigger OFR004_104, and repeated hits escalate to longer suspensions.
How to Fix:
- ✓Limit concurrency to a small number of parallel SMTP sessions per IP.
- ✓Distribute campaigns across a longer send window instead of a single burst.
- ✓Warm new IPs slowly so Orange can evaluate behaviour.
- ✓Monitor connection counts per domain in your MTA logs.
421 OFR004_105
Service RefusedOrange temporarily refused mail because of a short-lived policy or capacity issue.
OFR004_105 is a soft block. Orange expects senders to slow down and retry later rather than hammer the connection.
How to Fix:
- ✓Retry with exponential backoff (15–30 minutes between attempts).
- ✓Review complaint, bounce, and trap metrics for spikes that might degrade reputation.
- ✓Ensure authentication passes; policy failures often precede OFR006 hard blocks.
- ✓Contact Orange support only after confirming the issue is not on your side.
421 OFR_999
Rate LimitingOrange suspended the IP for two hours as a result of earlier policy breaches.
OFR_999 indicates a previous OFR code was ignored. Sending resumes automatically after the suspension, but repeat offenses extend the duration.
How to Fix:
- ✓Stop sending to Orange domains for the duration of the suspension.
- ✓Resolve the underlying issue (complaints, invalid users, volume spikes) before resuming.
- ✓When resuming, cap hourly volume and monitor responses closely.
- ✓Escalate internally if OFR_999 occurs more than once per week.
421 SPF Check Failed
Authentication FailureOrange rejected the message because the sending IP is not authorised in the domain’s SPF record.
Orange validates SPF before accepting the DATA command. Missing or misconfigured SPF records will block the message entirely.
How to Fix:
- ✓Add the sending IP or include mechanism to the domain’s SPF record.
- ✓Keep SPF lookups below the 10-lookup limit by flattening includes where possible.
- ✓Publish matching reverse DNS (PTR) records to support SPF validation.
- ✓Coordinate with ESP partners to ensure their IPs are covered.
421 OFR004_301
Spam SuspicionOrange detected a surge in suspicious traffic and temporarily throttled the IP.
OFR004_301 often follows sudden template changes or risky URLs. Without adjustments, it can progress to a permanent block.
How to Fix:
- ✓Review recent creative, landing pages, and tracking links for risky content.
- ✓Confirm the IP is not shared with other senders pushing questionable traffic.
- ✓Slow delivery and focus on most engaged Orange recipients first.
- ✓Log incidents for escalation if throttles occur more than twice in a day.
550 OFR006_102
IP BlockCloudmark (Orange’s filtering partner) blocked the sending IP for spam or abuse.
When Cloudmark lists your IP, Orange rejects all mail until the incident is resolved and the IP is delisted.
How to Fix:
- ✓Use the mitigation URL in the bounce to submit a delisting request.
- ✓Address the root cause—compromised accounts, high complaints, or poor list hygiene.
- ✓Pause all Orange traffic until Cloudmark confirms the removal.
- ✓Warm a secondary IP gradually if downtime would impact SLAs.
550 OFR006_103
Policy ViolationOrange blocked the IP due to repeated policy violations or poor reputation.
OFR006_103 usually follows ignored throttles (OFR004 codes). You must provide evidence of remediation before Orange will unblock the IP.
How to Fix:
- ✓Contact Orange abuse with a summary of the issue and remediation steps.
- ✓Share complaint, bounce, and unsubscribe metrics to prove improvements.
- ✓Throttle volume for future sends and monitor feedback closely.
- ✓Keep historical records of previous mitigation to speed up future requests.
OFR004_408
Rate LimitingOrange throttled the IP because message volume exceeded the allowed rate.
OFR004_408 is similar to OFR004_104 but focuses on messages per hour rather than open connections.
How to Fix:
- ✓Spread campaigns across multiple hours and days instead of one batch.
- ✓Monitor messages-per-hour metrics for Orange domains specifically.
- ✓Use IP pools to distribute high-traffic campaigns when reputation allows.
- ✓Avoid resending the same creative repeatedly within a short window.
OFR005_104
Protocol ErrorsOrange reported a connection or TLS-level issue during the SMTP session.
OFR005_104 can indicate cipher mismatches, TLS handshake failures, or abrupt disconnects.
How to Fix:
- ✓Enable modern TLS versions and ciphers recommended by Orange.
- ✓Verify firewall or IDS devices are not terminating the session prematurely.
- ✓Ensure your MTA waits for Orange’s response before closing the connection.
- ✓Capture packet traces if the error repeats to identify handshake problems.
OFR_416 / OFR_417
Policy ViolationOrange flagged the content or MIME structure as non-compliant.
These codes often appear when HTML is malformed, links redirect suspiciously, or required legal notices are missing.
How to Fix:
- ✓Validate HTML with a linter and ensure multipart bodies are constructed correctly.
- ✓Avoid excessive tracking parameters or chained redirects.
- ✓Localise legal disclosures (mentions légales) and unsubscribe instructions in French.
- ✓Provide Orange with updated samples if you request a review.
550 5.7.1
Policy ViolationOrange rejected the message because the content or sender reputation violated spam policies.
After repeated warnings, Orange issues a hard 5.7.1 to force remediation. The block remains until the sender demonstrates improved practices.
How to Fix:
- ✓Remove inactive Wanadoo/Orange subscribers and reconfirm consent.
- ✓Adjust frequency caps so the same recipients are not hit multiple times per day.
- ✓Review spam trap monitoring services for French networks.
- ✓Share an action plan with Orange support when requesting reinstatement.
📋 Complete OFR Error Code List
Here's a comprehensive list of known Orange error codes:
Orange Email Best Practices
Authentication
- •SPF, DKIM, and DMARC required
- •Ensure SPF includes all sending IPs
- •Align DKIM with From domain
- •Monitor authentication failures
Connection Limits
- •Concurrent connections based on reputation
- •Messages per connection varies by reputation
- •Connections per hour limited by reputation
- •Build reputation gradually
Special Requirements
- •Feedback-ID header for 1000+ msgs/day
- •0.6% spam threshold (mid-Aug 2025)
- •Bilingual error messages (FR/EN)
- •Signal Spam FBL integration
Anti-Spam
- •Cloudmark Antispam Solution
- •Vade (ex-Vade Secure) filtering
- •Dynamic spam filtering
- •Reputation-based limits
📊 Orange Feedback Loop via Signal Spam
Aggregated FBL (CSV)
Similar to Gmail's format, provides complaint volumes per IP per day in CSV format. Accessible to all Signal Spam members.
Postmastery Console integrates with Signal Spam to track Orange complaint rates.
ARF FBL
Unit reports in ARF format sent to dedicated email. Only includes complaints from users who consented to share data. Requires validation by Orange Abuse Desk.
Limited to approved Signal Spam members with good standing.
Technical Configuration
Orange Connection Requirements
MX: smtp-in.orange.fr
- Concurrent SMTP connections per IP
- Messages per connection
- Connections per IP per hour
SPF: required
DKIM: required
DMARC: required
Feedback-ID: campaign:sender:list:customer
📞 Contacting Orange Abuse Desk
Orange has an efficient abuse desk for deliverability issues. Contact is only through their dedicated form:
Orange Abuse Form (French Only)Required Information:
- • Date of occurrence of the problem
- • Sending IP(s)
- • Sending host name(s)
- • Sending domain
- • SMTP code returned by Orange
Orange Resources
Sender Guidelines
Official Orange sender requirements and best practices
Signal Spam
Join Signal Spam for feedback loop access
Cloudmark Reset
Request IP delisting from Cloudmark blocks
Need Help with Orange Delivery?
Navigating French ISP requirements and bilingual error messages can be challenging. Let us help you optimize delivery to Orange.fr and Wanadoo.fr addresses.