Utilities: Automated Messages: Match Phrases

Match phrases are a feature in ListManager that allow you to trigger various actions based on some text appearing in a message. You can look for a trigger phrase in the body of a message, in the headers, in the Subject:, the From:, etc.

Match phrases permit several kinds of security restrictions to be placed on postings. For example, you can use a match phrase to refuse if a message if particular text either does or does not appear in a specific place in the message.

A few examples will help to clarify this:

Suppose that everyone in your company uses the Eudora Email program, which, incidentally inserts a "X-Mailer: Eudora" header in every message it sends. You can put a match phrase that automatically rejects any message not created with Eudora. Then, to hide the fact that "X-Mailer: Eudora" might be the trigger phrase, have the ListManager match phrase change the message to say "X-Mailer: Windows Eudora", so that it no longer matches.

This use of the match phrase feature allows you to reject all messages that do not have some secret phrase in them. If you want, you can create multiple match phrases to add several layers of checks. This sort of checking is very useful with announcement lists.

Match phrases also have the capability of sending a document back, so you can inform the attempted sender that their message was refused. You also have the option being notified when a match phrase is triggered. This lets you monitor attempts to "hack" your system.

Another example: Suppose that you maintain a mailing list to discuss Apple computers and you are not interested in discussing Unix. You can set a match phrase to refuse any message that mentions "Unix". People often use this feature to bar inappropriate language on their discussion lists.

Match phrases are not restricted to postings. For example, they can also be put on an auto-responder. You could put your price list on an auto-responder, but require a password to get it. If the password is not in the email message, the match phrase triggers and sends a refusal message. If the password is present, the match phrase does not trigger and the price list is sent.

Some people use match phrases to disable ListManager server commands or to be notified of things that are suspicious. For example, some mailing list owners have had their lists "hacked" when they were using other list managers and like to be told if someone is trying to snoop through their list. Thus, they disallow the "review" command (which already does not provide the member list) and set themselves to be notified of any attempts to use this command.

Yet another use of match phrases is to only allow postings from certain domains -- for example, only people whose email addresses have the text "@yourcompany.com" in their From: address are allowed through.

Finding a Match Phrase

Ten match phrases are shown at a time. To view more than ten match phrases at a time, click show more. Repeatedly clicking show more will show greater numbers of match phrases at a time.

You may change the sorting order of the match phrases by clicking the up or down triangles next to Phrase, Title, or Reject. By clicking the top triangle, the sort order will be ascending (a-z); clicking the bottom arrow makes the sort order descending (z-a). Click next to see the next ten autoresponders, previous to see the last ten.

Phrase

The phrase name that triggers this match phrase to respond (either accept or reject the message).

Title

The title of the response document (if any) associated with the match phrase.

Reject

Displays whether or not ListManager is to reject (yes) or accept (no) a message containing the match phrase.

Click on the drop-down box to select a different list's match phrases, or to view all match phrases for the server.

Viewing or Editing a Match Phrase

To view a match phrase, click on the match phrase name. You will be taken to the Utilities: Automated Messages: Match Phrases: New Match Phrase: Essentials page, where you can view or edit the match phrase.

Title

Displays the name of the response document associated with the match phrase. When creating match phrases, you can set if a response document is sent to the sender, whether the message is accepted or rejected. If no document is associated with the match phrase, it will say "(none)". To associate a particular document from Document Content with a match phrase(s), see Utilities: Automated Messages: New Match Phrase: Essentials.

Reject

Displays whether or not ListManager will reject (yes) or accept (no) messages containing this match phrase.

Copying a Match Phrase

Click "copy" next to the match phrase you'd like to copy.

Deleting a Match Phrase

Click "delete" next to the match phrase you'd like to delete. ListManager will ask you if you're sure before deleting the match phrase.

Creating a Match Phrase

Click create new match phrase to be taken to the Utilities: Automated Messages: Match Phrases: New Match Phrase: Essentials page.

Download as a File

Click on the disk icon to download your list of match phrases in CSV format.

More

1. Utilities: Automated Messages: Match Phrases

1. Utilities: Automated Messages: Match Phrases: New Match Phrase: Essentials

2. Utilities: Automated Messages: Match Phrases: New Match Phrase: Advanced

3. Utilities: Automated Messages: Match Phrases: New Match Phrase: For Programmers