Rackspace Email MX Records: Complete Setup Guide
The correct MX record values for Rackspace Email hosting, with step-by-step configuration instructions and troubleshooting tips.
Rackspace Email is a popular business email hosting service known for its reliability and straightforward pricing. If you've chosen Rackspace to host your company's email, the first step is pointing your domain's MX records to Rackspace's mail servers. Without this, email sent to your domain has no idea where to go.
This guide covers the exact MX records you need, how to add them at your domain registrar, and how to verify everything is configured correctly.
What Are MX Records and Why Do They Matter?
MX records are a type of DNS record that tells the internet where to deliver email for your domain. Think of them like a forwarding address at the post office. When someone sends an email to you@yourdomain.com, their mail server looks up your MX records to find out which server should receive that message.
If your MX records are missing or pointed at the wrong place, email sent to your domain will bounce back to the sender or disappear entirely. Getting these right is essential before you can send or receive a single message through Rackspace.
Rackspace Email MX Records
Rackspace Email uses two MX records for redundancy. Here are the current values you need to add:
| Priority | Mail Server |
|---|---|
| 10 | mx1.emailsrvr.com |
| 20 | mx2.emailsrvr.com |
The primary server (mx1.emailsrvr.com) has priority 10, and the backup server (mx2.emailsrvr.com) has priority 20. This means email will normally be delivered to mx1, but if that server is temporarily unavailable, mx2 will accept the message instead. Both servers ultimately route email to your Rackspace mailbox.
These values apply to all Rackspace Email plans
Whether you're on Rackspace Email, Rackspace Email Plus, or Hosted Exchange through Rackspace, the MX record values are the same. The routing to the correct mailbox type happens on Rackspace's side after the message arrives.
Step-by-Step Setup
The exact steps depend on where you manage your domain's DNS, but the general process is the same regardless of registrar.
Step 1: Log into your domain registrar. This is wherever you purchased your domain name (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, or another provider). Navigate to the DNS management or zone editor section for your domain.
Step 2: Remove any existing MX records. If your domain already has MX records from a previous email provider (or default records from your registrar), delete them. Leaving old MX records in place can cause email to be delivered to the wrong server or split unpredictably between providers.
Step 3: Add the first Rackspace MX record. Create a new MX record with these settings:
- Host/Name:
@(this represents your root domain) - Mail Server/Value:
mx1.emailsrvr.com - Priority:
10 - TTL: Leave at default or set to 3600
Step 4: Add the second Rackspace MX record. Create another MX record:
- Host/Name:
@ - Mail Server/Value:
mx2.emailsrvr.com - Priority:
20 - TTL: Leave at default or set to 3600
Step 5: Save your changes. Some registrars require you to click a separate publish or apply button after adding records. Make sure your changes are saved.
Step 6: Wait for propagation. DNS changes can take anywhere from a few minutes to 48 hours to propagate worldwide, though most changes take effect within one to four hours.
Configuring Your Domain in Rackspace's Control Panel
Adding MX records at your registrar is only half the setup. You also need to make sure Rackspace knows about your domain and has mailboxes ready to receive email.
Log into the Rackspace Cloud Office Control Panel at cp.rackspace.com. If your account is new, you may have received login credentials in your welcome email.
Add your domain if it isn't already listed. Navigate to the Domains section and add your domain name. Rackspace will walk you through confirming ownership.
Create mailboxes for each email address you need. Go to the Email Accounts section and create individual mailboxes (like info@yourdomain.com or jane@yourdomain.com). Email sent to addresses that don't have a corresponding mailbox will bounce.
Set up aliases or groups if needed. Rackspace supports email aliases (alternative addresses that deliver to an existing mailbox) and group lists (one address that forwards to multiple people).
Verifying Your MX Records
After adding your MX records and waiting for propagation, you should verify that everything is configured correctly. Go to mxrecordchecker.com and enter your domain name. The tool will show you exactly which MX records are live in DNS.
You should see two records:
- mx1.emailsrvr.com with priority 10
- mx2.emailsrvr.com with priority 20
If you see different records, old records from a previous provider, or no MX records at all, something needs to be corrected.
Send a test email from an external account (a personal Gmail or Outlook address) to one of your Rackspace mailboxes. If the message arrives, your MX records are working correctly. If it bounces, double-check the MX record values and make sure the destination mailbox exists in Rackspace's control panel.
Common Issues and How to Fix Them
Email bouncing with "user unknown" errors. Your MX records might be correct, but the specific email address doesn't have a mailbox in Rackspace. Log into the control panel and verify the mailbox exists and is spelled correctly.
Email still going to your old provider. Old MX records may still be present alongside the Rackspace records, or DNS propagation hasn't completed. Check your DNS settings to confirm only Rackspace MX records exist, and use mxrecordchecker.com to see what's actually live.
MX records show correctly but email doesn't arrive. Make sure your domain is fully set up in Rackspace's control panel and that domain verification is complete. MX records route email to Rackspace's servers, but Rackspace needs to know it should accept email for your domain.
Intermittent delivery problems. If some emails arrive and others don't, check that both MX records are present. If only one is configured and that server experiences issues, email delivery will fail until the server recovers.
Trailing dot confusion. Some DNS providers display hostnames with a trailing dot (mx1.emailsrvr.com.) while others don't. Both are technically correct. If your provider shows an error when saving, try adding or removing the trailing dot.
Additional DNS Records for Rackspace Email
MX records handle incoming email delivery, but for a complete email setup you should also configure:
SPF record to authorize Rackspace's servers to send email from your domain. Rackspace's SPF include is include:emailsrvr.com. Your full SPF TXT record should look something like v=spf1 include:emailsrvr.com ~all. You can verify your SPF record at spfrecordcheck.com.
DKIM record for email signing. Rackspace provides DKIM keys through the control panel. Adding DKIM improves deliverability and helps prevent your outgoing email from being flagged as spam. You can check your DKIM configuration at dkimtest.com.
DMARC record for policy enforcement. A DMARC record tells receiving servers what to do with email that fails SPF or DKIM checks. Check your current DMARC policy at dmarcrecordchecker.com.
Set up MX first, then authentication
Get email flowing with MX records before adding SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. Trying to configure everything simultaneously makes it harder to identify which record is causing a problem if something goes wrong.
Migrating to Rackspace From Another Provider
If you're switching to Rackspace from Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, or another provider, plan the migration carefully to avoid lost email.
Lower your current MX record TTL to 300 seconds a day or two before the switch. This ensures DNS caches expire quickly when you make the change. Set up all mailboxes in Rackspace before updating MX records. When you're ready, remove the old MX records, add the Rackspace records, and verify with mxrecordchecker.com. Keep access to your old provider for a few days in case any messages were delivered there during propagation.
Rackspace also offers migration tools to import existing email from your old provider, so you don't lose your message history.