If MXGuardian shows that a message was delivered, but the recipient does not see it in their Microsoft 365 mailbox, the next step is to run a Message trace in Microsoft 365.
A message trace shows what Microsoft 365 did with the message after MXGuardian handed it off to Microsoft. This can help determine whether the message was delivered to the Inbox, moved to Junk Email, quarantined, blocked by a mail flow rule, redirected, or affected by another Microsoft 365 policy.
Before You Begin
You will need Microsoft 365 administrator access with permission to run message traces.
It is helpful to have the following information:
- Recipient email address
- Sender email address
- Approximate date and time the message was sent
- Subject line
- Message-ID, if available
How to Find the Message-ID in MXGuardian
If you need the Message-ID, you can find it in MXGuardian:
- Log in to MXGuardian.
- Go to the Messages tab.
- Find the message.
- Click the message subject to open the message.
- Click the Details tab.
- Locate the Message-ID field.
- Click the copy icon to copy the Message-ID to your clipboard.
How to Run a Message Trace in Microsoft 365
Sign in to the Microsoft Exchange Admin Center:
https://admin.exchange.microsoft.comIn the left menu, go to:
Mail flow → Message trace
- Click Start a trace.
- Enter the search criteria. We recommend starting with:
- Sender: the sender’s email address
- Recipient: the recipient’s email address
- Time range: the date and approximate time the message was sent
- If needed, expand the search options and add the Message-ID.
- Run the trace.
- When the results appear, find the matching message and open the details.
What to Look For
Do not rely only on the top-level status. A message may show as Delivered even if Microsoft 365 delivered it somewhere other than the user’s Inbox.
Review the message details and event history. Look for information such as:
- Delivered to Inbox
- Delivered to Junk Email
- Sent to Quarantine
- Blocked by a mail flow rule
- Redirected or forwarded
- Deleted or moved by a mailbox rule
- Delayed or deferred
- Failed delivery
- Policy action taken by Microsoft Defender for Office 365
Common Results
Delivered to Inbox
Microsoft 365 accepted the message and delivered it to the mailbox. If the user still cannot find it, check:
- Outlook search
- Focused Inbox / Other tab
- Deleted Items
- Archive
- Clutter, if enabled
- Mailbox rules
- Shared mailbox access
- Outlook desktop sync issues
Delivered to Junk Email
Microsoft 365 accepted the message but classified it as junk. The user should check the Junk Email folder. The administrator may also need to review Microsoft 365 anti-spam policies.
Quarantined
Microsoft 365 accepted the message but placed it in quarantine. The administrator can review and release the message from the Microsoft 365 Defender portal.
Blocked or Rejected
Microsoft 365 rejected or blocked the message after MXGuardian attempted delivery. Review the trace details for the reason. This may be caused by a Microsoft 365 mail flow rule, security policy, tenant restriction, or recipient configuration.
Redirected or Forwarded
The message may have been redirected to another mailbox or external address. Check the trace details, mailbox forwarding settings, and mail flow rules.
No Result Found
If no result appears in Microsoft 365 message trace:
- Confirm the sender and recipient addresses are correct.
- Widen the time range.
- Search by recipient only.
- Search by Message-ID.
- Confirm the message in MXGuardian shows successful delivery to Microsoft 365.
- Contact MXGuardian support with the message details if you need help confirming the handoff.
Important Note
MXGuardian’s delivery status means that MXGuardian successfully handed the message off to the customer’s destination mail server, such as Microsoft 365. After that point, Microsoft 365 may still apply additional filtering, mailbox rules, quarantine actions, junk mail handling, or delivery policies.
Running a Microsoft 365 message trace is the best way to determine what happened after the message left MXGuardian.
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