List-Address= name_info[@host_info]


This keyword is not available in LISTSERV Lite.

Since LISTSERV 16.0, this keyword may be set or altered only by the LISTSERV administrator.

This keyword determines how LISTSERV announces its list address in the header of messages delivered to the list: NJE vs. Internet address, short vs. long list name, etc. The default options (when neither "List-Address=" or the site-level LIST_ADDRESS are defined) are long list name and Internet address. A corresponding LIST_ADDRESS configuration option must be added to the LISTSERV site configuration file.

It is important to note that the only effect of the "List-Address=" keyword is to change the way the list identifies itself in list postings, command replies, etc. It does not instruct the mail system to create forwarding entries to support the new name, nor does it establish the specified name as an alias for the list (use "List-ID=" for this purpose).

Important: List owners should not use this keyword without first consulting with the LISTSERV maintainer, as its use may require some reconfiguration of LISTSERV at the site level, and/or changes to your organization's DNS settings.

It is legal to specify the name of the list in the first token (i.e., you may specify something like "List-Address= XYZ-L@XYZ.EDU").

The second token (host_info) can be either NJE (if you are on an NJE network, which is unlikely), FQDN, or the fully qualified domain name of your choice. That is, in the final case, you may type the actual hostname that you want LISTSERV to use, which may be useful if the machine on which LISTSERV is running is known under several hostnames.

Important: Be aware that specifying for host_info a fully-qualified domain name that does not exist in DNS and/or is not supported by the configuration of your LISTSERV server will prevent your list from operating properly.  Fixing this is likely to require assistance from your LISTSERV administrator.

If you only want to override one of the two parts of the list address, you do not need to specify the other. For instance, if you only want to change the hostname, you can enter "List-Address= XYZ.EDU" in the list header and let the left-hand part default from the value of the system default in the LISTSERV configuation file. Similarly, "List-Address= List-ID" takes the right-hand part from the system default. To avoid bad surprises, LISTSERV will also accept a comma in lieu of @-sign in the list header, or a blank in the LISTSERV configuration file. Here are a few examples:

      • "List-Address= FQDN" announces the list under the Internet address for the LISTSERV host, if one is available (for BITNET-only sites this setting has no effect).
      • "List-Address= List-ID@FQDN" uses the long list name and the Internet hostname.
      • "List-Address= Listname@XYZ.EDU" uses the short list name and the hostname XYZ.EDU.
      • "List-Address= XYZ-L@XYZ.EDU" is also valid in modern versions of LISTSERV.  Older versions were restricted to specifying the literals LISTNAME or LIST-ID for the left-hand (username) part.