# Trace a single email
Source: https://docs.webgee.com/en/mail-delivery-center/message-lookup





**Message Lookup** finds one message and shows what happened to it for each
recipient: when WebGee accepted it, when it was handed to the receiving server,
and what that server said. Applies to all plans that send through the
[outbound relay](/en/email/outbound-mail-relay).

Use it when you already know which message you are asking about — a customer
quotes an order number, or you have a Message-ID from your application's log.
To browse or filter many messages, use [Email Logs](/en/mail-delivery-center/email-logs)
instead.

## Find the message [#find-the-message]

The quickest way is the search box at the top of every page:

1. Paste a Message-ID, a Mail ID or a recipient address into
   **Message-ID or recipient…** in the header.
2. Press **Enter**.

A value in angle brackets is searched as a Message-ID, a short code such as
`1b83c16c` as a Mail ID, a recipient address as a recipient, and anything else
as a Message-ID.

To choose the field and the dates yourself, open **Message Lookup** in the
sidebar:

1. Under **Search by**, select **Message-ID**, **Mail ID** or
   **Recipient address**.
2. Enter the value in **Search value**.
3. Set **From date** and **To date** to cover the day the message was sent. The
   default is the last 7 days.
4. Select **Search**.

| Search by             | Where to find the value                                               | Date range                    |
| --------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------- |
| **Message-ID**        | The `Message-ID` header of the email, or your application's log       | Up to 31 days                 |
| **Mail ID**           | WebGee's own ID, on the message page and in the Email Logs CSV export | Ignored — Mail IDs are unique |
| **Recipient address** | The address the person gave you                                       | Up to 31 days                 |

When exactly one message matches, its page opens straight away. When several
match, each is listed with its subject, sender and recipients; select one to
open it.

## Read the message page [#read-the-message-page]

<img alt="The message page for a bounced order email, with the recipient's timeline, the receiving server's reply, and the Details and Share with support cards" src="__img0" />

The heading is the message subject, with the sender, the date and the number of
recipients beneath it. The pills under it summarise the outcome — for example
**1 failed** — and show your **Sending domain** with its DNS health. Select the
domain pill to open that domain's DNS checks.

Each recipient gets its own card with a timeline:

| Step                                  | Meaning                                                     |
| ------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Accepted by WebGee**                | Your server handed the message to WebGee, from the IP shown |
| **Queued for delivery**               | It was handed to the relay                                  |
| **Delivery attempt**                  | The receiving server, named, accepted or rejected it        |
| **Delivered** or **Marked as failed** | The final outcome, and whether WebGee will retry            |

Under a failed recipient, **Server response** shows the receiving server's reply
word for word. **What this means** puts that reply in plain words, and **What to
do** says what to change — usually the recipient address, or your domain's DNS
records.

The **Details** card holds the identifiers support may ask for:

| Field            | Meaning                                 |
| ---------------- | --------------------------------------- |
| **Message-ID**   | The identifier from the email's headers |
| **Mail ID**      | WebGee's identifier for this message    |
| **Size**         | The message size                        |
| **Sent from IP** | The address your server sent it from    |
| **Sending zone** | The part of the relay that delivered it |

## Ask support about a message [#ask-support-about-a-message]

1. In **Share with support**, select the copy button beside the link.
2. Select **Open a ticket about this message**.
3. Paste the link into the ticket.

WebGee support opens the same page, so you do not need to copy the reply or the
IDs by hand.

## If the message is not found [#if-the-message-is-not-found]

* **Widen the dates.** Message-ID and recipient searches only look inside the
  date range, and the range cannot be longer than 31 days.
* **Try the Mail ID.** Find the message in
  [Email Logs](/en/mail-delivery-center/email-logs) and select **Open message**,
  or take the **Mail ID** column from its CSV export. A Mail ID search ignores
  the date range.
* **Check the sender.** Only mail sent from your own sending domains can be
  shown. A message from an address on another domain never appears.

If the message is still missing, it never reached WebGee. The problem is in your
application or mail client — see
[Why mail from your PHP script fails](/en/email/why-am-i-not-able-to-send-mail-via-my-php-script-or-application).

## Related [#related]

* [Email logs](/en/mail-delivery-center/email-logs)
* [Sending domains](/en/mail-delivery-center/sending-domains)
* [Read email headers](/en/email/how-to-obtain-email-headers-a-step-by-step-guide)