Question : Exchange server 2003 - can't telnet to port 25 or receive inbound

I am setting up an exchange server.  The exchange server is a member server with windows 2003 server and exchange server 2003 only installed on it.  The active directory and domain controller is a separate server.

Currently I used nslookup to verify that the mx and a records are pointing to my server and the correct external ip address.  I can ping my address (mail.loanhouston.com) and receive the correct external ip address.  I have a Netgear ProSafe VPN firewall and have configured it to forward port 25 to the static IP address of my exchange server.

Currently I can send outgoing mail, and I can send/receive mail internally.  I just can't receive mail from the outside.  When I telnet mail.loanhouston.com 25 the command box goes solid black and looks like it's trying to connect but returns me to a command prompt.  I don't get the "220...." message that you get when it successfully connects.  

I can connect to outlook web access internally by going to the http://localhost/exchange, but when I connect through the internet it asks for the logon/password but it will not accept the credientials.  I can RDC and VNC into the exchange server with no problem.   Thanks for any help!

What do I need to do to receive inbound mail from outside of the office?

Answer : Exchange server 2003 - can't telnet to port 25 or receive inbound

Can I presume that you have tested internally telnet to port 25?
If this is the case then you need to look outside the Exchange server as being the problem.

After running a DNS Report on your domain, it comes up with a very odd error:
http://www.dnsreport.com/tools/dnsreport.ch?domain=loanhouston.com

Doing a tracert to the IP address returned in the MX records fails at 69.150.92.58.

Therefore it looks like external traffic cannot even get to the host on that test - but it isn't unusual for tracert traffic to be blocked - so don't hold it up as the source of the problem.

My instinct says the firewall isn't configured correctly or something further upstream is blocking access to port 25. Some ISPs do this - are you allowed to run an email server on your connection?

As for your OWA problem - can you see the default web site from outside? If not - this points at port 80 being blocked further up or misconfiguration of your firewall.
If you are running it through SSL, try turning on forms based authentication. You do this in System Manager under Protocols, HTTP for your server. This allows you to know that it is your server that is asking for authentication, and not something further up the chain.
If you haven't got an SSL, then get hold of the IIS6 Resource Kit from Microsoft and use the SelfSSL utility to create your own test one.

Simon.