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---
layout: page
title: The holding pen
---
# The holding pen
<p class="lead">
The <em>holding pen</em> is where Alaveteli puts any incoming
<a href="{{ site.baseurl }}docs/glossary/#response" class="glossary__link">responses</a>
that can't be matched to a
<a href="{{ site.baseurl }}docs/glossary/#request" class="glossary__link">request</a>
automatically.
</p>
Alaveteli works by emailing requests to the correct target
<a href="{{ site.baseurl }}docs/glossary/#authority" class="glossary__link">authority</a>.
That email message is sent from a unique email address — that is, an
email address that is associated with that single request (technically,
Alaveteli hashes the request ID to generate a unique address and uses this as
the `Reply-to:` address).
So whenever an authority replies (by email) to a request that Alaveteli has
sent, that response will be addressed to that request's unique email address.
The email is received by your installation's
<a href="{{ site.baseurl}}docs/glossary/#mta" class="glossary__link">MTA</a>,
and is passed on to Alaveteli. In this way, incoming messages are easily
matched with the request they are responses to — this is important
because your site displays the responses underneath their original request, on
the request's page.
Normally, this works fine. But sometimes things go wrong, and a message comes
in that can't be matched with a request. When this happens, Alaveteli puts the
message in the
<a href="{{ site.baseurl }}docs/glossary/#holding_pen" class="glossary__link">holding
pen </a>.
Messages wait in the holding pen until an
<a href="{{ site.baseurl }}docs/glossary/#super" class="glossary__link">administrator</a>
redelivers them to the correct request, or else deletes them.
## Why messages end up in the holding pen
There are several reasons why a message might end up in the holding pen:
* **the authority "broke" the reply-to email**<br>
This can happen if the authority replies "by hand" to the incoming email —
for example if the person at the authority accidentally loses the first
letter of the email address when they copy-and-paste it. Or if they copy
it manually and simply get it wrong.
* **there's something unusual about the way it was sent**<br>
For example, if it was delivered here because the address is in the `Bcc:`
field, and is not the `To:` address.
* **a partial email address may have been guessed**<br>
Someone guesses an email address which Alaveteli doesn't recognise. Perhaps
they have misunderstood how the addresses are formed, or maybe it's a
deliberate attempt to send spam.
* **the response is to a request that has been deleted**<br>
If you [delete a request]({{ site.baseurl }}docs/running/requests/#deleting-a-request),
Alaveteli cannot deliver responses to it.
* **the response has been rejected and rejections are set to go to the holding pen**<br>
Incoming mail that is correctly addressed but not accepted for the request
goes into the holding pen if the request's `handle_rejected_responses`
behaviour is set to `holding_pen` (rather than bouncing the email back to
the sender, or simply deleting it). Responses may be rejected for various
reasons — for example, if a response is sent from an unrecognised
email address for a request whose *Allow new responses from* setting is
`authority_only`. See instructions on
[how to manage requests]({{site.baseurl}}docs/running/requests/) for details.
## What to do: redeliver or delete
You need to be an
<a href="{{ site.baseurl }}docs/glossary/#super" class="glossary__link">administrator</a>
to modify the holding pen.
There are two things you can do to a message in the holding pen:
* **find the right request, and redeliver the message**<br>
Alaveteli tries to guess the right request to help you, so sometimes
you can just accept its suggestion.
* **delete the message**<br>
If the message is not a response, you can delete it.
For instructions, see
[removing a message from the holding pen]({{ site.baseurl }}docs/running/admin_manual/#removing-a-message-from-the-holding-pen).
If the `To:` address does not belong to a valid request and the message is
clearly spam you can add that email address to Alaveteli's
<a href="{{site.baseurl}}#spam-address-list" class="glossary__link">spam address list</a>.
Subsequent messages to that address will be automatically rejected — for
instructions see
[rejecting spam that arrives in the holding pen]({{ site.baseurl }}docs/running/admin_manual/#rejecting-spam-that-arrives-in-the-holding-pen).
|
