NetSendo v2.8.0: Smarter Deliverability & Free GOLD

Mail that never reaches the inbox earns nothing. Often the cause is a DNS record that is almost right: a DKIM selector the checker never tried, an SPF record that dropped your CRM, or a DMARC policy so strict that it rejects your own subdomains. Send times can drift in a similar way when the message, the list and the account each use a different timezone.

NetSendo v2.8.0 fixes these problems. This release reworks the Deliverability Shield, applies one timezone order to every message, translates the rest of the panel and opens a new contributor programme. If you contribute code or report a security issue, you can earn a free NetSendo GOLD licence.

🚀 What's New in v2.8.0

GOLD for Contributors

NetSendo now gives something back to the people who improve it. Maintainers label a merged pull request reward (1 point) or reward-large (3 points). A confirmed vulnerability reported through SECURITY.md also counts as 3 points.

• ✅ 1st point: 12 months of GOLD
• ✅ 2nd point: 12 more months
• ✅ 3rd point: GOLD with no end date

Contributions merged before the programme started count too. To claim your licence:

1. Email contact@netsendo.com. You'll get a one-time code within minutes.
2. Post the code as a comment on GitHub to confirm your account.
3. You'll then receive your licence key. Any points you earn later extend the licence automatically.

A new Contributor reward workflow comments on rewarded pull requests. It runs safely on pull_request_target and never checks out the pull request's code. The EULA has a new §5.7, "Complimentary GOLD Licence", which sets the terms. The licence covers one installation and is personal. It is a thank-you, not payment, and it does not include the GOLD support described in §12.3 unless the grant says otherwise.

Deliverability Shield, Rebuilt

A typical record from the new DMARC generator looks like this:

_dmarc.example.com  TXT  "v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc@example.com"

The old generator used strict alignment (adkim=s; aspf=s). That broke mail sent from subdomains and through relays that sign with a parent domain.

The SPF generator now recognises SMTP relays by their host: Amazon SES, SendGrid, Google Workspace, Microsoft 365 and Mailgun. If it doesn't recognise the server and the domain has no SPF record, it asks you for the provider's include instead of guessing one.

Several other Deliverability Shield bugs are fixed:

• The published DMARC policy is now stored. Before, a domain with p=reject was shown and scored as p=none.
• DKIM records without the optional v=DKIM1 tag are now recognised.
• The common selectors of Microsoft 365, Google, Mailchimp and SendGrid are now tried automatically.

One Timezone Rule for Every Message

Every time in a message now follows the same order: Message → List → Group → User Account. Think of it as a chain of command: the most specific setting wins.

Before this release, the Pick a time option of queue messages was read in UTC, and scheduled broadcasts ignored list and group timezones. Both now use Message::resolveTimezone(). If a message has several lists, the list with the lowest ID decides.

Gmail Reply Detection Help

If your reply inbox is on Gmail, the panel now shows the settings Gmail needs: imap.gmail.com, port 993, SSL and your full email address as the user. It also reminds you that Gmail needs an app password here, not your Google account password. A Fill in Gmail settings button enters these values for you.

A/B Test Update API

PUT/PATCH /api/v1/ab-tests/{id} now works for draft tests. Before this release, every call returned a 500 error. A running or finished test returns 409.

curl -X PATCH https://your-netsendo.com/api/v1/ab-tests/42 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $NETSENDO_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Subject line test – v2"}'

💼 Benefits & Use Cases

🛠️ Step-by-Step Upgrade Guide

1. Back up and pull

   Run docker compose pull && docker compose up -d. Three migrations run automatically: dkim_selector, webhooks.url widened to 2,048 characters, and the renaming of the lead scoring rules.

2. Review queue send times

   Subscribers who sign up after the update get the Pick a time hour in the message's timezone. For example, with an account in Europe/Warsaw, 09:00 now means 09:00 Warsaw time. If you had set the hour in UTC on purpose, set it again in your timezone or give the message the UTC timezone.

3. Add DKIM selectors

   Open Deliverability Shield → domain, paste your provider's selector and run the check again.

4. Secure Reverb

   Installations from 2.7.2 or older still use the public example keys. Replace them:

   openssl rand -hex 16   # use for REVERB_APP_KEY
   openssl rand -hex 16   # use for REVERB_APP_SECRET
   docker compose up -d

   If a reverse proxy forwards /app/ to Reverb, also set REVERB_BIND_ADDRESS=127.0.0.1 using the new docker-compose.yml.

⚠️ Important: Broadcasts that are already scheduled keep their stored time. But if you open and save one, its date is read in the new timezone, so check it before you save.

🔧 Other Fixes

• You can now enter a GOLD licence key while SILVER is active.
• Upgrade to GOLD no longer stays locked for 72 hours after you close the order tab, and you can cancel a started purchase.
• The public activation webhook can no longer downgrade GOLD to SILVER; such a request now returns 409.
• A GOLD licence changed on the server to have no end date no longer expires locally on the old date.
• The default mailbox you choose when creating a list is now saved, and only mailboxes from your own account are accepted.
• Webhook URLs can be up to 2,048 characters. Before, longer URLs caused a 500 error on MySQL. Switching a webhook back on resets its failure count.
• DOCKER_INSTALL.md has corrected backup commands, and README.md now gives the right install port, 5029.

✅ Conclusion

v2.8.0 brings more reliable deliverability checks, predictable send times and a fully translated panel. The full test suite (729 tests) passes. The new contributor programme also lets you earn a free GOLD licence by improving the self-hosted platform you already rely on. You keep your data and your sending infrastructure, with no vendor lock-in.