# Suddenly unable to send text messages from Node Red

**URL:** <https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846>\
**Category:** General\
**Created:** [15 July 2023 14:03 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846 "2023-07-15T14:03:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![ScottJ2505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@ScottJ2505](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/ScottJ2505)\
**Post date:** [15 July 2023 14:03 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/1 "2023-07-15T14:03:18Z")

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Hello,  
I created a home automation system using Node Red. When someone comes to the porch, a motion detector picks up the movement and I normally get an email message and a text message (using the Node Red email node) via T-Mobile indicating someone came to the porch. Suddenly, about July 5th, the text messages stopped coming but I continue to receive the email messages. I contacted T-Mobile and they said nothing on their end is stopped the text messages. Does anyone know why this is happening?  
Thank you!

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**Author:** ![Colin](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/user_avatar/discourse.nodered.org/colin/32/17040_2.png) [@Colin](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/Colin)\
**Post date:** [15 July 2023 14:21 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/2 "2023-07-15T14:21:02Z")

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You have not told us what you do in node red to send the text message.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ScottJ2505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@ScottJ2505](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/ScottJ2505)\
**Post date:** [15 July 2023 15:46 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/3 "2023-07-15T15:46:01Z")

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Thank you for the reply.  
The text message and the email message are both triggered by the same mechanism. The motion detector triggers a deCONZ node to populate a flow variable with a value indicating that motion is detected. A function node monitoring the flow variable value detects that the flow variable has changed, indicating motion. The function node then sends a payload to the email node triggering both an email and a text message. For the text message, the payload includes [mycellphonenumber@tmomail.net](mailto:mycellphonenumber@tmomail.net) in order to send the text message through the email system.  
I will be happy to provide further details if helpful.  
Thank you.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jbudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5f8ce5/32.png) [@jbudd](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/jbudd)\
**Post date:** [15 July 2023 15:53 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/4 "2023-07-15T15:53:19Z")

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If you send an email from an email program - Outlook, Gmail etc to the [tmomail.net](http://tmomail.net) address does it trigger an SMS?

Does the email node give any error messages?

Does it work if you send from Node-red _only_ to the [tmomail.net](http://tmomail.net) address?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ScottJ2505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@ScottJ2505](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/ScottJ2505)\
**Post date:** [15 July 2023 16:36 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/5 "2023-07-15T16:36:11Z")

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Thank you for the reply.  
I use gmail to send the text.  
Yes, when I create an email message using the [tmomail.net](http://tmomail.net) and send it using the gmail account I receive the text.  
No, the text message is not received when I only use the [tmomail.net](http://tmomail.net).  
So, it appears to be something related to sending emails from Node Red.  
I read on the internet that people complained about T-Mobile stopping text messages if they are too frequent from the same source. Unfortunately, shadows across my porch from the sun sometimes trigger multiple text messages over a short time period. So, I thought that T-mobile's system was blocking these frequent text messages. But T-mobile says they are not.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jbudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5f8ce5/32.png) [@jbudd](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/jbudd)\
**Post date:** [15 July 2023 19:19 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/6 "2023-07-15T19:19:06Z")

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It does sound like something is going wrong in the Node-red email node.

All I can think of to do is temporarily up the logging level (settings.js) and look in the logfile for clues.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ScottJ2505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@ScottJ2505](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/ScottJ2505)\
**Post date:** [16 July 2023 03:46 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/7 "2023-07-16T03:46:19Z")

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Thank you for the suggestion. Is there a node I can use to catch errors like what you speak of?

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**Author:** ![Steve-Mcl](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/user_avatar/discourse.nodered.org/steve-mcl/32/4826_2.png) [@Steve-Mcl](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/Steve-Mcl)\
**Post date:** [16 July 2023 07:08 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/8 "2023-07-16T07:08:27Z")

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> [@ScottJ2505](#):
>
> Is there a node I can use to catch errors

Have you tried the `catch` node?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ScottJ2505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@ScottJ2505](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/ScottJ2505)\
**Post date:** [17 July 2023 01:31 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/9 "2023-07-17T01:31:39Z")

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No, I have not. I will try it.  
Thank you.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ScottJ2505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@ScottJ2505](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/ScottJ2505)\
**Post date:** [17 July 2023 01:47 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/10 "2023-07-17T01:47:34Z")

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I just tried it. Unfortunately, it did not "catch" any errors.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Steve-Mcl](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/user_avatar/discourse.nodered.org/steve-mcl/32/4826_2.png) [@Steve-Mcl](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/Steve-Mcl)\
**Post date:** [17 July 2023 04:07 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/11 "2023-07-17T04:07:42Z")

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Did you output the catch to a debug node?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ScottJ2505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@ScottJ2505](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/ScottJ2505)\
**Post date:** [17 July 2023 04:28 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/12 "2023-07-17T04:28:44Z")

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Yes.Yes I did.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ScottJ2505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@ScottJ2505](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/ScottJ2505)\
**Post date:** [17 July 2023 04:34 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/13 "2023-07-17T04:34:12Z")

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I discovered something. I use T-Mobile for cell service. My friend uses At&t for cell service. When I use my friend's cell phone number rather than mine, my friend gets the text message. This tells me T-Mobile is blocking text messages being sent from Node Red. T-Mobile tells me they do not have a block on my cell phone number but I think they do.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jbudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5f8ce5/32.png) [@jbudd](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/jbudd)\
**Post date:** [17 July 2023 08:21 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/14 "2023-07-17T08:21:52Z")

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Just a thought: Does it make a difference if you have the phone's address in msg.to, msg.cc or msg.bcc (and leave To in the node config blank)?

Try each of them, there is a suggestion online of T-mobile rejecting such an address as a blind copy.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ScottJ2505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@ScottJ2505](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/ScottJ2505)\
**Post date:** [17 July 2023 16:58 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/15 "2023-07-17T16:58:59Z")

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Thank you for the suggestion. I just checked it out and, unfortunately, it does not correct the problem.  
I appreciate you trying to help resolve the problem.  
Scott

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jbudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5f8ce5/32.png) [@jbudd](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/jbudd)\
**Post date:** [17 July 2023 17:58 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/16 "2023-07-17T17:58:48Z")

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Try setting up a forwarder from a Gmail account.  
eg Forward all messages with subject "testing testing 123" to [nnnnnnnn@tmomail.net](mailto:nnnnnnnn@tmomail.net).

I think ISPs dislike mail to SMS, presumably because it costs them money.  
I'm not aware of any such service on this side of the pond.

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**Author:** ![tonylane26](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/user_avatar/discourse.nodered.org/tonylane26/32/9272_2.png) [@tonylane26](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/tonylane26)\
**Post date:** [19 July 2023 13:43 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/17 "2023-07-19T13:43:57Z")

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You may be doing this already, but when I started to get problems sending from Node-Red via gmail a few years ago I did this:

1. Set up a new gmail account that would only be used for home automation.
2. Created an App Password for the new gmail account, and used it in the Node-Red email node.

I haven't had any issues with emails failing or being blocked since.  
Hope this helps.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jbudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5f8ce5/32.png) [@jbudd](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/jbudd)\
**Post date:** [19 July 2023 13:47 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/18 "2023-07-19T13:47:26Z")

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According to the OP, emails are still being delivered, it's just the email to SMS process that's failing. So it is presumably unrelated to GMail's app password shenanigens.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ScottJ2505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@ScottJ2505](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/ScottJ2505)\
**Post date:** [19 July 2023 16:08 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/19 "2023-07-19T16:08:09Z")

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Thank you for the suggestion. I set up a new email address for home automation and went through the process of obtaining the special app password from Google. Unfortunately, this did not work. But I certainly appreciate your assistance.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![rons4](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/user_avatar/discourse.nodered.org/rons4/32/94440_2.png) [@rons4](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/rons4)\
**Post date:** [20 July 2023 08:07 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846/20 "2023-07-20T08:07:35Z")

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As an alternative you might want to try our alerting node here:

> **[node-red-contrib-signl4](https://flows.nodered.org/node/node-red-contrib-signl4)**
>
> SIGNL4 – IoT and IT On-Call Alerting and Duty Scheduling with Push Notifications, SMS and Voice Calls

It offers push alerting for free.

[Next page](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/suddenly-unable-to-send-text-messages-from-node-red/79846.md?page=2)