<snip>
where does the server point to for its dns? if it's (supposed to be) running a nameserver (e.g., you're pointing to 127.0.0.1) but the dns server isn't running you'll get a timeout. if you have a second nameserver configured in /etc/resolv.conf you'll likely ultimately get a response, but only after you time out on the first.
by the way, you may want to look at the server's "client" sendmail queue ("mailq -Ac"). the remote clients dump to the regular queue (/var/spool/mqueue), but localhost mail goes into the clientmqueue (/var/spool/clientmqueue). if mail is hanging there it might give hints that are easier to debug than are remote connections. [you may also want to try originating mail from localhost and see what happens.]
- Rick
The server points to another server on the network for dns, which is running and accepting queries on 53, as expected. resolv.conf points to the correct nameserver IP.
I'll check the client queue..hadn't thought of that. Thanks, -Ray