Using our Tool to Add 365 Email DNS Records Automatically Creates Duplicate SPF Record

Quick summary

When a user adds email with MS 365, we offer a tool that adds the DNS records automatically.

With the new wpcloud.com SPF record on the domain already, this tool now creates a duplicate SPF record and flags an error.

That error shows conflicting messages to fix by hand and a 'fix automatically' button. The button does nothing.

Steps to reproduce

Open the DNS records for a domain from Domains > Manage DNS
Use the 365 email tool to add DNS records (you can use MS=ms12345678)
Check the SPF records and see an error
Click the 'Fix DNS Issues Automatically' button

What you expected to happen

I would expect the tool to combine the DNS records initially, rather than adding a duplicate.

I would also have expected that if this was not possible, or was not the path we chose, the fix issues button would combine the records.

What actually happened

Two SPF records are created.

An error message is shown which has conflicting information: it instructs you to fix the issue manually but also offers an automatic fix button which does nothing when clicked.

I encountered this on a user's site. I resolved it by manually merging the SPF records.

I asked another HE to test on their site with a domain to confirm the issue. They noticed that if the wpcloud.com SPF record was deleted (instead of manually merging with Outlook as I did), then a second warning is shown. Using the automatic fix button here does then merge the Outlook and wpcloud.com SPF records.

image (1)

This may also apply to Google Workspace, but I do not have a domain on which to test that.

Impact

All

Available workarounds?

Yes, easy to implement

Platform (Simple and/or Atomic)

No response

Logs or notes

No response

Automattic / wp-calypso