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LISTSERV Subscription Management and Administration

LISTSERV is an email list management software that provides everything you need to manage all of your opt-in email lists, including email newsletters, announcements, discussion groups, and email communities.

For more advanced instructions not detailed in this guide, please see the LISTSERV Documentation and Manuals page.

LISTSERV Logins use an Email Address

UVM affiliates should use their UVM email address and password to log into LISTSERV. Non-UVM affiliates who have subscribed to a list will use the email address they subscribed with.

Subscriber Commands

Subscribing by email

  1. Email listserv@list.uvm.edu with the following format: subscribe [listname] [first_name] [last_name]
  2. After sending the email, you should receive a confirmation email with a link to activate your subscription.

Unsubscribing from a single list by email

This option only works if the address from which you are sending the email command is the same as the one receiving the list emails.

  1. Email listserv@list.uvm.edu. The body of the email should read “unsubscribe [listname]” where “listname” is a portion of the email address preceding the @list.uvm.edu.
    1. Remove any signature or other text from the message body.
    2. Leave the Subject of your email empty.
  2. You should receive an email with confirmation that your request was processed.

Unsubscribing from several lists by email

This option only works if the address from which you are sending the email command is the same as the one receiving the list emails.

  1. You can enter multiple unsubscribe commands on separate lines
  2. Remove any signature or other text from the message and send the email. You should receive an email with confirmation that your request was processed.

Subscribing using a web browser

  1. Go to https://list.uvm.edu and click the Log In link in the top right corner of the page
  2. Log in using your primary email address (usually either firstname.lastname@uvm.edu OR NetID@uvm.edu, whichever you have set as your primary) and your NetID password
  3. Click Subscriber Options on the left side of the screen to expand it, and then click Subscriptions
  4. Click Customize Report
  5. Select Show All Lists to list all publicly available lists instead of just the ones you’re already subscribed to
    Know what you're looking for?

    You can browse all lists, or you can search lists by name using the Show Lists entry box.

  6. Click Update in the bottom-right corner of the window
  7. Check the boxes next to the names of any lists you want to subscribe to, and then select Subscribe from the drop-down menu in the bottom-left
  8. Click the Update button on the bottom-right corner

Unsubscribing using a web browser

  1. Go to https://list.uvm.edu and click the Log in link in the top right corner of the page
  2. Log in using the email address that’s subscribed to the list (usually either firstname.lastname@uvm.edu OR NetID@uvm.edu) and your NetID password
    Don't see the list after logging in?

    Unlike most UVM services, LISTSERV treats different email aliases for the same mailbox as different accounts. If you don’t see a list you’re subscribed to when you log in with firstname.lastname@uvm.edu, try logging in with NetID@uvm.edu (using the same password) or vice versa.

  3. Click Subscriber Options on the left side of the screen to expand it, and then click Subscriptions
  4.  Check the boxes next to the names of any lists you want to unsubscribe from, and then select Unsubscribe from the drop-down menu in the bottom-left
    Seeing all lists instead of just the ones you're subscribed to?

    If this report isn’t already filtering to just your lists, you can click Customize Report to change Show All Lists back to Show Subscribed Lists Only.

  5. Click the Update button on the bottom-right corner

LISTSERV Administration

Creating a new list

Students looking to request the creation of a new list can fill out this form: https://www.uvm.edu/it/forms/create-student-electronic-mailing-list

Staff and Faculty may use this form to request creation of a new list: https://www.uvm.edu/it/forms/create-electronic-mailing-list

It can take up to several days for a request to be processed and approved. Once a request is approved, you will receive a confirmation email containing a link to your new list.

Logging in to LISTSERV with a list owner's account

  1. Go to https://list.uvm.edu and click the Log In link in the top-right corner of the page
  2. Log in using the email address associated with the list (usually either firstname.lastname@uvm.edu OR NetID@uvm.edu) and your NetID password
    Don't see your list after logging in?

    Unlike most UVM services, LISTSERV treats different email aliases for the same mailbox as different accounts. If you don’t see a list you own when you log in with firstname.lastname@uvm.edu, try logging in with NetID@uvm.edu (using the same password) or vice versa.

Adding a single subscriber to a list

There are several ways to add subscribers to your list. Depending on the design of your list, you can allow users to add themselves by mailing the list directly, or you can add the subscribers manually as shown here.

  1. Click Subscriber Reports under List Management on the left side of the page
    Don't see Subscriber Reports?

    If you don’t see Subscriber Reports under List Management, you can click on List Management to expand it.

  2. Use the Select List drop-down menu to choose which list you’d like to edit
  3. Enter the subscriber’s email address, first name, and last name in the Add Subscriber field
  4. Choose whether or not you’d like to send an email notification to notify the user that they’ve been subscribed, and then click Add Subscriber

Adding subscribers in bulk

To add a large number of subscribers to a list, create a spreadsheet with a list of email addresses, first names and last names. Once your list of emails is complete, export the spreadsheet in MS-DOS or Windows text format (.txt). Then upload that file to LISTSERV using the Bulk Operations option. Uploading a Subscriber Text File is the best way to add or remove a large number of subscribers.

Creating a Subscriber Text File

The Subscriber Text File you will upload to LISTSERV must be ordered “e-mail address, space, the subscriber’s first name, space, and the subscriber’s last name”

For example:

rcat@uvm.edu Rally Cat

tcat@uvm.edu Tammy Cat

dcat@uvm.edu Danny Cat

The easiest way to create a subscriber list is in a spreadsheet. Use the first column for the e-mail address, the second for the first name, and the third for the last name.

  1. Once you have created the subscriber list, you will need to export the file in MS-DOS or Windows Text Format (.txt)
  2. Scroll through File Format and select MS-DOS Formatted Text (.txt) or Text (*.txt)
  3. Select “Yes” to continue using the .txt format

Uploading a Subscriber Text File

  1. Go to https://list.uvm.edu and click the Log In link in the top right corner of the page
  2. Log in using the email address associated with the list (usually either firstname.lastname@uvm.edu OR NetID@uvm.edu) and your NetID password
  3. Click Subscriber Reports under List Management on the left side of the page
    Don't see Subscriber Reports?

    If you don’t see Subscriber Reports under List Management, you can click on List Management to expand it.

  4. Use the Select List drop-down menu to choose which list you’d like to edit
  5. Click Bulk Operations to the right of Add Subscriber
  6. Click Browse… to find and select your subscriber text file
  7. Make sure Add the imported addresses to the list is selected, and then click Import

Making a list confidential

The Confidential option makes your list unlisted for all users excluding known subscribers, but will still allow subscriptions if the user subscribing knows the list name. Additionally, this function also prevents the list from being probed externally with the “list” command.

  1. Click List Configuration under List Management on the left side of the page
    Don't see List Configuration?

    If you don’t see List Configuration under List Management, you can click on List Management to expand it.

  2. Use the Select List drop-down menu to choose which list you’d like to edit
  3. Click the Security tab, and then use the Confidential drop-down menu to choose whether or not you’d like the list to be public to unknown subscribers
  4. Click Update in the bottom-right corner to confirm your changes

Setting sending options

  1. Click List Configuration under List Management on the left side of the page
    Don't see List Configuration?

    If you don’t see List Configuration under List Management, you can click on List Management to expand it.

  2. Use the Select List drop-down menu to choose which list you’d like to edit
  3. Click the Subscriptions Tab
  4. Set your desired Send options
    Not sure what the options mean?

    • Send: permits users to send emails to the list based on their group.
    • Special: allows you to add/remove additional individual users to the Send option manually.
    • Confirm: forces the sender to verify their email before it sends to the list.
    • Only Non-Members Confirm: forces the sender to verify before sending if the sender is not a subscriber. Helps prevent outside sources from spamming a public list.
    • Hold: allows Moderators to act as a buffer for all incoming mail to the list by holding emails for review before sending them to the list.
    • Semi Moderated: acts similarly to Hold, but allows messages with the Subject Header “URGENT:” to be passed through the confirmation block.

  5. Click Update in the bottom-right corner to confirm your changes

Setting a daily threshold

The Daily Threshold option limits how many times per day each user can send messages to the list.

  1. Click List Configuration under List Management on the left side of the page
    Don't see List Configuration?

    If you don’t see List Configuration under List Management, you can click on List Management to expand it.

  2. Use the Select List drop-down menu to choose which list you’d like to edit
  3. Click the Subscriptions tab, and then enter a number into the Per sender field under Daily-Threshold (leave it blank for no limit)
  4. Click Update in the bottom-right corner to confirm your changes

Setting administrator roles

Lists have four roles and two list protocols that can be modified to grant levels of access to your list. While each role can be modified, they each have unique properties that make some roles superior in access/control to others.

Postmaster Role

The Postmaster role is a role assigned to Administrators for the LISTSERV site as a whole. If you create a List, you will not have access to this role. Instead, you will be granted the role of “Owner.”

Owner Role

The Owner role has access to all parts of their list even when not specified; this allows them to properly manage the list without locking themselves out of a certain function such as sending to the list. The Owner can grant roles to other users and moderate the various role abilities.

Editor/Service Role

The Editor/Service role is very malleable and can be set by the Owner to handle specified permissions. For this reason, they have the highest access in the sending and receiving area, only surpassed by that of the list owner.

Moderator Role

The Moderator role can approve posts that are held for review. You can select either All to give all moderators the ability to review each post, or Round-robin to cycle through each moderator in turn.

Public and Private are classified as roles, but instead function as protocols and adjust how the list behaves on a broader scale than the above roles.

Public Role

The Public protocol allows all users, if subscribed or not, to make emails and send them to a list. By adding it to the review area, it will force all users to review their email before they send it.

Private Role

The Private protocol acts as a placeholder for a role rather than an actual role. The Private protocol can be used to allow all subscribed users who to send mail to the list as well as review it.

  1. Click List Configuration under List Management on the left side of the page
    Don't see List Configuration?

    If you don’t see List Configuration under List Management, you can click on List Management to expand it.

  2. Use the Select List drop-down menu to choose which list you’d like to edit
  3. Click the Administrators tab to open it
  4. Enter the email addresses of users into the boxes by roles to give the users those roles
  5. Click Update in the bottom-right corner to confirm your changes

Adding or Removing List Owners

In order to change the owners of a list, a current owner of the list will need to follow the below instructions.  If you believe that a list’s ownership should be changed, and are unable to reach the list’s current owner, please contact the Tech Team for assistance.

  1. Click List Dashboard under List Management in the top-left corner of the page
    Don't see List Dashboard?

    If you don’t see List Dashboard under List Management, you can click on List Management to expand it.

  2. Scroll down to find the list you’d like to edit, and then click on the list of owners
  3. Here, you can make changes to the list’s owners by typing or deleting text in the Owner box 
    Properly format any new entries

    Email addresses should be added with an optional display name in this format: example@uvm.edu (Firstname Lastname)

  4. Click Update in the bottom-right corner to confirm your changes

Updated on March 11, 2024

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