Local Delivery Failed Errors

Problem

This information only applies to self-hosted WHMCS installations. WHMCS Cloud does not currently support email piping. Instead, WHMCS Cloud users should use email importing.

You receive a bounce email containing the following error:

pipe to |/home/username/public_html/whmcs/crons/pipe.php
generated by [email protected]
local delivery failed

Cause

This error may occur due to two common causes:

  • Incorrect file permissions for the /crons/pipe.php file.
  • An incorrect forwarder entry.

Solution

This troubleshooting information only applies to self-hosted WHMCS installations.

To correct this issue, change the /crons/pipe.php file’s permissions to 755.

If the problem persists, try the following variations on the email forwarder command:

\|/usr/bin/php -q /home/username/public_html/whmcs/crons/pipe.php
\|/usr/local/bin/php -q /home/username/public_html/whmcs/crons/pipe.php
troubleshooting email-piping troubleshooting-article

Last modified: 2025 October 17