Total novice here, and MLM works as it should, with the exception that when I sent a test mail and had a few people unsubscribe, my list remains the same. I guess I don't quite grasp how the unsub feature "talks" to my little text file of addresses. It resides on the server in the proper lists directory, but the unsubs don't seem to show there. Yet, the unsubs show in the Statistics feature. Feel free to point me to a previous post or link. Thanks.

Is your list on the server? In such case the unsubscribe delete the address from the address database.

Yes, it's a txt file on the server (not savvy enough yet for SQL yet). I see the change come through in Statistics, and I see other small files have been created at the same level on the server as the original txt file, but they don't have the unsubs removed.

P.S. Everything else works beautifully. Just thrilled with how much better this is than the ancient and nonsensical pc-based program my employer had been using for years.

mySQL is far the preferred ways of storing data, it is easier, faster and more secure. I guess you may have some kind of permission issue here. The code is set to delete the unsubscribed addresses, if it doesn't it is because something is preventing it to do so. If you have access to mySQL on your server I recommend you to use it.

Thanks. I'll have to find myself a SQL person, because I'm not.

Well, I had my brother-in-law create a little MySQL file for me, and I STILL don't know where the unsubs go. They show up just fine in in the Statistics panel, but don't update my tiny little test mailing list of 15 people. I've been over the installation and prefs documentation multiple times, and still don't see what setting could possibly be wrong.

Your screenshot of the Prefs has a Remote Lists URL of the actual script. This confuses me. Isn't the LIST the thing I want to refer to, not the script itself? My LIST has a much different looking URL (ldvtest.db.3626021.hostedresource.com), but when I tried putting that line in the URL field, any unsubs just pointed to the raw text of the SQL database, not the usual unsub html page.

If I can't do this with 15 addresses, I certainly won't be able to set it up for my employer with 7000 addresses, and that's not a good option.

P.S. I've found the "Unsubscriptions from MLM" feature, and it removed the unsubs from the list within the program, but they're still on the SQL database on the server. I guess that's the main question. How do I get that to update?

Nowhere. An unsubscribe request will simply delete the unsubscribe address.
Absolutely not! The URL here is the script URL, the lm.php path. MaxBulk Mailer run a script. If you use a list URL the system will not work.
Are you currently set MLM to use mySQL or plain text files?

MLM is set to use MySQL. Perhaps my host name is wrong?
Screenshot: http://www.angler-al.com/marketing/mlm.png

And how about your MLM settings in the MaxBulk Mailer preferences?

This URL is correct. Have you tried to subscribe and unsubscribe yourself?

Yes, I've done a few test mails to a small list of (15) addresses, and I can see the unsubs come through on the Statistics feature. I called my web host (GoDaddy) and they said nothing is in place on their end that would impede me from using a SQL database of names.

In my directory are these small files:
lm/lists/users.in
lm/lists/users.txt
lm/lists/users.lock
lm/lists/users.out
lm/lists/users.sql

The first (2) were modified on the date that I sent the test e-mail and started unsubscribing a few, so something happened, I'm just not sure exactly what. All (15) addresses are still in the sql file. I'm trying again, and writing down every step in case I've missed something in prior attempts.

Thanks again for any help.

But if you use mySQL, why are you looking at those files? Those files are relevant only if you don't use mySQL.

I looked at them because I have almost no SQL knowledge (ergo, why I had someone else set it up).

I must make sure that people who remove themselves from the list are indeed removed, and from what I can see, when I unsub, it doesn't update the SQL list on the server.

My predecessor pissed off a lot of our customers for sending mail blasts after people had requested they be removed. I cannot have that happen again.

Actually you don't have to know anything about mySQL, just enter your mySQL server address and your credentials in the mlm_settings.php file, that's all you have to do.