# Trust site status, IP policy and sender reputation

*Marketing Cloud Engagement Administrator Study Guide · Maintenance · Last updated October 16, 2026 · https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/marketing-cloud-engagement-administrator/maintenance/trust-site-status-ip-policy-and-sender-reputation*

How to check service availability on the Salesforce Trust site (instance lookup, status colours, Maintenance Calendar, notifications, the separate Marketing Cloud status page), how the shared versus dedicated IP policy works and where two official pages draw the volume line, how to warm a new IP and keep its reputation, and how to get alerted when an automation fails.

- Certification: Salesforce Marketing Cloud Engagement Administrator
- Exam section: Maintenance
- Study guide: https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/marketing-cloud-engagement-administrator

**Official exam objective:**

> Given a scenario, monitor a Marketing Cloud account and provide system availability.

## What the exam expects

- Use the Trust site to tell a platform issue from a local one: find the instance, read status colours, find maintenance, subscribe to notifications, and know when the Marketing Cloud status page applies.
- Apply the shared versus dedicated IP policy to a monthly volume, including the 100,000 and 250,000 lines, the ban on simultaneous use and when to add another dedicated IP.
- Warm a new IP or domain and keep the reputation afterwards.
- Get alerted when an automation is skipped, fails or completes.
- Key terms: **Trust site** (Salesforce's site for service availability, performance and maintenance); **instance** (the Salesforce server your org is hosted on); **shared IP** (a pool whose reputation blends all low-volume senders on it); **dedicated IP** (an IP whose reputation comes only from your sending); **warming** (gradually building reputation on a new IP or domain).

## Key facts

| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Instance lookup on Trust | Enter your My Domain in "Search Instance or Domain" | [Use the Salesforce Trust site](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000387502&language=en_US&type=1) |
| Scheduled maintenance | Maintenance Calendar on the instance detail page | [Use the Salesforce Trust site](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000387502&language=en_US&type=1) |
| Purple and red | Purple: in maintenance; red: inaccessible to customers | [Use the Salesforce Trust site](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000387502&language=en_US&type=1) |
| Marketing Cloud issues | Check its own status page, linked from the Trust homepage | [Use the Salesforce Trust site](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000387502&language=en_US&type=1) |
| Dedicated IP thresholds (policy) | Recommended above 100,000 a month; required beyond 250,000 | [IP use policy](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000383515&language=en_US&type=1) |
| Shared IP space (FAQ) | Reserved for senders under 250k a month | [Deliverability FAQ](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=005389036&language=en_US&type=1) |
| Shared plus dedicated | Simultaneous use not permitted | [IP use policy](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000383515&language=en_US&type=1) |
| Dedicated IP capacity | About 2 million messages a day | [IP use policy](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000383515&language=en_US&type=1) |
| Segmentation IP | Commercial and transactional each above 100,000 a month | [IP use policy](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000383515&language=en_US&type=1) |
| Warming pace | Most engaged first; +20% a day; full audience after about 70% | [Sending Reputation and Warming](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_es_ip_address_warming.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Reputation targets | Bounces under 2%; complaints at or under 0.1% | [Sending Reputation and Warming](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_es_ip_address_warming.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |
| Automation notifications | Skipped, error or complete; Activity tab, Notification Settings | [Get Automation Studio Notifications](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_as_get_automation_studio_notifications.htm&language=en_US&type=5) |

## Check yourself

- Why can a sender at 180,000 emails a month stay on a shared IP?
- When should an account add another dedicated IP?
- How do you find your instance on the Trust site without Setup?
- When can you start sending to the full audience during warming?

## Sources

- [Use the Salesforce Trust site](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000387502&language=en_US&type=1)
- [Marketing Cloud Engagement - Dedicated IP and Shared IP use policy](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000383515&language=en_US&type=1)
- [Deliverability Frequently Asked Questions](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=005389036&language=en_US&type=1)
- [Sending Reputation and Warming](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_es_ip_address_warming.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Configure a Sender Authentication Package or Private Domain](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.configure_sap_and_private_domain.htm&language=en&type=5)
- [Get Automation Studio Notifications](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_as_get_automation_studio_notifications.htm&language=en_US&type=5)
- [Retrieving and Segmenting Data with a SQL Query Activity](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=mktg.mc_as_using_the_query_activity.htm&language=en_US&type=5)

## About the full unit

The "Core concepts", "Exam traps" and "Worked scenario" sections of this unit, its 17 linked practice questions, and unlimited timed mock exams are included with the Marketing Cloud Engagement Administrator pack (USD $19): https://www.certifyforce.com/practice-exams