Linux mail servers....

N

Nybbles

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Jun 17, 2002
Messages
1,234
first off, I know this has been discussed, but with the search function disabled, I couldnt find the thread I was looking for, but anyway.....

I'm looking for a linux mail server solution....

The system is an Athlon 1400+, 256 MB, with an 80 gig HD running Debian 'stable' on a 2.4.24 kernel.

I'm looking for a mail solution that will handle a light load of maybe 300 emails a day (mostly spam).

It must support multiple domains with seperate namespaces. i.e. [email protected] is NOT the same as [email protected], etc. From what I've seen, this means that the addresses are also NOT tied to the user accounts.

I know someone else is in this situation. I'd be interested to know what people are running, or would suggest, to accomplish the above task. Thanks!
 
qmail can do this.

But first of all, DAMN, that machine is going to be way over powered for what you need.

However, with qmail, you will need to do some research to do this. It is not done by default, and needs patches to make it work.

What do you get out of this? Only the most secure, stable and speedy email server out there ( last point is arguable, I'll admit ).

I've done several qmail installs, but never one with virtual users/domains, but I will help out where and how I can.
 
I recommend postfix for SMTP, courier-imap for IMAP, and if you want webmail SquirrelMail is a nice php based webmail client.

Also I would strongly suggest install Spamassassin on the server to help with those spam mails.
 
Yeah, I know the system is underpowered, but it's too much work to swap boards and reinstall and reconfigure the OS on my Windows server for a few Mhz. To be honest, I didnt even know I had it till I looked in the closet one day.

"Hmm, an athlon board and proc... wonder if it works." ;)

I've thought about qmail, I just wish there werent like 4 other things to compile before you can install qmail. :rolleyes: I will look into it further though.

And as for postfix, are you talking about a Postfix+MySQL setup? I've seen a couple articles that mentioned it, but I havent google'd for any HOWTO's or anything.

Also, keep the suggestions coming. :)
 
Originally posted by Nybbles
I've thought about qmail, I just wish there werent like 4 other things to compile before you can install qmail. :rolleyes: I will look into it further though.
Click to expand...
I'm not sure what you mean. qmail can stand on it's own, using inetd ( or xinetd ).

However, it is highly advised you install the other utilities ( daemon tools and such ).

Anyway, I got curious and found a website: http://iain.cx/qmail/mysql/

This does virtual domains based on mysql. The directions look decent, I may try this myself on my home server.
 
http://www.unixforums.net/modules.php?name=Sections&op=viewarticle&artid=57
Postifx w/ SASL + Courier IMAP w/ SSL + Maildrop + MySQL + SpamAssassin

By: Serge Stepanov.

In this document I am going to share my experience with setting up a viable virtual mail server solution for a Linux system. I have made countless attempts at trying to setup mail servers in the past, but have never been able to acheive the results that I desired. Whether it was the incomplete HOWTOs that I was reading or my own lack of knowledge on the subject, I don't know; but after eventually reading through enough document I was able to conceive a solution that works great (so far on two boxes). Most importantly, however, I will attempt to cover and help you resolve the common problems that myself and others have ran into.

By the end of this document you will hopefully achieve what I have:

* A MySQL database against which mail users will be primarily authenticated against.
* Postfix MTA will allow SMTP AUTH SASL connections instead of using relay-domains. Authentication will be done against MySQL and PAM.
* Maildrop will deliver mail to the users' home directories using Maildir style mail boxes.
* Invoked within Maildrop, SpamAssassin will do it's best to flag spam. Then maildrop will deliver it into a separate Maildir.
* Users will retrieve their mail using POP3 (not covered in this document) and IMAP over SSL. Authentication will be done against MySQL and PAM.
* You will NOT need to use PAM-MySQL.
Click to expand...

My personal mailserver is the same setup on freebsd 4.9-STABLE on a 133 with 6Gb hdd and 32Mb of ram. it runs plenty decent , and I also am using squirrelmail for webmail access.
 
Originally posted by XOR != OR
I'm not sure what you mean. qmail can stand on it's own, using inetd ( or xinetd ).
Click to expand...

What I meant were the extras like daemontools, ucspi, etc...

I was not aware that these were only optional.

And thanks for that link. I will browse through it now.


Also, if anyone else has any input, I'd really appreciate it.
 
You do NOT have to use MySQL with postfix. That is just an optional auth method. You can also use LDAP or the easy route and just use the standard system accounts. Using the system accounts is usually just fine for a home mail server, however using an LDAP or MySQL is kinda fun.
 
Originally posted by Nybbles
What I meant were the extras like daemontools, ucspi, etc...

I was not aware that these were only optional.
Click to expand...
Believe me, while they may be optional, they are great programs in and of themselves who's use extends beyond qmail if you need it.
 
FWIW, the exchange server at a place I used to work at was a dual PPro 200Mhz with half a gig of RAM, and that thing was DAMNED fast. Averaged about 600 e-mails a day, in/out.
 
I'm going to be the grizzled, old-school Unix Nazi here and vote for Sendmail and imap-uw.

You can do what you want no problem with sendmail. You can do just about anything with sendmail...Plus, it's just a good thing to know. If you plan on doing *nix admin for any real length of time you will encounter sendmail again, so why not get a decent handle on it now?

My domain lives on a Celeron 400. It gets about 5,000 e-mails a day to the people that use the machine and has no troubles whatsoever keeping up.
 
Originally posted by [H]EMI_426
I'm going to be the grizzled, old-school Unix Nazi here and vote for Sendmail and imap-uw.

You can do what you want no problem with sendmail. You can do just about anything with sendmail...Plus, it's just a good thing to know. If you plan on doing *nix admin for any real length of time you will encounter sendmail again, so why not get a decent handle on it now?

My domain lives on a Celeron 400. It gets about 5,000 e-mails a day to the people that use the machine and has no troubles whatsoever keeping up.
Click to expand...
And, the real benifit, you learn how to patch under extreme pressure when the latest root exploit is discovered.

:p
 
Originally posted by [H]EMI_426
I'm going to be the grizzled, old-school Unix Nazi here and vote for Sendmail and imap-uw.

You can do what you want no problem with sendmail. You can do just about anything with sendmail...Plus, it's just a good thing to know. If you plan on doing *nix admin for any real length of time you will encounter sendmail again, so why not get a decent handle on it now?

My domain lives on a Celeron 400. It gets about 5,000 e-mails a day to the people that use the machine and has no troubles whatsoever keeping up.
Click to expand...

My only issue is imap-uw does not support maildir format. maildir allows you to do some neat things with the server. Sendmail also does not support maildir directly, atleast the version I used several years ago. Also sendmail is becoming less and less of the common place smtp server. However you are right if you are *nix admin you will see it. But if you have a good grasp of mail systems then handling it should not be an issue. Postfix, Exim and "that other mail program that begins with a q" have many more features to work with. They also have not been as much of a target for exploits (not that they do not have them, just not as much of a target as sendmail).

Oh Exim has a very nice builtin filtering system. You can use procmail on pretty much any smtp server for server side filtering, but the exim one is easier to write simply rules for. But procmail has been around longer and there are many more pre-written procmail reciepes to do neat things like, stripping out dangerous attachments, javascript, etc.
 
I've never missed not having maildirs. mboxes work just fine for the vast majority of "normal" mail use. I've seen maildir-based setups run out of inodes before...Not pretty.

As far as security problems are concerned, if you don't want to worry about security don't run an MTA. sendmail hasn't had a problem for a good while now. If you're not willing to maintain the setup, save everyone the trouble and don't run one.

Everyone hates you (and tries to exploit you) when you're number one. sendmail isn't necessarily any less secure than the other MTAs, the holes just get found faster. :)

I'm kind of partial to sendmail...If you Google for +FreeBSD +sendmail +imap, my little guide is number one. :)
 
Linux sucks =P. j/k i don't think what you wanna do is any easier in a windows invironemt but better support =P
 
Originally posted by oakfan52
Linux sucks =P. j/k i don't think what you wanna do is any easier in a windows invironemt but better support =P
Click to expand...
ew....

Well, I suppose I should respect all points of view, no matter how wrong they may be. :p

Truly, why would you trust something as potentially sensitive as email to a system with the security record of windows? It just don't seem right.

I'd say go with sendmail over windows. At least when an exploit is discovered, a patch is a few short hours behind it.
 
Originally posted by XOR != OR
ew....

Well, I suppose I should respect all points of view, no matter how wrong they may be. :p

Truly, why would you trust something as potentially sensitive as email to a system with the security record of windows? It just don't seem right.

I'd say go with sendmail over windows. At least when an exploit is discovered, a patch is a few short hours behind it.
Click to expand...


what's the point of releasing patches. no one ever installs them anyways. This part of the reason viruses spread so fast.
 
Originally posted by oakfan52
what's the point of releasing patches. no one ever installs them anyways. This part of the reason viruses spread so fast.
Click to expand...
Perhaps that's true for window admins, it wouldn't surprise me. And I would even guess that there is a frightning number of unix admins who are the same way, although I'd wager the percentage is far lower than in the case of our window counter-parts.

I responded to this in the off chance that the poster is serious and is curious.
 
Originally posted by XOR != OR
]I responded to this in the off chance that the poster is serious and is curious.
Click to expand...

XOR:

Oakfan's just bitter cuz with the dot-com bubble burst, his MCSE isnt making him tons of money and getting him women.

but I've set him straight on the whole topic.

J/k with ya oak. ;)

Anyway, many thanks to all who posted. I may look into a better solution if this one doesnt work out.
 
Originally posted by oakfan52
what's the point of releasing patches. no one ever installs them anyways. This part of the reason viruses spread so fast.
Click to expand...

Careful son. Gross assumptions will do you no good with this crowd.

IMHO, I believe the majority of virii are spread due to users not thinking about the consequences, or because they've been "socially engineered". I have yet to see a large mass of virii inflicted on my network because someon failed to patch the system. The one's we've been hit with were typically of the mass mailing variety, or one's that took advantage of an exploit that did not have a patch available for it yet.
 
Originally posted by oakfan52
what's the point of releasing patches. no one ever installs them anyways. This part of the reason viruses spread so fast.
Click to expand...
Eh, Automatic updates are enabled by default on Windows Server 2003. I choose to turn it off, cause I monitor servers enough where I just do it manually.
 
www.qmailtoaster.com - great toaster install of qmail with all the fixings.
grab nate's shell scripts to help automate the install:
http://www.askdavis.com/qmailtoaster/

there was one more site for including clamav, spamassassin, tnef, and qmail-scanner into the mix. ill look it up if your still interested.

qmail is kinda a pain to install, but once it is up, it is rock solid. very customizable, works great. i love it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top