Re: Mail retrieval / delivery
On 11-08-2001 09:18 pm, you wrote:
>
> That's my ~future~ hope. I'd like to be able to have one box setup to
> handle all the admin responsibilities (server, firewall, etc.) in
> addition to being a work-station, with other boxes strictly as ws's.
I have something like that. I have DSL connection and a Debian
server with SMTP, Firewall + lot of other services and a
local network.
>
> > Here's what I have set up:
> >
> > Incoming mail:
> >
> > On Debian #1, fetchmail, running from per-user crontabs, retrieves
> > our mail. (I want to change this to be a single system-wide
fetchmail
> > running as a daemon, but I haven't got round to it yet.) It gives
the
> > mail to exim, also running on Debian #1, which sends it to procmail
> > for filing. Our firewall blocks the SMTP port, so I don't have to
> > worry about anyone compromising my systems via some exim exploit,
nor
> > do I have to worry about being an open relay for spammers.
>
> Details on this setup would be ~greatly~ appreciated. I'd like to set
> up fetchmail in daemon mode so that it runs continually, regardless of
> whether anyone is currently logged on to this box. I've attempted to
> set up exim, but that's more or less where my confidence evaporates.
I recommend against setting fethcmail in daemon mode. My exprience
is that it can stop functioning after a while. Instead run from
cron.
Make a script to /etc/cron.d
that goes something like this:
5,35 * * * username-you-want-mail-to-go fetchmail
above script starts fetchmail at 5 and 35 every hour
with username and account you want mail to go.
Then do
/etc/init.d/cron reload
to get it to working
>
> > Outgoing mail:
> >
> > Mail clients invoke exim to transmit. Exim is configured to
consider
> > itself an "internet site" (as I think the exim configuration tool
put
> > it), so all outgoing mail goes directly to the destination site,
> > rather than being forwarded from our ISP's mail server. (In theory,
> > some sites may reject mail coming from a home site on a DSL line,
but
> > that has never happened to us.) It could be reconfigured to be a
> > "smart host" that forwards mail to our ISP's servers; it wouldn't
> > affect the rest of our setup. I just don't have any reason to do
it,
> > and I'd rather not have to worry about the dependability or latency
> > of someone else's SMTP server.
>
> I'm also on a DSL line that is always "up". I think I'd better stick
to
> using my ISP's smtp server. I take it that I would setup exim as a
> smarthost then? Details also appreciated.
I think Exim installation script from Debian mirrors asks
is there any smarthost when installed.
But if you setup an mailserver, and it is computer that is on
direct line to internet, I recommend putting
up an decent relaying rules that forbid everybody from
relaying by your malserver.
With exim it is not really diffcult, just ask if you're
unsure how to do it.
Feel free mailto me personally about it. It's better that you ask,
than that there is one more open mailserver that is used
for spam. So it is no bother. :)
>
> > Internal mail:
> >
> > Debian #2 has ssmtp installed, which is just a simple mail
forwarder
> > that I configured to send all mail to exim on Debian #1. The only
> > mail it sends, generally, is daemon errors mailed to root, which
are
> > re- addressed to my account at Debian #1.
>
> As I only have the one box, would I be able to include forwarding of
> logs and/or internal mail between users in this setup?
Exim has also pretty extensive(and easy) filtering system.
Personally I've done nice things with it, like header
rewriting, redirecting/rewriting messages by subject, sender,
expressions
etc. you name it.
I think it is bit poorly documented at first glance, but
really, most things I could think of can be done
with relative ease.
> > Mail clients:
> >
> > All mail reading is done on Debian #1, either at the console, or
from
> > the Windows machine in a networked X session (the Windows box has
the
> > Cygwin Unix tools, including XFree86, installed). I also use ssh to
> > connect to Debian #1 from work to read mail. And I have an IMAP
> > server installed, though I don't really need it anymore; it was
just
> > a good way to get all our old mail out of Outlook Express's
> > proprietary-format archive files and onto the Linux machine.
> >
> > So that's a quick description of the setup. If that sounds like
what
> > you want, feel free to ask for configuration details.
> >
> > Craig
>
> Consider this asking for configuration details. The manuals are
> beginning to look like aramaic to me.
>
> C Masters
Well, I think that is bit difficult way above. Just install ssh
and pop from debian packages. And then you can fetch
mail from any client that can do POP and control
server(s) by SSH, even from windows. If you want
remote grapich desktop, try VNC client/server. Works
from Windows too and it isn't diffiicult to setup.
Of course all this provding your local network is working
correctly and that server(s) are configure correctly.
Not difficlt, but few mistakes one can do with it.
Get a decent manual, there are lot of things that one can't deduct
but which are quite simple as knows about them.
You really have to do one thing at time, not all at once.
Especially if you're doing it first time. Take it with time,
I recommend.
And if you have linux server on direct connection
to internet, put up a decend firewall to it and forbid
access to vulnerable services from outside.
Antti
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