Mailing List Archive

Hi there

• Kazuo Kuroi via Exim-users [2024-02-20 15:30]:
> Hello exim-users,
>
> I am currently trying to set up an Exim mail server with Dovecot as my local IMAP system. Here is some info relevant to my setup:
>
> Exim version is 4.97. built using pkgsrc.

Eh, I think the subject of the message is not really describing for the
issue you're having, as there's nothing wrong with Exim on NetBSD.

> The main issue I'm having is setting up Exim for virtual users and to set up mailboxes in a normal way.

You say that you're using Dovecot -- then why not use Dovecot's LDA --
or better LMTP and let Dovecot handle the delivery to the Maildirs, and
also take care of using proper UID, Sieve filtering and whatnot?

> Ideally I would like Exim to use /var/email/user@domain with a standard maildir directory tree. I am not sure how to accomplish this according to Exim documentation, which is extensive but also a bit overwhelming as someone who used Exim on Debian for years (which uses entirely different setups).

What Debian does is beyond my comprehension.

I suggest you read
https://www.exim.org/exim-html-current/doc/html/spec_html/ch-the_default_configuration_file.html,
which goes through default configuration files and talks about various
parts of it.

> Once I fixed the directory issue I can probably figure out how to set up virtual users and share that info between Exim and Dovecot. On Dovecot I can do this by using the %u variable. What would be the appropriate variable for here? I tried using a few from the manual but I was just blindly stabbing in the dark.

Here you can have my own router and transport for Dovecot delivery.
Don't blindly copy, but try to understand what every options does.

dovecot:
driver = accept
address_data = ${lookup{$local_part@$domain}lsearch{MAIL_PASSWD_MAP
{$value}fail}
local_part_suffix = +*
local_part_suffix_optional
transport = dovecot_lmtp

dovecot_lmtp:
driver = lmtp
socket = /var/dovecot/lmtp
rcpt_include_affixes

MAIL_PASSWD_MAP is a macro which expands to a file which also Dovecot uses:

userdb {
driver = passwd-file
args = /local/db/dovecot-passwd/map
}

The file format is described in
https://doc.dovecot.org/configuration_manual/authentication/passwd_file/#authentication-passwd-file

> The other thing I would like to accomplish is having an /etc/localdomains and /etc/remotedomains file to hold what domains are accepted locally and not. I don't suppose this is possible with current configurations? I have no idea how it's done on RHEL or Debian, it always came out of the box like that.

Please read
https://www.exim.org/exim-html-current/doc/html/spec_html/ch-how_exim_receives_and_delivers_mail.html
and make sure you understand how delivery is done, especialy the role of
routers, and how routers define which transport are responsible for
doing the actual delivery (either locally or remotely).

> There will probably be other problems that I have to discuss but I sincerely hope that I can get some help here. If I have omitted some crucial detail please let me know.
>

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Hello Kirill,

Thank you for your reply. I understand that the relevancy of mentioning NetBSD may have been irrelevant, but many people are using some variety of GNU/Linux and a lot of things change between the two.

As far as letting Dovecot handle mailbox delivery, I'm not opposed and also having to familiarize myself with Dovecot's options. I was focused first on getting Exim working 100% then tweaking my config to include Dovecot.

I am able to understand parts of the config file but sometimes it can be overwhelming learning different syntaxes, and not all options are immediately apparent especially if the majority of documentation by third parties (e.g. Debian users, 60% of guides out there are referencing a custom Debian patched version)? is irrelevant and you yourself aren't familiar with the jargon and terms being used to be able to search and find the answer yourself. I appreciate that in some ways my questions are probably obvious, but I did neither blindly apply config options nor just post here with zero research.

Thanks for the configuration. I'll have to modify it after referencing the netbsd documentation out there for Dovecot.

I'll be in touch if I have any more issues, thank you all.

On Feb 21, 2024, 3:38 PM, at 3:38 PM, Kirill Miazine via Exim-users <exim-users@lists.exim.org> wrote:
>Hi there
>
>• Kazuo Kuroi via Exim-users [2024-02-20 15:30]:
>> Hello exim-users,
>>
>> I am currently trying to set up an Exim mail server with Dovecot as
>my local IMAP system. Here is some info relevant to my setup:
>>
>> Exim version is 4.97. built using pkgsrc.
>
>Eh, I think the subject of the message is not really describing for the
>
>issue you're having, as there's nothing wrong with Exim on NetBSD.
>
>> The main issue I'm having is setting up Exim for virtual users and to
>set up mailboxes in a normal way.
>
>You say that you're using Dovecot -- then why not use Dovecot's LDA --
>or better LMTP and let Dovecot handle the delivery to the Maildirs, and
>
>also take care of using proper UID, Sieve filtering and whatnot?
>
>> Ideally I would like Exim to use /var/email/user@domain with a
>standard maildir directory tree. I am not sure how to accomplish this
>according to Exim documentation, which is extensive but also a bit
>overwhelming as someone who used Exim on Debian for years (which uses
>entirely different setups).
>
>What Debian does is beyond my comprehension.
>
>I suggest you read
>https://www.exim.org/exim-html-current/doc/html/spec_html/ch-the_default_configuration_file.html,
>
>which goes through default configuration files and talks about various
>parts of it.
>
>> Once I fixed the directory issue I can probably figure out how to set
>up virtual users and share that info between Exim and Dovecot. On
>Dovecot I can do this by using the %u variable. What would be the
>appropriate variable for here? I tried using a few from the manual but
>I was just blindly stabbing in the dark.
>
>Here you can have my own router and transport for Dovecot delivery.
>Don't blindly copy, but try to understand what every options does.
>
>dovecot:
> driver = accept
> address_data = ${lookup{$local_part@$domain}lsearch{MAIL_PASSWD_MAP
>{$value}fail}
> local_part_suffix = +*
> local_part_suffix_optional
> transport = dovecot_lmtp
>
>dovecot_lmtp:
> driver = lmtp
> socket = /var/dovecot/lmtp
> rcpt_include_affixes
>
>MAIL_PASSWD_MAP is a macro which expands to a file which also Dovecot
>uses:
>
>userdb {
> driver = passwd-file
> args = /local/db/dovecot-passwd/map
>}
>
>The file format is described in
>https://doc.dovecot.org/configuration_manual/authentication/passwd_file/#authentication-passwd-file
>
>> The other thing I would like to accomplish is having an
>/etc/localdomains and /etc/remotedomains file to hold what domains are
>accepted locally and not. I don't suppose this is possible with current
>configurations? I have no idea how it's done on RHEL or Debian, it
>always came out of the box like that.
>
>Please read
>https://www.exim.org/exim-html-current/doc/html/spec_html/ch-how_exim_receives_and_delivers_mail.html
>
>and make sure you understand how delivery is done, especialy the role
>of
>routers, and how routers define which transport are responsible for
>doing the actual delivery (either locally or remotely).
>
>> There will probably be other problems that I have to discuss but I
>sincerely hope that I can get some help here. If I have omitted some
>crucial detail please let me know.
>>
>
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Hi there

I was sincerely trying to be helpful.

Exim is actually a MTA framework, not a typical MTA. So it's not
meaningful to talk about "setting up Exim for virtual users and to set
up mailboxes in a normal way", because there are unlimited ways to do
this, and you'll really have to have more specific questions for someone
to be able to help you.

Exim is a complex, but very well documented, piece of software. I think
I started using Exim 4 late in 2001, but to this day I can't say I know
all Exim. I found that the best way to learn it was to read the spec
from the start -- once you understand the "flow", it becomes a lot
easier, and you'll also understand the jargon, as you say. I never
managed to read it till the end in one go, though.

Reading the default configuration file is also a good learning.
Unfortunately, what Debian does is creating some kind of a mess
(compared to canonical configuration), which at least for me is
impossible to figure out, so you'll have to unlearn all the debianisms
first.

As for Maildir delivery -- if you're using Dovecot, it makes sense to
"outsource" as much to Dovecot as possible, to avoid duplication.
Dovecot would handle delivery, index updates, Sieve rules, quotas and
whatnot. Exim is even able to use Dovecot for SMTP authentication. (A
bonus with using Dovecot for delivery, at least with LMTP, is that you
won't have to deal with tainted variables so much.)

G'luck!

-- Kirill

• Kazuo Kuroi [2024-02-22 18:53]:
> Hello Kirill,
>
> Thank you for your reply. I understand that the relevancy of mentioning
> NetBSD may have been irrelevant, but many people are using some variety
> of GNU/Linux and a lot of things change between the two.
>
> As far as letting Dovecot handle mailbox delivery, I'm not opposed and
> also having to familiarize myself with Dovecot's options. I was focused
> first on getting Exim working 100% then tweaking my config to include
> Dovecot.
>
> I am able to understand parts of the config file but sometimes it can be
> overwhelming learning different syntaxes, and not all options are
> immediately apparent especially if the majority of documentation by
> third parties (e.g. Debian users, 60% of guides out there are
> referencing a custom Debian patched version) is irrelevant and you
> yourself aren't familiar with the jargon and terms being used to be able
> to search and find the answer yourself. I appreciate that in some ways
> my questions are probably obvious, but I did neither blindly apply
> config options nor just post here with zero research.
>
> Thanks for the configuration. I'll have to modify it after referencing
> the netbsd documentation out there for Dovecot.
>
> I'll be in touch if I have any more issues, thank you all.
> On Feb 21, 2024, at 3:38 PM, Kirill Miazine via Exim-users
> <exim-users@lists.exim.org <mailto:exim-users@lists.exim.org>> wrote:
>
> Hi there
>
> • Kazuo Kuroi via Exim-users [2024-02-20 15:30]:
>
> Hello exim-users,
>
> I am currently trying to set up an Exim mail server with Dovecot
> as my local IMAP system. Here is some info relevant to my setup:
>
> Exim version is 4.97. built using pkgsrc.
>
>
> Eh, I think the subject of the message is not really describing for the
> issue you're having, as there's nothing wrong with Exim on NetBSD.
>
> The main issue I'm having is setting up Exim for virtual users
> and to set up mailboxes in a normal way.
>
>
> You say that you're using Dovecot -- then why not use Dovecot's LDA --
> or better LMTP and let Dovecot handle the delivery to the Maildirs, and
> also take care of using proper UID, Sieve filtering and whatnot?
>
> Ideally I would like Exim to use /var/email/user@domain with a
> standard maildir directory tree. I am not sure how to accomplish
> this according to Exim documentation, which is extensive but
> also a bit overwhelming as someone who used Exim on Debian for
> years (which uses entirely different setups).
>
>
> What Debian does is beyond my comprehension.
>
> I suggest you read
> https://www.exim.org/exim-html-current/doc/html/spec_html/ch-the_default_configuration_file.html <https://www.exim.org/exim-html-current/doc/html/spec_html/ch-the_default_configuration_file.html>,
> which goes through default configuration files and talks about various
> parts of it.
>
> Once I fixed the directory issue I can probably figure out how
> to set up virtual users and share that info between Exim and
> Dovecot. On Dovecot I can do this by using the %u variable. What
> would be the appropriate variable for here? I tried using a few
> from the manual but I was just blindly stabbing in the dark.
>
>
> Here you can have my own router and transport for Dovecot delivery.
> Don't blindly copy, but try to understand what every options does.
>
> dovecot:
> driver = accept
> address_data = ${lookup{$local_part@$domain}lsearch{MAIL_PASSWD_MAP
> {$value}fail}
> local_part_suffix = +*
> local_part_suffix_optional
> transport = dovecot_lmtp
>
> dovecot_lmtp:
> driver = lmtp
> socket = /var/dovecot/lmtp
> rcpt_include_affixes
>
> MAIL_PASSWD_MAP is a macro which expands to a file which also Dovecot uses:
>
> userdb {
> driver = passwd-file
> args = /local/db/dovecot-passwd/map
> }
>
> The file format is described in
> https://doc.dovecot.org/configuration_manual/authentication/passwd_file/#authentication-passwd-file <https://doc.dovecot.org/configuration_manual/authentication/passwd_file/#authentication-passwd-file>
>
> The other thing I would like to accomplish is having an
> /etc/localdomains and /etc/remotedomains file to hold what
> domains are accepted locally and not. I don't suppose this is
> possible with current configurations? I have no idea how it's
> done on RHEL or Debian, it always came out of the box like that.
>
>
> Please read
> https://www.exim.org/exim-html-current/doc/html/spec_html/ch-how_exim_receives_and_delivers_mail.html <https://www.exim.org/exim-html-current/doc/html/spec_html/ch-how_exim_receives_and_delivers_mail.html>
> and make sure you understand how delivery is done, especialy the role of
> routers, and how routers define which transport are responsible for
> doing the actual delivery (either locally or remotely).
>
> There will probably be other problems that I have to discuss but
> I sincerely hope that I can get some help here. If I have
> omitted some crucial detail please let me know.
>

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On Thu, Feb 22, 2024 at 12:53:21PM -0500, Kazuo Kuroi via Exim-users wrote:

> 60% of guides out there are referencing a custom Debian patched version

This is a bit sideways. Debian patches exim just like any GNU/Linux
distro patches most upstream packages, but that's not the point. Rather,
what's important is that they provide a *simplified wrapper* of the
native configuration. The relationship is a bit like the one between
plain TeX and LaTeX.

--
Ian

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