Install and configure a simple mail server using Sendmail and Dovecot on a Fedora 20 VPS

In the following article we will guide you through the steps of installing and configuring a simple mail server using Sendmail and Dovecot on a Fedora 20 Linux VPS.

What is Sendmail?

It is a general purpose email routing facility that supports many kinds of mail-transfer and delivery methods, including the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) used for email transport over the Internet.

What is Dovecot?

Dovecot is an open source IMAP and POP3 server for Linux/UNIX-like systems. It can work with standard mbox, Maildir, and its own native high-performance dbox formats. It is fully compatible with UW IMAP and Courier IMAP servers’ implementation of them, as well as mail clients accessing the mailboxes directly. Dovecot also includes a Mail delivery agent (called Local delivery agent LDA) with optional Sieve filtering support.

1. UPDATE THE SYSTEM

Before proceeding any further, make sure you are in a screen session and check if your Fedora 20 Linux VPS is fully up-to-date by running:

## screen -U -S sendmail-screen
## yum update

2. INSTALL AND CONFIGURE SENDMAIL

Install Sendmail MTA using the following command

## yum install sendmail sendmail-cf sendmail-doc cyrus-sasl-{lib,plain}

change to /etc/mail directory

## cd /etc/mail

edit sendmail’s sendmail.mc configuration file and add/change the following

## cp sendmail.mc{,.orig}
## vim sendmail.mc

define(`PROCMAIL_MAILER_PATH', `/usr/bin/procmail')dnl
define(`confAUTH_OPTIONS', `A')dnl
TRUST_AUTH_MECH(`EXTERNAL DIGEST-MD5 CRAM-MD5 LOGIN PLAIN')dnl
define(`confAUTH_MECHANISMS', `EXTERNAL GSSAPI DIGEST-MD5 CRAM-MD5 LOGIN PLAIN')dnl

FEATURE(local_procmail)dnl

DAEMON_OPTIONS(`Port=smtp,Addr=0.0.0.0, Name=MTA')dnl
DAEMON_OPTIONS(`Port=submission, Name=MSA, M=Ea')dnl

MAILER(procmail)dnl

save and close the file and make sendmail’s configuration by running the following commands

## cd /etc/mail
## make all

restart sendmail and add it to your linux vps start-up using systemctl

## systemctl restart sendmail saslauthd
## systemctl enable sendmail saslauthd

for your convenience, below is the complete sendmail.mc configuration file:

divert(-1)dnl
include(`/usr/share/sendmail-cf/m4/cf.m4')dnl
VERSIONID(`setup for linux')dnl
OSTYPE(`linux')dnl
define(`confDEF_USER_ID', ``8:12'')dnl
define(`confTO_CONNECT', `1m')dnl
define(`confTRY_NULL_MX_LIST', `True')dnl
define(`confDONT_PROBE_INTERFACES', `True')dnl
define(`PROCMAIL_MAILER_PATH', `/usr/bin/procmail')dnl
define(`ALIAS_FILE', `/etc/aliases')dnl
define(`STATUS_FILE', `/var/log/mail/statistics')dnl
define(`UUCP_MAILER_MAX', `2000000')dnl
define(`confUSERDB_SPEC', `/etc/mail/userdb.db')dnl
define(`confPRIVACY_FLAGS', `authwarnings,novrfy,noexpn,restrictqrun')dnl
define(`confAUTH_OPTIONS', `A')dnl
TRUST_AUTH_MECH(`EXTERNAL DIGEST-MD5 CRAM-MD5 LOGIN PLAIN')dnl
define(`confAUTH_MECHANISMS', `EXTERNAL GSSAPI DIGEST-MD5 CRAM-MD5 LOGIN PLAIN')dnl
define(`confTO_IDENT', `0')dnl
FEATURE(`no_default_msa', `dnl')dnl
FEATURE(`smrsh', `/usr/sbin/smrsh')dnl
FEATURE(`mailertable', `hash -o /etc/mail/mailertable.db')dnl
FEATURE(`virtusertable', `hash -o /etc/mail/virtusertable.db')dnl
FEATURE(redirect)dnl
FEATURE(always_add_domain)dnl
FEATURE(use_cw_file)dnl
FEATURE(use_ct_file)dnl
FEATURE(local_procmail)dnl
FEATURE(`access_db', `hash -T<TMPF> -o /etc/mail/access.db')dnl
FEATURE(`blacklist_recipients')dnl
EXPOSED_USER(`root')dnl
DAEMON_OPTIONS(`Port=smtp,Addr=0.0.0.0, Name=MTA')dnl
DAEMON_OPTIONS(`Port=submission, Name=MSA, M=Ea')dnl
FEATURE(`accept_unresolvable_domains')dnl
LOCAL_DOMAIN(`localhost.localdomain')dnl
MAILER(smtp)dnl
MAILER(procmail)dnl

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3. INSTALL AND CONFIGURE DOVECOT

Install dovecot using the command below

## yum install dovecot

change to dovecot’s directory in /etc/dovecot

## cd /etc/dovecot

and edit the following

## vim conf.d/10-mail.conf
...
mail_location = maildir:~/Maildir

## vim conf.d/10-ssl.conf
...
ssl = yes

## vim conf.d/10-auth.conf
...
disable_plaintext_auth = no
auth_mechanisms = plain login

next, edit dovecot’s main configuration file and add/edit the following

## vim dovecot.conf
...
protocols = imap pop3 lmtp
listen = *

start Dovecot and add it to your Fedora system’s start-up using

## systemctl restart dovecot
## systemctl enable dovecot

4. SET-UP PROCMAIL

Add the following to /etc/procmailrc

## vim /etc/procmailrc

DEFAULT=$HOME/Maildir/

5. CREATE A NEW USER

Create new user using the following command

## useradd -m test

set password for the newly created info account

## passwd test

add your mydomain.com domain name to /etc/mail/local-host-names

## echo mydomain.com >> /etc/mail/local-host-names

and create an alias for the newly created email account, by adding the following to /etc/mail/virtusertable

## vim /etc/mail/virtusertable

test@mydomain.com  test
sales@mydomain.com test

rebuild sendmail’s configuration by running the following commands

## cd /etc/mail
## make all
## systemctl restart sendmail

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Of course, if you are one of our Linux VPS Hosting customers, you don’t have to do any of this, simply ask our admins, sit back and relax. Our admins will set this up for you immediately.

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