This is related to this question:
linux – Ways to get a bounceback report for my newsletter application? – Server Fault
Let's say I'm generating email addresses like this when I send out newsletters to identify bounces and unsubscribe them from my newsletter: bounce-123456789@example.com
I assume I'd use this in the return-path, right?
Then how would I set it up in postfix to collect all these addresses prefixed with "bounce-" into one mailbox?
Finally, I've heard people mention a soft bounce vs. a hard bounce. Can someone explain the different and how they should be counted to know when to permanently remove someone from an email newsletter?
Best Answer
The exact answer to your question (handling the
bounce-xxx@example.com
address) depends on how your server is configured to receive mail. Ifexample.com
is the virtual domain the best you can do is collect the messages in thebounce@example.com
mailbox (assumingrecipient_delimiter = -
).If
example.com
is the locally delivered domain for the server (mail is delivered to actual system accounts) then you can add a.forward
file to the home directory of thebounce
user, which delivers to a program that parses the bounce information and records it in a database or file. Seeman local
for more info on the.forward
format and how to deliver to a program.What we do, since we send messages for a large number of domains, is use
bounces.example.com
as our VERP domain. This domain needs to be added torelay_domains
. Create/etc/postfix/transport_maps
with this content:Then append a line similar to this to
/etc/postfix/master.cf
:The
bounce_handler.py
script accepts the VERP address as its command line option, parses it and makes the necessary database updates to record the bounce.