Linux – Simple setup for intranet only mail server

email-serverlinux

I want to set up an "internal only" mail server on a Linux machine. We need it for our integration test environment:

  • Our integration test server will send mail (via SMTP) to "…@localmail.lan"
  • The mail server must reject mail for all other recipient domains.
  • Our testers will fetch the mail via POP/IMAP over SSL. They don't have a unix account on the mail server. Each tester needs about 100 email aliases for their account.

There are lots of tutorials out there, but they usually set up a full Postfix server + a separate MDA (like Courier)? Aren't there easier options, as the server will never have to transfer mail to other mail servers?

(BTW, the server machine already runs a PostgreSQL instance – I could use this to store mails, if this is the easiest option to allow virtual accounts?)

Best Answer

No there are no easier options. If you need a mail server then you need to install a mail server. If you need an IMAP server you need to install an IMAP server. If you can live with local mail storage then you do not need a RDBMS to store mails.

(You don't need Postfix and Courier. You need either of them as MTA/MDA. And Courier-IMAP or Dovecot as IMAP server.)

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