On 11/4/24 11:09 AM, Pocket wrote:
I am looking to setup an email server for home use.
I want to replace a debian server on a RPI 4 to an archlinux arm on RPI 4.
I have dovecot and postifix on the debian rpi presently. It is not working as
needed.
It matters not what distro you use, it's all Linux under the hood. Postfix,
dovecot, procmail is a good combination. You will need to ensure your ISP
doesn't block ports (if you have a fixed IP/business account, you are likely fine)
Additionally you will want a firewall and tool to monitor failed
authentication attempts for both postfix and dovecot. nftables with fail2ban
or iptables/ipset with fail2ban are excellent solutions.
You will require a domain name and both forward and reverse mappings with
entries in your domain providers DNS to have your mail accepted by other
servers. Many block mail without a valid reverse lookup. (gmail will still
block even with DKIM codes set and gmail seems to move the goal-posts
frequently to keep you on your toes)
You will need valid SSL certificates for your domain (Let's Encrypt is a great
service providing free certs, certbot is a great tool for renewing the
certificates). You can use the same certificates for https as well as dovecot.
There is a small learning curve to put it altogether, and you must make sure
your mail-host isn't an open relay, or you will find your host on banlists
quickly. The postfix and dovecot and procmail documentation is good, and there
are 20 years worth of tutorials available. (make sure you are using current
tutorials)
That said, I've run mail-hosts for about 20 years and they work fine on Arch
or any other distro. The benefit of Arch is you are always on the current
version with up to date software instead of waiting for bug and security fixes
to be backported. That is a big advantage. Good luck.
--
David C. Rankin, J.D.,P.E.
