[Dovecot] Is dovecot the right choice for this problem?

[Darren McLaughlin]

Bill,

Thanks for your detailed explanation.  I apologize for using incorrect terminology, but I am operating a little out of my depth as I have only 2 servers with Verio.  I started with them years ago, as websites are a small part of my consulting, and as email has evolved so have the server issues, and the water has risen a little high for me here lately haha.  Honestly, I was not solid on the terminology until you explained it there.  It sounds like Dovecot may be the way to go on this problem.  They say all I have to do is run a vinstall, and it will take care of everything, and does not require any ongoing maintenance.  Is that realistic, or are there areas I should be checking occassionaly.  Again, I apologize for diving in here and not having followed the RTFM gerneral rule, but I am not a server administrator per say, and am just attempting to get this issue straightened out so I can move on with things that make me some money rather than just burning time.  I appreciate the help that you and Timo have provided. 

Darren

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********

RESPONSE TAG: 8483057671202
On 12/8/2007 at 6:17 PM Bill Cole wrote:

>At 11:05 PM -0600 12/7/07, Darren McLaughlin wrote:
>>Bill,
>>
>>There's a ringing endorsement of Verio.
>
>And maybe not quite fair, since your first paraphrasing came across 
>as further from reality than the second...
>
>
>>They told me that the
>>server had a"group mail file" and all the users had their mail
>>stored together.  If I installed Dovecot, they said it would split
>>the mailboxes up into individual files, and reduce the load on teh
>>server, thus allowing it to better handle large mailboxes.  I guess
>>they are just making it up as they go along...  thanks for the info
>>though.  I suppose I will seek an independent email host somewhere
>>and have their mail forwarded, or upgrade my server on verio.
>
>As Timo noted, that sounds a little closer to a common circumstance 
>of a mailstore running UW-IMAP or qpopper or ipop3d some other old 
>mailstore server that only uses classic mbox files. That's not one 
>file for everyone, but one file for all of each user's delivered but 
>undeleted mail. That can cause performance problems that are largely 
>resistant to simple CPU or memory upgrades, so changing the mailstore 
>format to something else like maildir (used by Dovecot and Courier) 
>is a better approach. This is particularly a problem if you have 
>users with very large collections of mail that they treat as 
>permanent on the server but are only accessing via POP through a 
>POP-only server.
>
>Incidentally, it is helpful to understand and use the 
>terminology/jargon carefully. A "mail queue" usually refers to the 
>directories used for very temporary storage of mail on its way in or 
>out of a server, while the terms "mailbox," "mailstore," "mail 
>spool," and "mail file" usually refer to the place(s) where delivered 
>messages sit until the user asks a POP or IMAP server handling those 
>mailboxes to delete them. Mail queues are handled by mail transport 
>agents, aka "MTA's" like Sendmail or Postfix.
>
>
>>Thanks,
>>
>>Darren
>>
>>*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********
>>
>>RESPONSE TAG: 8483057671202
>>On 12/7/2007 at 10:49 PM Bill Cole wrote:
>>
>>>At 11:56 AM -0600 12/7/07, Darren McLaughlin wrote:
>>>>Is dovecot the right choice for this problem?
>>>>
>>>>I have a shared server with verio.  I have one particular client
>>>>that sends and receives numerous large emails, and those emails were
>>>>causing me to run out of processes on my verio server, and basically
>>>>slow things down a great deal due to the shared mail queue.  Verio
>>>>suggested Dovecot to reduce server load and allow this one client to
>>>>have less problems with sending and receiving email.  Does this
>>>>sound logical to anyone in the know?
>>>
>>>It does not sound right. Dovecot is not involved in sending mail. It
>>>never comes anywhere near the mail queue.
>>>
>>>It does sound about par for the course for Verio support though. Spot on.
>>>--
>>>Bill Cole
>>>bill at scconsult.com
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>--
>>>No virus found in this incoming message.
>>>Checked by AVG Free Edition.
>>>Version: 7.5.503 / Virus Database: 269.16.17/1176 - Release Date:
>>>12/6/2007 11:15 PM
>>
>>
>>.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
>>Darren McLaughlin
>>Mindstream Technologies
>>"Business Technology Consulting"
>>
>>C: (217) 841-5167
>>P: (217) 867-2522
>>F: (217) 867-2522
>>.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
>
>-- 
>Bill Cole
>bill at scconsult.com
>
>
>
>-- 
>No virus found in this incoming message.
>Checked by AVG Free Edition. 
>Version: 7.5.503 / Virus Database: 269.16.17/1178 - Release Date:
>12/8/2007 11:59 AM


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Darren McLaughlin
Mindstream Technologies
"Business Technology Consulting"

C: (217) 841-5167
P: (217) 867-2522
F: (217) 867-2522
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