[Dovecot] Please help me resolve why mail isn't being delivered to virtual users

[Andrew Falanga]

On Jan 7, 2008 9:55 PM, Asheesh Laroia <asheesh at asheesh.org> wrote:

> On Mon, 7 Jan 2008, Andrew Falanga wrote:
>
> > I have to admit that I'm not quite sure why no one has responded to me
> about
> > this one.  If I'm not providing enough information or incorrect
> information
> > please tell me.  It's quite important that this e-mail system be
> working.
>
> Well, I can try to help.  In general that's what we'll all do, but we have
> other things to do in our lives, too. (-:
>
> Zeroth question: Why use virtual users rather than regular-old UNIX users?
> The regular way requires much less configuration, after all!


Well, that is actually how I got things working.  Now that Christmas is
past, the church staff is returning to work "full-throttle" and had to have
e-mail services.  (About three weeks ago, the windoze system they were
running died.)  As to why to use virtual users, we were wanting to go that
route because one thought is to give e-mail accounts to church members who
want them.  I was thinking that a better way of doing that would be through
virtual users.


>
>
> > I have created a system user ID called "vmail" which is referenced in my
> > PostgreSQL database for UID/GID stuff.  All virtual user home
> directories and
> > INBOXes are made owner "vmail" and group is "users."
>
> First question:
>
> If you do 'su - vmail -s /bin/sh' you will get a shell running as user
> vmail.  Run 'deliver' with the arguments it takes to deliver to a target
> user; does mail get delivered?
>
> If not, we better fix that first!


Ok, I will try that ASAP.  I don't think that I'll get to it tonight (in
fact, I'm sorry for taking so long to respond to this but I couldn't take a
free minute at work today to respond).  Also, since they're working now, at
least through POP, the pressure is off.  However, in the near future, I need
to get IMAP and SSL working.


>
>
> > Originally, I had my sendmail "/etc/mail/aliases" file setup to "map"
> > all mail sent to these virtual users to the system user "vmail."
> > However, none of the virtual users were getting any mail and vmail was
> > just getting swamped. After doing more digging, I found that I just
> > didn't understand the home directories and INBOX, mbox and such.
> > That's what drove me to configuring what's in there now.
>
> > Now, following directions on this WIKI page:
> > http://wiki.dovecot.org/LDA/Sendmail?highlight=%28deliver%29 I'm still
> > unable to get the e-mail working for them.  Continually, sendmail bails
> > with errors saying it, "Can't create output."  Because I am using *.mc
> > files, I made a new *.m4 file as directed in
> > /usr/share/sendmail/cf/mailer.
>
> Can you turn up the verbosity from sendmail?


I haven't tried that one yet.


>
>
> > Dovecot does allow the virtual users to login.  In fact, when I did, the
> > first time, there appears a "mail" directory in their home directories
> > after login. This would indicate to me that the login was successful.
> > Further, I cut/pasted a message sent to one of the virtual users from
> > the vmail INBOX (/var/mail/vmail) into the virtual user's INBOX
> > (/var/mail/jdunkin).  Then, logged in as this virtual user and ACTUALLY
> > got the mail.  I know this stuff works.  What must be done to make
> > sendmail do its thing for deliver?
>
> So it sounds like Dovecot is fine and this is a sendmail question.
>
> We can try to help, but I don't use Sendmail (I do use Dovecot...), so
> it's not clear that we'll be able to.


I agree with you.  I only asked here because I was trying to use the dovecot
deliver program, as specified in that wiki page, and I thought that since
this applies to everyone using dovecot (mail delivery) you all might know
how I need to fix this.


>
>
> > What is necessary to fix this situation?
>
> Reply with answers to 0 and 1 and we'll see where we can go.


Andy

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