How to use dovecot only as POP3 server / prevent it from creating .imap directories?

[Binarus]

On 19.06.2020 00:27, Joseph Tam wrote:
> On Wed, 17 Jun 2020, Josef 'Jeff' Sipek wrote:
> 
>> On Tue, Jun 09, 2020 at 12:32:18 +0200, Binarus wrote:
>> ...
>>> ./mail/inbox
>>> ./mail/.imap
>>> ./mail/.imap/dovecot-uidvalidity
>>> ./mail/.imap/dovecot.list.index.log
>>> ./mail/.imap/dovecot-uidvalidity.5edce848
>>> ./mail/.imap/INBOX
>>> ./mail/.imap/INBOX/dovecot.index.log
>>> ./mail/.imap/INBOX/dovecot.index
>>> ./mail/.imap/INBOX/dovecot.index.log.2
>>> ./mail/.imap/INBOX/dovecot.index.cache
>>
>> The .imap directory isn't really about IMAP.  It is sort of a generic
>> directory that just happens to have "imap" in the name.  The index
>> files you
>> see are required for various features inside dovecot to work
>> properly.  Many
>> of them are related to performance rather than a specific protocol.
> 
> Spot on.
> 
>> If you don't want the index files to live inside the users' home
>> directories, take a look at the INDEX and CONTROL keys in the
>> mail_location
>> docs:
>>
>> https://doc.dovecot.org/configuration_manual/mail_location/#format
>>
>> While that still creates the files, you can move them off to a
>> location that
>> the users do not see.
> 
> Or you can create in-memory indices, but that is a solution to the wrong
> problem.
> 
> By specifically stating in mail_location that ~user holds mailboxes,
> you are telling Dovecot an untruth.  It's better to tell Dovecot user
> mailboxes (other than INBOX) don't exist, rather than to push all the
> indices under the carpet.
> 

I just noticed that I haven't said thank you yet.

However, the solution I have implemented works very nice since several
months now, so I currently don't plan to change or improve anything.

Thanks again, and best regards,

Binarus