For the uninitiated, Postfix is an open-source and free mail transfer agent that routes and delivers emails. It focuses on security and can be installed on most Linux systems, including Ubuntu using a simple command. For students and new users looking for a Linux system to start learning on, the easiest place to start is Ubuntu Linux OS. It’s a great Linux operating system for beginners and folks looking for easier Linux distribution to use. Ubuntu is an open-source Linux operating system that runs on desktops, laptops, servers, and other devices. To get started follow the steps below:
Install Postfix on Ubuntu
Postfix packages are available via Ubuntu default repositories. Using a simple command, you’ll be able to install it in no time. To get Postfix installed, run the commands below: When prompted whether to accept the packages that will be downloaded and installed, type y for Yes. During the installation, you’ll be prompted to choose Postfix configuration settings by selecting its configuration site and the mail system name or domain name. When prompted, choose Internet Site as highlighted above. Next, choose a domain name for the mail system. Once the installation is complete, you can stop, start and enable the service using the commands below: Then enable command enables the service to automatically start up every time the system boots up.
Configure Postfix
Now that Postfix is installed, move below to learn how to configure it. Just like many other mail servers, Postfix comes with lots of different configuration options. Some are basic while others are more advanced. Postfix main configuration file is located at /etc/postfix/main.cf Run the commands below to open its default configuration file: The majority of Postfix settings are found in this configuration file. At the bottom of the file, you’ll find all the lines with configuration options that you’ll need to set up your environment. There are three to four main configuration options that are mostly configured in a live environment: myhostname, mydestination, mynetworks, and mail home folder. These are details for some of the configurations above:
myhostnme: describes the mail server hostname or system name. normally its a fully qualified hostname: mailsr.example.com mydomain: describes the domain Postfix is handling mail for example: example.com mynetworks: describes the trusted networks of remote SMTP servers that can relay through the server example: 127.0.0.0/8 [::ffff:127.0.0.0]/104 [::1]/128 home_mailbx: describes user’s home mailbox. example: home_mailbox = Maildir/
Besides the configuration options above, Postfix also comes with self-signed certificate settings that come configured on the system. Postfix self-signed SSL certificate settings are located in the same configuration file mentioned above. TLS configuration lines look similar to the ones below: Many other Postfix configurations are located in the /etc/postfix directory. For more advanced configuration, you may have to review files in its main directory for help. When connecting to the service for the first time, you will receive a warning message because they are self-signed and not CA certificates. Conclusion: This post shows you how to install and configure the Postfix mail server on Ubuntu. If you find any error above, please use the comment form below to report it. You may also like the post below:
