Subject: Re: replacing sendmail with postfix default
To: NetBSD current list <current-users@netbsd.org>
From: Aaron J. Grier <agrier@poofygoof.com>
List: current-users
Date: 06/30/2003 11:00:44
On Sat, Jun 28, 2003 at 08:07:43PM -0600, Rick Kelly wrote:

> The main problem with postfix is that it needs to have some
> documentation.  Setting it up to receive mail and deliver system mail
> to a central system on the network is no problem, but actually using
> it for the main mail server in a domain is somewhat left to the
> imagination. It seems to use flat files rather than databases for spam
> control, which must lead to performance problems when access databases
> get as large as the are today.

you can use flat files or db, dbm, nis, sql, or ldap, depending on
what's been compiled into postfix.  this is documented in the various
section 5 manual pages on the various postfix databases, which are all
cross-referenced with each other.  man -k postfix and a little reading
could've told you this.

NetBSD's default compilation of postfix shows the following maps
available:

$ postconf -m
static
regexp
environ
btree
unix
hash

> There seems to be dozens of postfix sample files that have little or
> no explanation about their purpose in life.

the ones in /usr/share/example/postfix?

> The file main.cf seems to be in a constance state of flux, where the
> order of entries change slightly with every release. This makes it
> difficult to upgrade easily on a previously configured server.

so don't overwrite your main.cf when you update.  you don't rewrite your
sendmail.cf file on updates, do you?

> Sendmail works fine. It is documented in detail in books. I set it up
> the first time back in the eighties via "man sendmail".

I had to read large portions of the o'reilly bat book before I could
configure sendmail to my satisfaction.  obviously your mileage may vary,
and that's why both mailers are available out of the box.

that being said, I do agree with Rick that the postfix documentation is
somewhat scattered.  is there an equivalent to the bat book for postfix?

-- 
  Aaron J. Grier | "Not your ordinary poofy goof." | agrier@poofygoof.com
  "Isn't an OS that openly and proudly admits to come directly from Holy
   UNIX better than a cheap UNIX copycat that needs to be sued in court
   to determine what the hell it really is?"  --  Michael Sokolov