On Wed, Nov 16, 2005 at 11:45:19AM +0000, Jason Meers wrote:
> A new user doesn't *necessarily* need to know how to configure any of
> the following if they haven't got a working server to begin with:
>
> av_scanner
> mime decoding and content checking
I would say that one or other of these are virtually required on the modern
internet.
> spamd
> dns blacklisting
Depending on how long you've been around and how widely publicised your
email address is, these are either a nice to have or an absolute must!
> Like it or not, this list DOES respond with "your wrong, you would have
> known this if you had read the documentation properly".
As others have said, the internet is a hostile place. Email services are
subject to hostile attack, if you're not prepared to deal with this, it
could be possible that you're not suited to being a mail admin.
> Can anybody on this list honestly tell me that learning Exim is easy and
> so simple to master that it nots worth trying to help new users or
> converters from other MTAs.
Compared to some other MTAs, learning exim is fairly easy, yes. In sendmail
you need to get your head round the idea of mail routing using rewrites. In
postfix, you generally have to work out what special case Wietse was thinking
of for your situation, qmail is just fuelled on so much crack, only one person
in the world still uses smail, and, well, I'd trust Exchange as far as I
could lob the box it runs on off a high cliff...
I am, however, biased, and it's been a while since I looked at most of the
MTAs I mention above.
Understanding the ins and outs of all of these requires a decent knowledge
of internet email and its history. Understanding what the options might mean
similarly.
What I don't understand in all of this is: you have to pass a test to do
something as complicated as driving a car, understanding the rules of the
road. Why should you expect to be able to use software in which
misconfiguration could have harmful effects with no prior preparation?
(I also appreciate that my view of driving is coloured by British Standards,
and the metaphor doesn't apply as well across the pond...)
Cheers
MBM
--
Matthew Byng-Maddick <mbm@???> http://colondot.net/
(Please use this address to reply)
