Re: [exim] Hidden Exim version number

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Author: W B Hacker
Date:  
To: exim-users
Subject: Re: [exim] Hidden Exim version number
Phil Pennock wrote:
> On 2010-09-16 at 14:00 -0400, W B Hacker wrote:
>> No: It won't make a change in the case I cited. Check the full headers of this
>> post. It is tahini adding that last header that ID's my server by Exim version
>> (and OS). (tahini is running Exim 4.72 and AFAIK on Linux, not BSD)
>>
>> I don't control tahini, and would not alter that line (at tahini) if I did do.
>>
>> Maybe: We are all looking in the wrong place.
>>
>> - telnet will show my smtp greeting banner as bland
>>
>> - tahini sees the full info anyway


I was wrong. Still looking in the wrong place... s.b.

>>
>> - Ergo, I suspect it is my 'outbound' handshake when submitting TO tahini that
>> is providing the info.
>
> No, this is not what's happening.


ACK. Thanks, Phil, but SB..

Let's look at the headers of the mail
> I'm replying to:


*snip* (Sequential third of three headers)

Retaining only the second header - added by the conducive.org MTA

>
> Received: from conducive.org ([203.194.153.81]:49599)
>         by tahini.csx.cam.ac.uk with esmtp (Exim 4.72)
>         (envelope-from <wbh@???>) id 1OwIki-0004g0-IU
>         for exim-users@???; Thu, 16 Sep 2010 19:00:10 +0100



*snip* (Sequential first of three headers)
*snip* (related and irrelevant port 587 and residential DHCP issues

> The second header was added first, by your system,


Added second by my system. It added the port 587 submission record first.

Not To Worry.

As suspected, it is MY Exim that is onpassing the information to tahini.
As a header, not a handshake, not an smtp banner - but 'mea culpa' either way.

>
> The only trace of the version of your MTA here is from the Received:
> header which your MTA added.


Agreed.

Now ... A question remains on the table:

*other than* 'manually' building a new header, re-ordering headers, deleting the
'revealing' stock header, (a non-trivial exercise to do AND be certain it has
worked properly in all cases).

Is there a simpler means - that of customizing the server version, rev, and
underlying OS building block(s) *from which* the 'stock' header is composed at
the outset? 'HELO_DATA' is another example of that sort of thing..

And, of course, taken as a given that anything is possible in source code, so
just asking if there are userland knobs.

Best,

Bill