  Sendmail configurator
  Introduction


  Your Linux computer can send and receive mail from different sources.
  It can do much more than that: It can be a mail gateway between dif-
  ferent networking technologies (Uucp and TCP/IP). It can manage mail-
  ing lists.

  1.  Tasks


  When configuring a Linux computer running Sendmail you must/can do the
  following things


     Configure basic information
        You must minimally specify the intended purpose of your
        computer, mail wise: Is it a workstation or the mail server ?
        What is the domain used for email ? ...


     Configure special (domain) routing
        You can setup exception in the routing. If you know a short cut
        to a specific site or domain, you can tell Sendmail here. This
        is especially needed to connect uucp sites to the Internet.


     Configure complex (user) routing
        This let you do mail routing based on the the user and domain
        destination. This way it is possible to handle mail to a domain
        one way and do some exception for few user of this domain. This
        feature is not a replacement for normal user alias although it
        performs at first sight the same thing.


     Masquerading rules
        You can define filters replacing the sender/domain of a mail by
        another sender and or domain. This is handy for some mail broken
        gateway which send email with a bogus return address.  If your
        Linux server is in the path, you can fix it!


     Mail to fax gateway
        This allows your server to route email message to your fax
        engine.  It supports various access control rules. Mail to fax
        offers the universal protocol for faxing from a computer. Easy
        to use and usable by any user/operating system.


     Virtual email domain
        A virtual email domain lets you set one independent user list
        per domain, on the same server. Further each virtual email
        domain may have its own administrator(s).

        This ability ease the management of user accounts since each
        domain has its own list. Further, virtual email domain may be
        moved from server to server very easily to balance the load.

        A must for large organization and ISPs...


     Setting user alias
        Some users may want to receive their email under different
        names, or you want to set a "pseudo" user and direct the mail of
        this user to a real user. Good examples are postmaster, info and
        support.


     Virtual domain user aliases
        Virtual domain have their own user aliases list.


     Generate /etc/sendmail.cf
        Sendmail is configured using the file /etc/sendmail.cf.  This
        file contains pretty complex configuration commands looking much
        more like a programming language than a configuration file. For
        this reason, this file is not edit by Linuxconf, but generated
        from scratch all the time.

        When using this menu option, Linuxconf prompts you to make sure
        you really want to generated this file.

        If you do various modification in the sendmail configuration
        using Linuxconf, it will suggest you to generate a new
        sendmail.cf to make those config changes active.

        See the comments at the beginning of /etc/sendmail.cf to see how
        it is built and how manual modifications may be done (expert
        only!).


     Setting rejected senders
        This dialog lets you enter the email addresses, domains and IP
        numbers from which you never want to receive email.


     Setting relay for by IP
        You can enter the hosts and networks for which you accept to
        relay mail. You generally enter here your own IP networks where
        there are some other sendmail servers and user workstations.


     Setting relay for by Name
        Same as above, except that you enter hosts and domains here, not
        IP numbers.


     Setting relay to hosts
        You enter the names, IP numbers, networks, and domains to which
        you accept to relay.



  2.  Alternative to Sendmail

  Sendmail is not always needed. Here are some reason why you may want
  Sendmail or not.


  o  There is already a mail server in your organization and it is
     reachable over the local network. You don't need Sendmail. Use a
     mail program (user interface) which support the SMTP and POP or
     IMAP protocols.

  o  Your computer talk UUCP with other computers (using a modem) and
     you want to exchange email. Use Sendmail here.





  3.  Note to new Internet  users

  Most Internet providers will setup a POP account on their server for
  you. You will have to connect once in a while to grab your mail.  In
  this case Sendmail and UUCP shine. Ask your provider for a UUCP
  account also. This is especially true if you are part of a small
  organization. This will provide a personal account on your server for
  everyone in your group and your computer will forward/receive email
  to/from your provider.

  Off course, nothing beats a permanent connection on the Internet...























































