Configure a CentOS 6.4 Web Server on Rackspace - Part 5: Postfix Email Forwarding
Postfix is the default mailserver on CentOS. The following tutorial will set up email forwarding for the domains on our server. We will assume that the primary domain on the server is called host.com.
DNS Settings
1. Create an A record for the mailserver, e.g.
mail.host.com
2. Add an MX record to any hosted domains (e.g. mydomain1.com) pointing to mail.host.com with priority 10.
3. Use dig to check the settings (look at ANSWER SECTION)
$ dig mail.host.com @dns1.stabletransit.com
$ dig mydomain1.com mx @dns1.stabletransit.com
iptables
Next, use the GUI to open the SMTP port (port 25) so we can receive connections:
$ sudo system-config-firewall-tui
# open the port for SMTP
$ sudo service iptables restart
We can check the settings:
$ sudo iptables -L
# output should contain the line:
# ACCEPT tcp -- anywhere anywhere tcp dpt:smtp
Postfix
Start Postfix:
$ sudo service postfix start
$ sudo chkconfig postfix on
Open the Postfix config file main.cf:
$ sudo vim /etc/postfix/main.cf
Uncomment or add the following lines:
inet_interfaces = all
relay_domains =
mynetworks = 192.168.0.0/24, 127.0.0.0/8
myhostname = mail.host.com
Finally, add virtual_alias_domains, which is a list of your hosted domains. And add virtual_alias_maps, which is a file that will hold the forwarder-to-address mappings. I'd like a better way to handle this, like we did with mass virtual hosts in httpd.conf, but I haven't had time to figure one out yet:
virtual_alias_domains = mydomain1.com, mydomain2.com
virtual_alias_maps = hash:/etc/postfix/virtual
Then open the virtual file:
$ sudo vim /etc/postfix/virtual
And add each email forwarder:
me@mydomain1.com me@gmail.com
someone@mydomain2.com wherever@yahoo.com
# optionally, add a catch-all address for the domain
@mydomain1.com another@outlook.com
The virtual file could also be built from a database if that suits you needs better.
Finally, reload postfix settings:
# rebuild the forwarder database
$ sudo postmap /etc/postfix/virtual
# restart postfix
$ sudo service postfix restart
Make sure we can connect on port 25:
$ telnet mail.host.com 25
220 mail.host.com ESMTP Postfix
# Press CTRL + ]
telnet > quit
The email forwarders we created in the virtual file should be working now. Note that the DNS settings at the beginning of the tutorial will take efect in about 5 minutes if your DNS is hosted at Rackspace. Some other DNS providers can take up to 48 hours.
SpamAssassin
One problem with forwarding mail is that your server's IP address reputation will be harmed by forwarding spam messages. Gmail recommends tagging spam using SpamAssassin.
