email server?

[ChrisK2972]

Ok, I have a question about email. I have a domain name and get server space from a company which also provides me email in my domain name. I was wondering if there is a way for me to host my site on my own computer as well as host my own email? I have a cable connection which is always on and I was just wondering if there was a way for me to set all this up on my machine. I mean, I know that I can set up a little ftp sever on my machine where others can access it to download with permission.

I put ithis question here in the Linux forum because I have been experimenting with Linux of late and have noticed allot of software included with most distros like sendmail and postfix etc. I am not sure what they do yet. Are they proggies that enable you to set up an email server(if that is the proper term)?

Thanks! If it is possible, if someone could give me some links to some "how to" sites, it would be much appreciated!

[vass0922]

Putting any kind of server on a cable connection is a bit tricky because ISP's typically block popular ports like 80 (HTTP), 21 (FTP) and 25 (SMTP)

If you want to move your email server you'll want to make sure to update the MX record on the DNS record to point to the new server.

Sorry can't help with links
however, it maybe enough to give you something to look around on google with

[ChrisK2972]

Thanks. I will start diggin' I had searched simply with email server as keywords but did not fine wihat I was looking for. I appreciate the hints!

[Mickwish]

Running an email server is fine, but check with your ISP first, as vass said. Some will be downright nasty if you run an email server that allows mail forwarding on their network.

I run a mail server under windoze (mail enable), and it was pretty easy to set up. Try doing a google for mail server software and see what comes up. There are quite a few about. If you want a free one, add freeware to the search.

Cheers
Mick

[SpookyEddy]

Its also worth remembering that many organisations automatically bounce mail from domestic ip ranges as they are a common source of spam and other mass mail activities. This is not an issue if you have the ability to route mail from your local server through a smarthost (a service often provided by ISPs).

I like Postfix as an MTA (Mail Transfer Agent) as it uses fairly sane defaults and only minimal changes are required to get it up and running. I would stay clear of sendmail unless you are allready familiar with it or have a compelling reason to use it, the configuration can be a bit of a hassle in my (rather limited) experience. Qmail is another popular choice and has a good reputation for security (although I have no first hand experience with it).

To allow your users access to mail you could look at courier-imap (imap server), qpopper (pop3 server and very easy to setup) and squirrelmail (webmail interface). You may also want to look at spamassassin and razor for mail filtering.

Regards

ed

[ChrisK2972]

Wow! You folks have given me enough homework to last a few days! I really appteciate it. Right now, I am using Time Warner cable, road runner service. I am not sure how they feel about it. I am sure they would love to get me on a business plan. Been downloading alot of Linux ISO's the last month and bet my monthy traffic has quadrupled!

Thanks again!