Hello all,

I am sure you have heard this all before, but I am a newbie to Linux and need some help.

Here is the issue:

I have 2 Novell Groupwise systems running. Each has its own domain name example abc.com and abcd.com

I have one internet connection. I would like to setup a Linux server that will do the following:

1) Relay incomming and outgoing SMTP mail for each domain to the proper Groupwise server.

2) Use Spamassassin to check the mails as they come in (I HATE SPAM!)

3) Virus check each message that comes in.

This server does not need POP or IMAP. Its whole purpose in life will be to route mail to the proper Groupwise server.

From what I have read Linux is the best solution. I have not found an HOWTO that will help.

Thanks in advance!

Ditto...any suggestions or references?

TBHWY I don't know what a groupwise server is but if you want to set up a linux box to do the above then you wouldnot find a "how to" to do all of the above. I may write it one day ;-)

Do these groupwise server run mail servers?

Point no 1: When you say "relay" I think you mean forward?If you're doing on sendmail then you can easily do this in virtualusertable. Read on virtual hosting on sendmail.org. Easiest would be to set up a null client and forward mails based on your rules.

Point no 2: Spam assassin I think kicks off at the MDA level i.e procmail. You'll have to deploy it on your groupwise server. Good idea would be use "dns block list" (dnsbl) on sendmail on linux box. This would provide some protection. For extra spam protection you'll have to set up your MDA I guess.

Point no 3: Virus check - There are quite a few virus checking softwares which you can integrate with your mail server. for eg: AVG anti virus. It is not free tho. There is slight overhead on the mailserver tho.


A point about outgoing mail :- This depends on what mail server the user is using. If you mean to say when a user from your groupwise server mails it should go via linux box then you'll have to make them use linux mail server or add rules on the MTA running on groupwise server to route via linux box.

Thanks, Expert, I appreciate the reply.

"GroupWise" is Novell's email and collaberation solution. Generically speaking, it consists of SMTP services, POP3/IMAP services, post offices, and web access servers. It can use the proprietary GroupWise client, a web browser, and/or any POP3/IMAP/SMTP client. Information is maintained via Novell's eDirectory.

There are commercial anti-spam and anti-virus solutions available to run on the Novell (NetWare) servers, however the packages tend to get expensive. Given that Novell is embracing Linux via its SuSE and Ximian acquisitions, many of the current NetWare users are learning Linux and considering open-source solutions in their environment. We at Hartford (CT) Hospital are but one.

Currently, we are using Guinevere and Spam Assassin on NT for our anti-spam and anti-virus solution. As I understand its current implementation, this system watches the inbound subdirectory on our GroupWise SMTP server, snags the email, scans it for viruses and spam, then places the approved ones back in the outbound directory on the server, where the SMTP server then redirects it to our GroupWise domain server, who then routes it through the internal system. Unfortunately, this NT server is not capable of handling the load; it shells out a command prompt for each email and in times of heavy spam (like almost always) the email backs up for literally hours.

What I'd like to do is build a SuSE Lunix box and run Spam Assassin and an appropriate anti-virus solution in place of the current NT box. Unfortunately, given my years of experience with Novell, NetWare, and MS solutions, I'm at the stage where this is my first Linux project...I've managed to get SuSE and Spam Assassin installed just fine, but I feel like the dog that finally caught the car it was chasing..."now what"?

One possible method of implementation would be to have this box be the SMTP mail relay. All inbound mail would get routed to it, scanned, and then the appropriate ones forwarded to the internal mail relay server as it is now. If I can figure out how to do this then it would be a simple matter of placing it in our DMZ, configuring it for outbound mail, then changing our MX records appropriately.

I suppose the major problem I've personally got is that this is the first Linux box I'm working with. It's no doubt likely that there's some basic stuff I'm missing, like "how do I set up an SMTP server", and "how do I use Spam Assassin to scna mail and forward it". I am working as we speak to fill this knowledge void. However, if there's someone out there that has dome something similar to this, even if it's with a different email system than GroupWise, then that knowledge will go a long way towards helping me figure this out. Frankly, while step-by-step instructions would help with getting it implemented, I'd rather be referred to someplace where I can learn how it all goes together.

As always, assistance is sincerely appreciated.

After some research, I've got some answers. We've implemented a SuSE Linux mail server relay using Spam Assassin and it works very well, much better than the windoze-based one.

Simply put, you can implement one of the following two solutions:

- SpamAssassin using AmavisD and your favorite anti-virus solution:

http://www.geocities.com/scottlhende...pamfilter.html

- SpamAssassin using Anomy Sanitizer:

http://advosys.ca/papers/printable/p...filtering.html

Either will provide to you the solution of a filtering mail relay server. We chose to go with a modified version of the first, installing SA and AmavisD but not implementing the virus filtering yet. Ours is currently feeding spam-filtered email to the current email virus checker, and if all goes well we'll incorporate virus checking into that box as well.

Good luck, it's quite easy to do!

GregAmy,
I think I'm in the same boat as you. I've just started playing with Suse since we are a Novell shop. I was trying to setup something similar using OpenBSD, but I was running into snags and I need to move quickly here. Just curious about your Suse install, any chance you could PM me?

Sorry, PM doesn't work. Try emailing me at grega-at-harthosp-dot-org.

GA

Which is best for implementing SMTP relay servers in unix.. fork or pthread ?