2014-03-16 21:18:38 +00:00
Mail-in-a-Box
2013-08-21 02:27:32 +00:00
=============
2014-09-14 00:45:10 +00:00
By [@JoshData ](https://github.com/JoshData ) and [contributors ](https://github.com/mail-in-a-box/mailinabox/graphs/contributors ).
2014-08-16 14:20:57 +00:00
2014-03-16 21:18:38 +00:00
Mail-in-a-Box helps individuals take back control of their email by defining a one-click, easy-to-deploy SMTP+everything else server: a mail server in a box.
2013-09-05 11:21:53 +00:00
2014-09-07 11:24:50 +00:00
**Please see [https://mailinabox.email ](https://mailinabox.email ) for the project's website and setup guide!**
* * *
2014-05-15 12:57:38 +00:00
2014-08-23 22:08:03 +00:00
I am trying to:
2014-08-23 22:09:07 +00:00
* Make deploying a good mail server easy.
* Promote [decentralization ](http://redecentralize.org/ ), innovation, and privacy on the web.
2014-05-15 12:57:38 +00:00
* Have automated, auditable, and [idempotent ](http://sharknet.us/2014/02/01/automated-configuration-management-challenges-with-idempotency/ ) configuration.
2015-05-19 15:18:53 +00:00
* **Not** make a totally unhackable, NSA-proof server.
* **Not** make something customizable by power users.
2013-08-31 23:46:36 +00:00
2014-09-03 15:10:30 +00:00
This setup is what has been powering my own personal email since September 2013.
The Box
-------
2015-05-22 20:53:13 +00:00
Mail-in-a-Box turns a fresh Ubuntu 14.04 LTS 64-bit machine into a working mail server by installing and configuring various components.
2015-08-14 21:04:42 +00:00
It is a one-click email appliance. There are no user-configurable setup options. It "just works".
2015-05-22 20:53:13 +00:00
The components installed are:
* SMTP ([postfix](http://www.postfix.org/)), IMAP ([dovecot](http://dovecot.org/)), CardDAV/CalDAV ([ownCloud](http://owncloud.org/)), Exchange ActiveSync ([z-push](https://github.com/fmbiete/Z-Push-contrib))
* Webmail ([Roundcube](http://roundcube.net/)), static website hosting ([nginx](http://nginx.org/))
* Spam filtering ([spamassassin](https://spamassassin.apache.org/)), greylisting ([postgrey](http://postgrey.schweikert.ch/))
* DNS ([nsd4](http://www.nlnetlabs.nl/projects/nsd/)) with [SPF ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sender_Policy_Framework ), DKIM ([OpenDKIM](http://www.opendkim.org/)), [DMARC ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DMARC ), [DNSSEC ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNSSEC ), [DANE TLSA ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNS-based_Authentication_of_Named_Entities ), and [SSHFP ](https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc4255 ) records automatically set
2015-08-17 12:20:31 +00:00
* Backups ([duplicity](http://duplicity.nongnu.org/)), firewall ([ufw](https://launchpad.net/ufw)), intrusion protection ([fail2ban](http://www.fail2ban.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page)), system monitoring ([munin](http://munin-monitoring.org/))
2015-06-03 20:30:26 +00:00
It also includes:
2015-06-06 12:55:13 +00:00
* A control panel and API for adding/removing mail users, aliases, custom DNS records, etc. and detailed system monitoring.
2015-08-17 12:20:31 +00:00
* Our own builds of postgrey (adding better whitelisting) and dovecot-lucene (faster search for mail) distributed via the [Mail-in-a-Box PPA ](https://launchpad.net/~mail-in-a-box/+archive/ubuntu/ppa ) on Launchpad.
2015-05-22 20:53:13 +00:00
For more information on how Mail-in-a-Box handles your privacy, see the [security details page ](security.md ).
2014-09-03 15:10:30 +00:00
2015-08-14 21:04:42 +00:00
Installation
2015-04-01 14:38:09 +00:00
------------
2015-08-14 21:04:42 +00:00
See the [setup guide ](https://mailinabox.email/guide.html ) for detailed, user-friendly instructions.
2015-05-29 01:41:23 +00:00
2015-08-14 21:04:42 +00:00
For experts, start with a completely fresh (really, I mean it) Ubuntu 14.04 LTS 64-bit machine. On the machine...
2015-04-01 14:38:09 +00:00
2015-08-14 21:04:42 +00:00
Clone this repository:
2015-04-01 14:38:09 +00:00
$ git clone https://github.com/mail-in-a-box/mailinabox
$ cd mailinabox
2015-08-14 21:04:42 +00:00
_Optional:_ Download my PGP key and then verify that the sources were signed
v0.14
v0.14 (November 4, 2015)
------------------------
Mail:
* Spamassassin's network-based tests (Pyzor, others) and DKIM tests are now enabled. (Pyzor had always been installed but was not active due to a misconfiguration.)
* Moving spam out of the Spam folder and into Trash would incorrectly train Spamassassin that those messages were not spam.
* Automatically create the Sent and Archive folders for new users.
* The HTML5_Notifier plugin for Roundcube is now included, which when turned on in Roundcube settings provides desktop notifications for new mail.
* The Exchange/ActiveSync backend Z-Push has been updated to fix a problem with CC'd emails not being sent to the CC recipients.
Calender/Contacts:
* CalDAV/CardDAV and Exchange/ActiveSync for calendar/contacts wasn't working in some network configurations.
Web:
* When a new domain is added to the box, rather than applying a new self-signed certificate for that domain, the SSL certificate for the box's primary hostname will be used instead.
* If a custom DNS record is set on a domain or 'www'+domain, web would not be served for that domain. If the custom DNS record is just the box's IP address, that's a configuration mistake, but allow it and let web continue to be served.
* Accommodate really long domain names by increasing an nginx setting.
Control panel:
* Added an option to check for new Mail-in-a-Box versions within status checks. It is off by default so that boxes don't "phone home" without permission.
* Added a random password generator on the users page to simplify creating new accounts.
* When S3 backup credentials are set, the credentials are now no longer ever sent back from the box to the client, for better security.
* Fixed the jumpiness when a modal is displayed.
* Focus is put into the login form fields when the login form is displayed.
* Status checks now include a warning if a custom DNS record has been set on a domain that would normally serve web and as a result that domain no longer is serving web.
* Status checks now check that secondary nameservers, if specified, are actually serving the domains.
* Some errors in the control panel when there is invalid data in the database or an improperly named archived user account have been suppressed.
* Added subresource integrity attributes to all remotely-sourced resources (i.e. via CDNs) to guard against CDNs being used as an attack vector.
System:
* Tweaks to fail2ban settings.
* Fixed a spurrious warning while installing munin.
2015-11-04 22:56:31 +00:00
by me:
2015-08-14 21:04:42 +00:00
$ curl -s https://keybase.io/joshdata/key.asc | gpg --import
gpg: key C10BDD81: public key "Joshua Tauberer < jt @ occams . info > " imported
v0.14
v0.14 (November 4, 2015)
------------------------
Mail:
* Spamassassin's network-based tests (Pyzor, others) and DKIM tests are now enabled. (Pyzor had always been installed but was not active due to a misconfiguration.)
* Moving spam out of the Spam folder and into Trash would incorrectly train Spamassassin that those messages were not spam.
* Automatically create the Sent and Archive folders for new users.
* The HTML5_Notifier plugin for Roundcube is now included, which when turned on in Roundcube settings provides desktop notifications for new mail.
* The Exchange/ActiveSync backend Z-Push has been updated to fix a problem with CC'd emails not being sent to the CC recipients.
Calender/Contacts:
* CalDAV/CardDAV and Exchange/ActiveSync for calendar/contacts wasn't working in some network configurations.
Web:
* When a new domain is added to the box, rather than applying a new self-signed certificate for that domain, the SSL certificate for the box's primary hostname will be used instead.
* If a custom DNS record is set on a domain or 'www'+domain, web would not be served for that domain. If the custom DNS record is just the box's IP address, that's a configuration mistake, but allow it and let web continue to be served.
* Accommodate really long domain names by increasing an nginx setting.
Control panel:
* Added an option to check for new Mail-in-a-Box versions within status checks. It is off by default so that boxes don't "phone home" without permission.
* Added a random password generator on the users page to simplify creating new accounts.
* When S3 backup credentials are set, the credentials are now no longer ever sent back from the box to the client, for better security.
* Fixed the jumpiness when a modal is displayed.
* Focus is put into the login form fields when the login form is displayed.
* Status checks now include a warning if a custom DNS record has been set on a domain that would normally serve web and as a result that domain no longer is serving web.
* Status checks now check that secondary nameservers, if specified, are actually serving the domains.
* Some errors in the control panel when there is invalid data in the database or an improperly named archived user account have been suppressed.
* Added subresource integrity attributes to all remotely-sourced resources (i.e. via CDNs) to guard against CDNs being used as an attack vector.
System:
* Tweaks to fail2ban settings.
* Fixed a spurrious warning while installing munin.
2015-11-04 22:56:31 +00:00
$ git verify-tag v0.14
2015-04-01 14:38:09 +00:00
gpg: Signature made ..... using RSA key ID C10BDD81
gpg: Good signature from "Joshua Tauberer < jt @ occams . info > "
gpg: WARNING: This key is not certified with a trusted signature!
gpg: There is no indication that the signature belongs to the owner.
Primary key fingerprint: 5F4C 0E73 13CC D744 693B 2AEA B920 41F4 C10B DD81
v0.14
v0.14 (November 4, 2015)
------------------------
Mail:
* Spamassassin's network-based tests (Pyzor, others) and DKIM tests are now enabled. (Pyzor had always been installed but was not active due to a misconfiguration.)
* Moving spam out of the Spam folder and into Trash would incorrectly train Spamassassin that those messages were not spam.
* Automatically create the Sent and Archive folders for new users.
* The HTML5_Notifier plugin for Roundcube is now included, which when turned on in Roundcube settings provides desktop notifications for new mail.
* The Exchange/ActiveSync backend Z-Push has been updated to fix a problem with CC'd emails not being sent to the CC recipients.
Calender/Contacts:
* CalDAV/CardDAV and Exchange/ActiveSync for calendar/contacts wasn't working in some network configurations.
Web:
* When a new domain is added to the box, rather than applying a new self-signed certificate for that domain, the SSL certificate for the box's primary hostname will be used instead.
* If a custom DNS record is set on a domain or 'www'+domain, web would not be served for that domain. If the custom DNS record is just the box's IP address, that's a configuration mistake, but allow it and let web continue to be served.
* Accommodate really long domain names by increasing an nginx setting.
Control panel:
* Added an option to check for new Mail-in-a-Box versions within status checks. It is off by default so that boxes don't "phone home" without permission.
* Added a random password generator on the users page to simplify creating new accounts.
* When S3 backup credentials are set, the credentials are now no longer ever sent back from the box to the client, for better security.
* Fixed the jumpiness when a modal is displayed.
* Focus is put into the login form fields when the login form is displayed.
* Status checks now include a warning if a custom DNS record has been set on a domain that would normally serve web and as a result that domain no longer is serving web.
* Status checks now check that secondary nameservers, if specified, are actually serving the domains.
* Some errors in the control panel when there is invalid data in the database or an improperly named archived user account have been suppressed.
* Added subresource integrity attributes to all remotely-sourced resources (i.e. via CDNs) to guard against CDNs being used as an attack vector.
System:
* Tweaks to fail2ban settings.
* Fixed a spurrious warning while installing munin.
2015-11-04 22:56:31 +00:00
You'll get a lot of warnings, but that's OK. Check that the primary key fingerprint matchs the
fingerprint in the key details at [https://keybase.io/joshdata ](https://keybase.io/joshdata )
and on my [personal homepage ](https://razor.occams.info/ ). (Of course, if this repository has been compromised you can't trust these instructions.)
2015-08-14 21:04:42 +00:00
Checkout the tag corresponding to the most recent release:
v0.14
v0.14 (November 4, 2015)
------------------------
Mail:
* Spamassassin's network-based tests (Pyzor, others) and DKIM tests are now enabled. (Pyzor had always been installed but was not active due to a misconfiguration.)
* Moving spam out of the Spam folder and into Trash would incorrectly train Spamassassin that those messages were not spam.
* Automatically create the Sent and Archive folders for new users.
* The HTML5_Notifier plugin for Roundcube is now included, which when turned on in Roundcube settings provides desktop notifications for new mail.
* The Exchange/ActiveSync backend Z-Push has been updated to fix a problem with CC'd emails not being sent to the CC recipients.
Calender/Contacts:
* CalDAV/CardDAV and Exchange/ActiveSync for calendar/contacts wasn't working in some network configurations.
Web:
* When a new domain is added to the box, rather than applying a new self-signed certificate for that domain, the SSL certificate for the box's primary hostname will be used instead.
* If a custom DNS record is set on a domain or 'www'+domain, web would not be served for that domain. If the custom DNS record is just the box's IP address, that's a configuration mistake, but allow it and let web continue to be served.
* Accommodate really long domain names by increasing an nginx setting.
Control panel:
* Added an option to check for new Mail-in-a-Box versions within status checks. It is off by default so that boxes don't "phone home" without permission.
* Added a random password generator on the users page to simplify creating new accounts.
* When S3 backup credentials are set, the credentials are now no longer ever sent back from the box to the client, for better security.
* Fixed the jumpiness when a modal is displayed.
* Focus is put into the login form fields when the login form is displayed.
* Status checks now include a warning if a custom DNS record has been set on a domain that would normally serve web and as a result that domain no longer is serving web.
* Status checks now check that secondary nameservers, if specified, are actually serving the domains.
* Some errors in the control panel when there is invalid data in the database or an improperly named archived user account have been suppressed.
* Added subresource integrity attributes to all remotely-sourced resources (i.e. via CDNs) to guard against CDNs being used as an attack vector.
System:
* Tweaks to fail2ban settings.
* Fixed a spurrious warning while installing munin.
2015-11-04 22:56:31 +00:00
$ git checkout v0.14
2015-07-03 14:31:44 +00:00
2015-08-14 21:04:42 +00:00
Begin the installation.
$ sudo setup/start.sh
For help, DO NOT contact me directly --- I don't do tech support by email or tweet (no exceptions).
Post your question on the [discussion forum ](https://discourse.mailinabox.email/ ) instead, where me and other Mail-in-a-Box users may be able to help you.
2015-04-01 14:38:09 +00:00
2014-03-16 21:18:38 +00:00
The Acknowledgements
--------------------
2013-08-31 23:46:36 +00:00
2014-03-16 21:18:38 +00:00
This project was inspired in part by the ["NSA-proof your email in 2 hours" ](http://sealedabstract.com/code/nsa-proof-your-e-mail-in-2-hours/ ) blog post by Drew Crawford, [Sovereign ](https://github.com/al3x/sovereign ) by Alex Payne, and conversations with < a href = "http://twitter.com/shevski" target = "_blank" > @shevski</ a > , < a href = "https://github.com/konklone" target = "_blank" > @konklone</ a > , and < a href = "https://github.com/gregelin" target = "_blank" > @GregElin</ a > .
2013-08-31 23:46:36 +00:00
2014-09-26 12:20:13 +00:00
Mail-in-a-Box is similar to [iRedMail ](http://www.iredmail.org/ ) and [Modoboa ](https://github.com/tonioo/modoboa ).
2014-04-23 16:49:04 +00:00
2014-03-16 21:18:38 +00:00
The History
-----------
2013-08-31 23:46:36 +00:00
2014-04-24 17:15:42 +00:00
* In 2007 I wrote a relatively popular Mozilla Thunderbird extension that added client-side SPF and DKIM checks to mail to warn users about possible phishing: [add-on page ](https://addons.mozilla.org/en-us/thunderbird/addon/sender-verification-anti-phish/ ), [source ](https://github.com/JoshData/thunderbird-spf ).
2015-05-22 20:53:13 +00:00
* In August 2013 I began Mail-in-a-Box by combining my own mail server configuration with the setup in ["NSA-proof your email in 2 hours" ](http://sealedabstract.com/code/nsa-proof-your-e-mail-in-2-hours/ ) and making the setup steps reproducible with bash scripts.
2014-06-10 22:48:09 +00:00
* Mail-in-a-Box was a semifinalist in the 2014 [Knight News Challenge ](https://www.newschallenge.org/challenge/2014/submissions/mail-in-a-box ), but it was not selected as a winner.
2015-05-29 20:43:14 +00:00
* Mail-in-a-Box hit the front page of Hacker News in [April ](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7634514 ) 2014, [September ](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8276171 ) 2014, and [May ](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9624267 ) 2015.
2015-06-27 14:10:33 +00:00
* FastCompany mentioned Mail-in-a-Box a [roundup of privacy projects ](http://www.fastcompany.com/3047645/your-own-private-cloud ) on June 26, 2015.
