[KLUG Members] sendmail

[Bruce Smith]

> I was able from the command line to get a linux machine to send e-mail using
> sendmail  (boy was I surprised).  Seems to me it might be more efficient now to
> have other machines on the local network use this local version of sendmail to
> send e-mail.
> 
> Could it be as simple as telling the other computers that the outgoing mail
> (SMTP) server was //localserver/pathtosendmail ?
> 
> Ah, the computer replies, I don't think so.
> 
> The linux box with sendmail is behind a firewall, so I'm not too worried about
> something from outside the network trying to use my sendmail.  Likewise, I'm not
> using it to receive mail, so the firewall isn't opening unnecesary ports.  I
> just want to have other computers use sendmail on this local linux machine.

Redhat ships sendmail to work only from the local machine by default.
(don't know about other distro's)

To change this, you need to edit the m4 file and change a line or two
(it's well commented in the file), and rerun m4 to generate a new config
file.  While you're editing m4, you may want to make a few other simple
changes, like masquerading your domain name.

You should also pay special attention to the access file, so your system
accepts connects from who it should ("RELAY"), and is NOT a open relay
(allowing spammers to use your connection to hide their true origin).

--------------------------------------------
Bruce Smith                bruce@armintl.com
System Administrator / Network Administrator
Armstrong International, Inc.
Three Rivers, Michigan  49093  USA
http://www.armstrong-intl.com/
--------------------------------------------