Re: Sendmail vs. Postfix vs. ?

[Gary <gv-list-silug@mygirlfriday.info>]

Hi Whil,

On Fri, 3 Sep 2004 21:00:51 -0500 UTC (9/3/2004, 9:00 PM -0500 UTC my time),
Whil Hentzen in part wrote:

W> Let's suppose that Postfix (MTA) and dovecot (IMAP) are running on a server
W> box. 

W> Say my client is KMail, and I've set it up to talk IMAP (not POP3). A message
W> for me comes to the MTA (Postfix) on the server box. Then the message just
W> sits there. dovecot then grabs the message from the MTA, and now it owns it.

no not exactly... IMAP, SMTP, POP3 are just protocols... Postfix the MTA,
just accepts (or sends) packets, mail packets, and *delivers* them to your
inbox. This is set up via its config file, called main.cf IIRC... it's been
a long time <g>  How you read your mail depends on what protocol you use
next. Either IMAP or POP... both read the same folder where your mail is
stored on the mail server from Postfix..  /home/me/mail/ .. or where ever
you set up for the mail to be stored.

see next.

W> I wake up one morning and decide to fetch my mail. Fire up KMail, which 
W> connects and _reads_ the message. Since it's IMAP, the message physicall 
W> stays on the IMAP server.

Yes, Postfix delivers mail to where you specify, /home/me/mail/ It stays on
the IMAP server, which is your inbox, or /home/me/mail/ account.

W> It does not download into KMail's folder under 
W> /home/myusername/mail (or whatever) on the box I'm sitting in front of.

IMAP protocol leaves the mail on the server, POP gets it from the server and
delivers it to your email client, in this case KMail. You can literally use
POP3 or IMAP on the same /home/me/mail/ account... you can interchange them.
They both read the same account where your mail is stored on the server.

W> I'm confused, however, about how the IMAP server communicates with the MTA.

It doesn't. It talks to where the mail is stored, which is your
/home/me/mail account or where you set it up on the server, your inbox where
Postfix delivers your mail initially. This is the same inbox where you POP
your mail from.



-- 
Gary



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