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E-mail and MTA management is a core network administrative function. Under Fedora Core/Red Hat Linux, you can choose between two powerful mail transfer agents: Sendmail and PostFix. Though PostFix is gaining ground, Sendmail is still the most popular MTA on the planet, and is the default MTA on most Linux systems. It can be a complex and challenging service with multiple configuration requirements; however, once installed, it tends to run without much trouble and is usually robust and stable. Should you need or want to switch between Sendmail and PostFix, you can use the alternatives system, making an almost seamless change between the two and allowing you to use the strengths of each as necessary on your system.
As you set up your mail server, be sure to follow basic security guidelines. Set your server up on a static IP address, get rid of any open relays or scripts that exploit known security holes, and check the antispam blacklists to see if your IP address is questionable or on any blacklists. Use the aliases and virtusertables/virtual files to control important system messages and virtual domains. Be sure to enforce strong password control to maintain a secure e-mail environment.
If you run this server in an IT environment, check with other IT staff so that e-mail works with your other servers and client software. Do you need to implement collaborative e-mail solutions? What about CGI interfaces with your web servers? How do your users want to access their e-mail, and will you need to run both POP and IMAP services? Do you need to purchase an SSL certificate to ensure encrypted e-mail is secure? All these issues must be decided on a local level, and all require the active input of the person running the mail server.
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