"unlocalize" local users

[Art Werschulz]

Hi.

We're in the process of upgrading some Fedora Core 4 machines to FC5.
In a previous thread, I mentioned that some (but not all) of these upgraded
machines would not properly handle mail to local users. This is in spite
of the fact that all these machines were using the same sendmail.mc file,
which worked fine under FC4.

A couple of responses I received indicated that the problem was that
procmail wasn't handling local users properly.

It occurred to me that I could do an end-run around the problem by simply
not treating local users as local users. In other words,
local user "joeuser" should be handled as "joeuser AT dsm.fordham.edu"
(forgive the simple-minded anti-spam-ism here).

What's the simplest way to do this? I tried removing the first "dnl" from
the line
dnl FEATURE(always_add_domain)dnl
of sendmail.mc, but this didn't change anything.

Thanks.

--
Art Werschulz (8-{)} "Metaphors be with you." -- bumper sticker
GCS/M (GAT): d? -p+ c++ l u+(-) e--- m* s n+ h f g+ w+ t++ r- y?
Internet: agw STRUDEL cs.columbia.edu
ATTnet: Columbia U. (212) 939-7060, Fordham U. (212) 636-6325

[Bill Cole]

In article <yla1wuc...@sobolev.cs.columbia.edu>,
Art Werschulz <a...@cs.columbia.edu> wrote:

> Hi.
>
> We're in the process of upgrading some Fedora Core 4 machines to FC5.
> In a previous thread, I mentioned that some (but not all) of these upgraded
> machines would not properly handle mail to local users. This is in spite
> of the fact that all these machines were using the same sendmail.mc file,
> which worked fine under FC4.
>
> A couple of responses I received indicated that the problem was that
> procmail wasn't handling local users properly.
>
> It occurred to me that I could do an end-run around the problem by simply
> not treating local users as local users. In other words,
> local user "joeuser" should be handled as "joeuser AT dsm.fordham.edu"
> (forgive the simple-minded anti-spam-ism here).
>
> What's the simplest way to do this? I tried removing the first "dnl" from
> the line
> dnl FEATURE(always_add_domain)dnl
> of sendmail.mc, but this didn't change anything.

The UserDB feature (see cf/README in the Sendmail distribution) is
probably the most direct way to do that specifically by mapping local
usernames to arbitrary other addresses.

However, if your problem is procmail handling and one solution might be
to eliminate procmail by making 'local' users non-local, then why is
procmail even a part of your mail system? It seems a bit as if you'd dug
a latrine pit in your dining room and are now looking to knock out walls
because the room smells bad.

--
Now where did I hide that website...

[Robert Harker]

Art Werschulz wrote:
> It occurred to me that I could do an end-run around the problem by simply
> not treating local users as local users. In other words,
> local user "joeuser" should be handled as "joeuser AT dsm.fordham.edu"
> (forgive the simple-minded anti-spam-ism here).

Try using both SMART_HOST and MAIL_HUB in your sendmail.mc file to
forward all locally generated mail to a central mail relay:
define(`SMART_HOST',`smtprelay.fordham.edu')
define(`SMART_HOST',`smtprelay.fordham.edu')
The SMART_HOST macro causes sendmail to forward all non-local mail to
a relay, and the MAIL_HUB macro forwards all local mail to a relay.

Or you could use the nullclient configuration:
FEATURE(`nullclient',smtprelay.fordham.edu)
which dose the same thing and a bit more like masquerading as the
relay, smtprelay.fordham.edu.

For something that I discuss in my "Managing Internet Mail" class that
is a bit more risque, you might want to checkout my previous post:
"How to use only submit.cf on a sendmail SMTP client"
(Google group search: harker submit.mc client group:comp.mail.sendmail)
This will forward a locally generated mail to an SMTP relay. This
allows
you to disable the local sendmail SMTP server on the host. Try it,
you'll like it (:-).

Hope this helps

RLH

For info about our "Managing Internet Mail, Setting Up and Trouble
Shooting sendmail and DNS" and a schedule of dates and locations,
please send email to in...@harker.com, or visit www.harker.com

Robert Harker Harker Systems
Sendmail and TCP/IP Network Training 4182 Pleasant Hill Rd.
Sendmail, Network, and Sysadmin Consulting Lincoln, CA 95648
har...@harker.com 530-887-9990