Call for email server help (kind of OT)

[Donn]

>Tell us what you're
> trying to do first, and we'll do our best to help. 
It's much like I mentioned: I have a virtual server running Ubuntu LTS. I 
control it by ssh from home. I got a domain name yesterday.
I have apache and Django and mysql all running ok.
I have postfix running and it sends mail (from my web app) to external email 
addys; that's fine -- the web app can talk to users.

What I need now is for users to be able to talk to the admin (me and whomever) 
via the new domain. So:

1. A user can send an email to help at mydomain.blah : this seems to be the MX 
record you spoke of working with Postfix to receive the mail and put it 
somewhere. As 'help' is not a user on the server I imagine we are talking 
some kind of aliasing or virtual whatsit-ing here.

2. I don't want to read those user emails from the command-line under ssh on 
the server. I want their email to come to me at home on kmail. So I need a 
way to fetch the mail inbox of 'help' from there to home.
This is where Dovecot or Courier seem to come in. I can't test this properly 
until I have an email waiting to be 'fetched'. (Step 1)

3. I want to reply to those user email from kmail too. For this you suggested 
a default 'reply-to' address on my usual ISP (gmail) address. Nice one. I 
will give it a go.

4. I don't want to run the risk of being an 'open relay' but with the 
complexity of email I am not sure I can avoid it... I will learn as I burn :)


> There's no one 
> application for implementing a mail server - it's put together from
> whatever bits and pieces you like best.
Yeah I am seeing that. I only wish the parts would have 'for newbs' sections 
in all their docs. It sure ain't lego!

> Like I said earlier, I'm now trying to set everything up without using
> WebMin. 
I also don't want to use webmin. I want to stick to the command-line. 

> Be careful, very careful, with firewalls. It's easy to lock
> yourself out of your own server. You wouldn't be the first to do it.
Don't even start on iptables! I think I'd sooner master ancient Latin... For 
now my server relies on the default settings of Ubuntu LTS and hope.

Thanks,
\d