[Pkg-exim4-users] Installation problem

[Jeremiah Foster]

On Sat, 2006-04-01 at 16:06 +0000, drz at speakeasy.net wrote:
> Jeremiah wrote:
> 
> > More information on how you are installing debian, which version of
> > debian, what you are going to use it for (i.e. home machine, web server,
> > etc.) would be helpful.
> 
> I downloaded the file: debian-31r1a-i386-netinstall from the debian site.
> I think this is version 3.1 revision 1

So you are using Sarge. (Many debian people refer to the distribution by
their code names like Woody, Sarge and Etch. 
More info here -  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debian

> I have been running a linux system for some time, but I have always 
> had help in the installation and I still need it.  
> I am running a server for a non-profit providning services to persons with disabilities.
> The current system is still running: www.enabling.org and it provides free web hosting, mailboxes, 
> and mailman lists for non-commercial purposes.  When that system was installed for me, 
> exim was also installed and I assume I need to continue this for mail and mailman services.

You are right. You need to have an MTA (Mail Transfer Agent) to continue
to send and receive mail at the host enabling.org. You may want to check
all your processes just to make sure that exim is in fact the tool
running your mail server.  
> > 
> > exim4 is an MTA, a mail transferring tool. Is this what you want? These
> > tools are rather more complex than your standard web server and can open
> > you up to some rather serious issues, like turning your home machine
> > into a spam server, if you are not careful.
> 
> I can see that right now when I look at the exim logs.  Spammers are trying to use me and 
> are rejected because the server is set not to relay.  

This is good news, you are probably not running an open relay then. Open
relays get you blacklisted and your users can no longer send mail. This
happens when you run an open relay and spammers find out and start using
it. Keep this in your mind as you administer your machine, it is
something you really want to avoid.

> When I get the system functional I would appreciate direction on the docs to help me avoid a spammer.
> 

There is some good news and some bad news here. The bad news; the
documentation is huge. The good news; it is really good. Read the
specification file, it is long but good. Mine is
located /usr/share/doc/exim/spec.txt but yours may be somewhere else.
There is naturally a good deal of documentation on the web as well.

> > What were you using when you installed exim4? Where you using apt-get?
> 
> I used the command: apt-get install exim4.  I got the files with no problem 
> but the installation failed with the message:
> 
> E: This installation run will require temporarily removing the essential
>  package e2fsprogs due to a Conflicts/Pre-Depends loop. This is often bad, 
> but if you really want to do it, activate the APT::Force-LoopBreak option.
> E: Internal Error, Could not early remove e2fsprogs

Didn't you say you already had exim installed? Check to make sure, issue
this command on the command line;

$ ps auxww | grep exim

And post the results.

Jeremiah