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Operations

CLI

  • openmailserver preflight
  • openmailserver install --domain <domain> --hostname <mail-hostname>
  • openmailserver plan-dns --public-ip <server-public-ip>
  • openmailserver doctor
  • openmailserver create-mailbox <local-part> <domain>
  • openmailserver smoke-test
  • openmailserver queue
  • openmailserver backup-create
  • openmailserver backup-verify
  • openmailserver restore <path>
  • openmailserver bootstrap

What doctor Checks

  • Docker availability
  • Docker Compose availability
  • container runtime directory presence
  • mox quickstart completion
  • hostname and local config consistency
  • relay-safety basics
  • direct-delivery readiness

Domain-First Verification

Open Mailserver is designed for the user to supply the real domain up front, then verify the stack on the current machine while DNS is still being completed.

  • set the real domain and canonical mail hostname during openmailserver install
  • confirm docker compose up, curl /health, mailbox creation, and openmailserver smoke-test
  • use openmailserver plan-dns --public-ip <server-public-ip> to finish the internet-facing setup

Direct Delivery Requirements

Open Mailserver is direct-to-MX only. For internet delivery, the host needs:

  • a static public IP
  • outbound port 25
  • a canonical hostname such as mail.example.com
  • forward DNS
  • matching PTR / reverse DNS
  • MX
  • SPF
  • DKIM
  • DMARC
  • TLS

Until those are complete, outbound mail may have poor deliverability or be rejected, and inbound public mail may not arrive reliably.

If your provider does not let you change reverse DNS / PTR, treat that as a real deployment limitation, not just a missing checkbox. The stack can still run and receive some mail, but outbound direct-to-MX trust will suffer.

Data And Backups

Postgres stores control-plane data, outbound metadata, delivery events, and debug history.

Maildir stores local control-plane copies, smoke-test data, and fallback artifacts created by the app itself.

mox remains authoritative for hosted mailbox delivery and login state after runtime sync.

Backup and restore cover:

  • Maildir fallback data and app-managed local artifacts
  • attachments stored under data/attachments
  • Postgres-backed control-plane data
  • mox runtime config, mailbox data, and web state under runtime/mox/
  • encrypted runtime mailbox secrets

Troubleshooting

Start with:

openmailserver doctor
openmailserver queue
docker compose ps

Hosted-domain notes:

  • Additional hosted domains can be added by creating mailboxes at those domains.
  • Local aliases are synced automatically into mox.
  • External forwarding aliases are not currently supported by the mox runtime.

Useful debug endpoints:

  • GET /v1/debug/health
  • GET /v1/debug/config
  • GET /v1/debug/messages/{id}/trace
  • GET /v1/debug/deliverability/report
  • GET /v1/debug/logs
  • GET /v1/queue