dovecot - May 2010 - Dovecot install problem

I am trying to set up a new web and mail server i have postfix now working
but dovecot will not allow me to login and retrieve the emails
so below isa portion of the log file


passwd-file /var/mail/vhosts/xxxx.net/shadow: stat() failed: Permission
denied
passwd-file(xxxxx at xxxx.net,::ffff:0.0.0.0): no passwd file:
/var/mail/vhosts/xxxx.net/shadow

Dovecot -n output
# 1.0.7: /etc/dovecot.conf
login_dir: /var/run/dovecot/login
login_executable(default): /usr/libexec/dovecot/imap-login
login_executable(imap): /usr/libexec/dovecot/imap-login
login_executable(pop3): /usr/libexec/dovecot/pop3-login
mail_location: Maildir:/var/mail/vhosts/%d/%n
mail_executable(default): /usr/libexec/dovecot/imap
mail_executable(imap): /usr/libexec/dovecot/imap
mail_executable(pop3): /usr/libexec/dovecot/pop3
mail_plugin_dir(default): /usr/lib/dovecot/imap
mail_plugin_dir(imap): /usr/lib/dovecot/imap
mail_plugin_dir(pop3): /usr/lib/dovecot/pop3
auth default:
  mechanisms: plain login CRAM-MD5
  verbose: yes
  debug: yes
  debug_passwords: yes
  passdb:
    driver: passwd-file
    args: /var/mail/vhosts/%d/shadow
  userdb:
    driver: passwd-file
    args: /var/mail/vhosts/%d/passwd
  socket:
    type: listen
    client:
      path: /var/spool/postfix/private/auth
      mode: 432
      user: postfix
      group: postfix

The passwd shadow file
-rw-r----- 1 root  root   210 May 24 21:39 passwd
-rw-r----- 1 root  root   327 May 24 21:39 shadow

So who whould own these files?
What should the perrmissions be?

On 2010-05-30 2:04 PM, David wrote:
> Dovecot -n output
> # 1.0.7: /etc/dovecot.conf
You really should upgrade, especially if you're just starting out...
1.0.7 is really, really really old, current is 1.2.11, and 2.0 is now in
beta - way too many improvements to go into, just do it.
>   socket:
>     type: listen
>     client:
>       path: /var/spool/postfix/private/auth
>       mode: 432
>       user: postfix
>       group: postfix
> 
> The passwd shadow file
> -rw-r----- 1 root  root   210 May 24 21:39 passwd
> -rw-r----- 1 root  root   327 May 24 21:39 shadow
> 
> So who whould own these files?
> What should the perrmissions be?
Hint: what is the purpose of the socket section and user/group settings
above?

-- 

Best regards,

Charles

On su, 2010-05-30 at 14:04 -0400, David wrote:
> passwd-file /var/mail/vhosts/xxxx.net/shadow: stat() failed: Permission
> denied
According to your dovecot -n output auth process runs as root. So this
can only mean that SELinux disallows reading the file.