Shazia Javed
2011-Jun-29 12:19 UTC
[Dovecot] [Urgent] Email Retrieval from remote servers doesn't use Dovecot
------------------------
Dovecot Version:
------------------------
2.0.13
------------------------
Output of "dovecot -n":
------------------------
# 2.0.13: /usr/local/etc/dovecot/dovecot.conf
# OS: Linux 2.6.35-28-generic x86_64 Ubuntu 10.10 ext4
mail_location = maildir:/home/%u/Maildir
passdb {
args = %s
driver = pam
}
protocols = imap pop3
ssl = no
userdb {
driver = passwd
}
protocol imap {
imap_client_workarounds = tb-extra-mailbox-sep
}
protocol pop3 {
pop3_uidl_format = %08Xu%08Xv
}
---------------------------
Objective:
---------------------------
We need to download emails from remote server using Dovecot and
thunderbird. Our objective is to store emails in maildir or mbox format,
and process them as part of our research project.
---------------------------
Problem:
---------------------------
Dovecot works for localhost, but not for remote servers. How do I know?
Because thunderbird downloads emails in its default location (specified in
settings) and not in maildir or mbox folders. If I send mail to
<user>@<system_name> using mail command, dovecot works and
thunderbird
shows the email stored in maildir folder. But for email from
<id>@yahoo.com goes to thunderbird's default folder and are browsed
from
there.
---------------------------
Relevant Technical Details:
---------------------------
ps auxw|grep "dovecot\|imap\|pop3"
root 1033 0.0 0.0 52796 1916 ? Ss 12:45 0:00
/usr/sbin/dovecot -F -c /etc/dovecot/dovecot.conf
root 1173 0.0 0.0 75096 3284 ? S 12:45 0:00 dovecot-auth
root 1214 0.0 0.0 75188 3424 ? S 12:45 0:00
dovecot-auth -w
dovecot 8356 0.0 0.0 50528 2692 ? S 13:30 0:00 pop3-login
dovecot 8357 0.0 0.0 50528 2692 ? S 13:30 0:00 pop3-login
dovecot 8358 0.0 0.0 50528 2688 ? S 13:30 0:00 pop3-login
dovecot 8359 0.0 0.0 50528 2688 ? S 13:30 0:00 pop3-login
dovecot 8360 0.0 0.0 50528 2688 ? S 13:30 0:00 pop3-login
dovecot 8364 0.0 0.0 50540 2688 ? S 13:30 0:00 imap-login
dovecot 8375 0.0 0.0 50540 2692 ? S 13:30 0:00 imap-login
dovecot 8378 0.0 0.0 50540 2684 ? S 13:30 0:00 imap-login
shaz 9048 0.0 0.0 8956 864 pts/0 S+ 15:06 0:00 grep
--color=auto dovecot\|imap\|pop3
sudo netstat -lnptu
[sudo] password for shaz:
Active Internet connections (only servers)
Proto Recv-Q Send-Q Local Address Foreign Address State
PID/Program name
tcp 0 0 0.0.0.0:110 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN
1033/dovecot
tcp 0 0 0.0.0.0:143 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN
1033/dovecot
tcp 0 0 0.0.0.0:64277 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN
2068/skype
tcp 0 0 127.0.0.1:631 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN
1295/cupsd
tcp 0 0 0.0.0.0:25 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN
1389/master
tcp 0 0 0.0.0.0:993 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN
1033/dovecot
tcp 0 0 0.0.0.0:995 0.0.0.0:* LISTEN
1033/dovecot
tcp6 0 0 ::1:631 :::* LISTEN
1295/cupsd
udp 0 0 127.0.0.1:45902 0.0.0.0:*
2068/skype
udp 0 0 0.0.0.0:33754 0.0.0.0:*
1065/avahi-daemon:
udp 0 0 0.0.0.0:5353 0.0.0.0:*
1065/avahi-daemon:
udp 0 0 0.0.0.0:68 0.0.0.0:*
2132/dhclient
udp 0 0 0.0.0.0:64277 0.0.0.0:*
2068/skype
udp6 0 0 :::5353 :::*
1065/avahi-daemon:
udp6 0 0 :::50994 :::*
1065/avahi-daemon:
sudo lsof -i | grep LISTEN
dovecot 1033 root 6u IPv4 7578 0t0 TCP *:imap2 (LISTEN)
dovecot 1033 root 7u IPv4 7579 0t0 TCP *:imaps (LISTEN)
dovecot 1033 root 9u IPv4 7580 0t0 TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN)
dovecot 1033 root 10u IPv4 7581 0t0 TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN)
cupsd 1295 root 5u IPv6 7932 0t0 TCP Casper:ipp (LISTEN)
cupsd 1295 root 6u IPv4 7933 0t0 TCP
localhost.localdomain:ipp (LISTEN)
master 1389 root 12u IPv4 9284 0t0 TCP *:smtp (LISTEN)
skype 2068 shaz 67u IPv4 18344 0t0 TCP *:64277 (LISTEN)
pop3-logi 8356 dovecot 4u IPv4 7580 0t0 TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN)
pop3-logi 8356 dovecot 5u IPv4 7581 0t0 TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN)
pop3-logi 8357 dovecot 4u IPv4 7580 0t0 TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN)
pop3-logi 8357 dovecot 5u IPv4 7581 0t0 TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN)
pop3-logi 8358 dovecot 4u IPv4 7580 0t0 TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN)
pop3-logi 8358 dovecot 5u IPv4 7581 0t0 TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN)
pop3-logi 8359 dovecot 4u IPv4 7580 0t0 TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN)
pop3-logi 8359 dovecot 5u IPv4 7581 0t0 TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN)
pop3-logi 8360 dovecot 4u IPv4 7580 0t0 TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN)
pop3-logi 8360 dovecot 5u IPv4 7581 0t0 TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN)
imap-logi 8364 dovecot 4u IPv4 7578 0t0 TCP *:imap2 (LISTEN)
imap-logi 8364 dovecot 5u IPv4 7579 0t0 TCP *:imaps (LISTEN)
imap-logi 8375 dovecot 4u IPv4 7578 0t0 TCP *:imap2 (LISTEN)
imap-logi 8375 dovecot 5u IPv4 7579 0t0 TCP *:imaps (LISTEN)
imap-logi 8378 dovecot 4u IPv4 7578 0t0 TCP *:imap2 (LISTEN)
imap-logi 8378 dovecot 5u IPv4 7579 0t0 TCP *:imaps (LISTEN)
telnet 127.0.0.1 110
Trying 127.0.0.1...
Connected to 127.0.0.1.
Escape character is '^]'.
+OK Dovecot ready.
telnet 127.0.0.1 143
Trying 127.0.0.1...
Connected to 127.0.0.1.
Escape character is '^]'.
* OK [CAPABILITY IMAP4rev1 LITERAL+ SASL-IR LOGIN-REFERRALS ID ENABLE
STARTTLS AUTH=PLAIN] Dovecot ready.
1 logout
* BYE Logging out
1 OK Logout completed.
Connection closed by foreign host.
telnet mail.ut.ee 110
Trying 193.40.5.156...
Connected to mailhost.ut.ee.
Escape character is '^]'.
+OK POP3 ready
quit
+OK
Connection closed by foreign host.
telnet mail.ut.ee 143
Trying 193.40.5.156...
Connected to mailhost.ut.ee.
Escape character is '^]'.
* OK IMAP4 ready
1 logout
* BYE
1 OK completed
Connection closed by foreign host.
-----------------
Commentary:
-----------------
As is obvious from the commands and output listed above that dovecot is
running, listening on 110 and 143 - but only for localhost. When I try to
telnet mail.ut.ee 110/143 I get to see IMAP4/POP3 ready rather than
Dovecot ready.
-----------------
Queries
-----------------
Shouldn't I get "Dovecot ready" message for remote servers as
well? It is
an MRA and we shouldn't be required to install it on remote servers,
right? What should I do to make dovecot work for remote servers?
Kerem Erciyes
2011-Jun-29 13:59 UTC
[Dovecot] [Urgent] Email Retrieval from remote servers doesn't use Dovecot
Hi, What makes you think that e-mail retrieval from remote servers should be over Dovecot? Is 193.40.5.156 running Dovecot that it should say "Dovecot ready." ? I think what you need fetchmail or getmail. Dovecot is a MTA, not a MRA. Best, Kerem On Wed, Jun 29, 2011 at 3:19 PM, Shazia Javed <shazia at ut.ee> wrote:> ------------------------ > Dovecot Version: > ------------------------ > 2.0.13 > > ------------------------ > Output of "dovecot -n": > ------------------------ > # 2.0.13: /usr/local/etc/dovecot/dovecot.conf > # OS: Linux 2.6.35-28-generic x86_64 Ubuntu 10.10 ext4 > mail_location = maildir:/home/%u/Maildir > passdb { > ?args = %s > ?driver = pam > } > protocols = imap pop3 > ssl = no > userdb { > ?driver = passwd > } > protocol imap { > ?imap_client_workarounds = tb-extra-mailbox-sep > } > protocol pop3 { > ?pop3_uidl_format = %08Xu%08Xv > } > > --------------------------- > Objective: > --------------------------- > We need to download emails from remote server using Dovecot and > thunderbird. Our objective is to store emails in maildir or mbox format, > and process them as part of our research project. > > --------------------------- > Problem: > --------------------------- > Dovecot works for localhost, but not for remote servers. How do I know? > Because thunderbird downloads emails in its default location (specified in > settings) and not in maildir or mbox folders. If I send mail to > <user>@<system_name> using mail command, dovecot works and thunderbird > shows the email stored in maildir folder. But for email from > <id>@yahoo.com goes to thunderbird's default folder and are browsed from > there. > > > --------------------------- > Relevant Technical Details: > --------------------------- > > ps auxw|grep "dovecot\|imap\|pop3" > > root ? ? ?1033 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?52796 ?1916 ? ? ? ? ?Ss ? 12:45 ? 0:00 > /usr/sbin/dovecot -F -c /etc/dovecot/dovecot.conf > root ? ? ?1173 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?75096 ?3284 ? ? ? ? ?S ? ?12:45 ? 0:00 dovecot-auth > root ? ? ?1214 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?75188 ?3424 ? ? ? ? ?S ? ?12:45 ? 0:00 > dovecot-auth -w > dovecot ? 8356 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?50528 ?2692 ? ? ? ? ?S ? ?13:30 ? 0:00 pop3-login > dovecot ? 8357 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?50528 ?2692 ? ? ? ? ?S ? ?13:30 ? 0:00 pop3-login > dovecot ? 8358 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?50528 ?2688 ? ? ? ? ?S ? ?13:30 ? 0:00 pop3-login > dovecot ? 8359 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?50528 ?2688 ? ? ? ? ?S ? ?13:30 ? 0:00 pop3-login > dovecot ? 8360 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?50528 ?2688 ? ? ? ? ?S ? ?13:30 ? 0:00 pop3-login > dovecot ? 8364 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?50540 ?2688 ? ? ? ? ?S ? ?13:30 ? 0:00 imap-login > dovecot ? 8375 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?50540 ?2692 ? ? ? ? ?S ? ?13:30 ? 0:00 imap-login > dovecot ? 8378 ?0.0 ?0.0 ?50540 ?2684 ? ? ? ? ?S ? ?13:30 ? 0:00 imap-login > shaz ? ? ?9048 ?0.0 ?0.0 ? 8956 ? 864 pts/0 ? ?S+ ? 15:06 ? 0:00 grep > --color=auto dovecot\|imap\|pop3 > > > > sudo netstat -lnptu > > [sudo] password for shaz: > Active Internet connections (only servers) > Proto Recv-Q Send-Q Local Address ? ? ? ? ? Foreign Address ? ? ? ? State > ? ? PID/Program name > tcp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 0.0.0.0:110 ? ? ? ? ? ? 0.0.0.0:* ? ? ? ? ? ? ? LISTEN > ? ? 1033/dovecot > tcp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 0.0.0.0:143 ? ? ? ? ? ? 0.0.0.0:* ? ? ? ? ? ? ? LISTEN > ? ? 1033/dovecot > tcp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 0.0.0.0:64277 ? ? ? ? ? 0.0.0.0:* ? ? ? ? ? ? ? LISTEN > ? ? 2068/skype > tcp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 127.0.0.1:631 ? ? ? ? ? 0.0.0.0:* ? ? ? ? ? ? ? LISTEN > ? ? 1295/cupsd > tcp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 0.0.0.0:25 ? ? ? ? ? ? ?0.0.0.0:* ? ? ? ? ? ? ? LISTEN > ? ? 1389/master > tcp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 0.0.0.0:993 ? ? ? ? ? ? 0.0.0.0:* ? ? ? ? ? ? ? LISTEN > ? ? 1033/dovecot > tcp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 0.0.0.0:995 ? ? ? ? ? ? 0.0.0.0:* ? ? ? ? ? ? ? LISTEN > ? ? 1033/dovecot > tcp6 ? ? ? 0 ? ? ?0 ::1:631 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? :::* ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?LISTEN > ? ? 1295/cupsd > udp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 127.0.0.1:45902 ? ? ? ? 0.0.0.0:* > ? ? 2068/skype > udp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 0.0.0.0:33754 ? ? ? ? ? 0.0.0.0:* > ? ? 1065/avahi-daemon: > udp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 0.0.0.0:5353 ? ? ? ? ? ?0.0.0.0:* > ? ? 1065/avahi-daemon: > udp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 0.0.0.0:68 ? ? ? ? ? ? ?0.0.0.0:* > ? ? 2132/dhclient > udp ? ? ? ?0 ? ? ?0 0.0.0.0:64277 ? ? ? ? ? 0.0.0.0:* > ? ? 2068/skype > udp6 ? ? ? 0 ? ? ?0 :::5353 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? :::* > ? ? 1065/avahi-daemon: > udp6 ? ? ? 0 ? ? ?0 :::50994 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?:::* > ? ? 1065/avahi-daemon: > > > > sudo lsof -i | grep LISTEN > > dovecot ? 1033 ? ?root ? ?6u ?IPv4 ? 7578 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:imap2 (LISTEN) > dovecot ? 1033 ? ?root ? ?7u ?IPv4 ? 7579 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:imaps (LISTEN) > dovecot ? 1033 ? ?root ? ?9u ?IPv4 ? 7580 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN) > dovecot ? 1033 ? ?root ? 10u ?IPv4 ? 7581 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN) > cupsd ? ? 1295 ? ?root ? ?5u ?IPv6 ? 7932 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP Casper:ipp (LISTEN) > cupsd ? ? 1295 ? ?root ? ?6u ?IPv4 ? 7933 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP > localhost.localdomain:ipp (LISTEN) > master ? ?1389 ? ?root ? 12u ?IPv4 ? 9284 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:smtp (LISTEN) > skype ? ? 2068 ? ?shaz ? 67u ?IPv4 ?18344 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:64277 (LISTEN) > pop3-logi 8356 dovecot ? ?4u ?IPv4 ? 7580 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN) > pop3-logi 8356 dovecot ? ?5u ?IPv4 ? 7581 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN) > pop3-logi 8357 dovecot ? ?4u ?IPv4 ? 7580 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN) > pop3-logi 8357 dovecot ? ?5u ?IPv4 ? 7581 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN) > pop3-logi 8358 dovecot ? ?4u ?IPv4 ? 7580 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN) > pop3-logi 8358 dovecot ? ?5u ?IPv4 ? 7581 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN) > pop3-logi 8359 dovecot ? ?4u ?IPv4 ? 7580 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN) > pop3-logi 8359 dovecot ? ?5u ?IPv4 ? 7581 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN) > pop3-logi 8360 dovecot ? ?4u ?IPv4 ? 7580 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3 (LISTEN) > pop3-logi 8360 dovecot ? ?5u ?IPv4 ? 7581 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:pop3s (LISTEN) > imap-logi 8364 dovecot ? ?4u ?IPv4 ? 7578 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:imap2 (LISTEN) > imap-logi 8364 dovecot ? ?5u ?IPv4 ? 7579 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:imaps (LISTEN) > imap-logi 8375 dovecot ? ?4u ?IPv4 ? 7578 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:imap2 (LISTEN) > imap-logi 8375 dovecot ? ?5u ?IPv4 ? 7579 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:imaps (LISTEN) > imap-logi 8378 dovecot ? ?4u ?IPv4 ? 7578 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:imap2 (LISTEN) > imap-logi 8378 dovecot ? ?5u ?IPv4 ? 7579 ? ? ?0t0 ?TCP *:imaps (LISTEN) > > > > telnet 127.0.0.1 110 > > Trying 127.0.0.1... > Connected to 127.0.0.1. > Escape character is '^]'. > +OK Dovecot ready. > > > > telnet 127.0.0.1 143 > > Trying 127.0.0.1... > Connected to 127.0.0.1. > Escape character is '^]'. > * OK [CAPABILITY IMAP4rev1 LITERAL+ SASL-IR LOGIN-REFERRALS ID ENABLE > STARTTLS AUTH=PLAIN] Dovecot ready. > 1 logout > * BYE Logging out > 1 OK Logout completed. > Connection closed by foreign host. > > > > telnet mail.ut.ee 110 > > Trying 193.40.5.156... > Connected to mailhost.ut.ee. > Escape character is '^]'. > +OK POP3 ready > quit > +OK > Connection closed by foreign host. > > > > telnet mail.ut.ee 143 > > Trying 193.40.5.156... > Connected to mailhost.ut.ee. > Escape character is '^]'. > * OK IMAP4 ready > 1 logout > * BYE > 1 OK completed > Connection closed by foreign host. > > > ----------------- > Commentary: > ----------------- > > As is obvious from the commands and output listed above that dovecot is > running, listening on 110 and 143 - but only for localhost. When I try to > telnet mail.ut.ee 110/143 I get to see IMAP4/POP3 ready rather than > Dovecot ready. > > > > ----------------- > Queries > ----------------- > Shouldn't I get "Dovecot ready" message for remote servers as well? It is > an MRA and we shouldn't be required to install it on remote servers, > right? What should I do to make dovecot work for remote servers? > > > > >-- Kerem Erciyes - Sistem Danismani http://keremerciyes.com
Stan Hoeppner
2011-Jun-29 14:32 UTC
[Dovecot] [Urgent] Email Retrieval from remote servers doesn't use Dovecot
On 6/29/2011 7:19 AM, Shazia Javed wrote:> As is obvious from the commands and output listed above that dovecot is > running, listening on 110 and 143 - but only for localhost. When I try to > telnet mail.ut.ee 110/143 I get to see IMAP4/POP3 ready rather than > Dovecot ready.It seems obvious that mail.ut.ee/193.40.5.156 do not address the Dovecot host in question, but another host. Otherwise you would see "Dovecot ready" across the board. Please show: ~$ ifconfig|grep inet -- Stan
William Blunn
2011-Jun-29 16:22 UTC
[Dovecot] [Urgent] Email Retrieval from remote servers doesn't use Dovecot
On 29/06/2011 13:19, Shazia Javed wrote:> --------------------------- > Objective: > --------------------------- > We need to download emails from remote server using Dovecot and thunderbird.Dovecot doesn't download e-mail from other servers.> Our objective is to store emails in maildir or mbox format, and process them as part of our research project. > > --------------------------- > Problem: > --------------------------- > Dovecot works for localhost, but not for remote servers. How do I know? > Because thunderbird downloads emails in its default location (specified in > settings) and not in maildir or mbox folders. If I send mail to > <user>@<system_name> using mail command, dovecot works and thunderbird > shows the email stored in maildir folder. But for email from > <id>@yahoo.com goes to thunderbird's default folder and are browsed from > there.It looks like you want to get e-mail from someone else's mail server and store it in maildir or mbox format on your server. You could do this by pulling the mail from someone else's mailserver using Thunderbird, then using Thunderbird to move it across to an account configured to access your server by IMAP. Alternatively you could do it by retrieving the mail using "fetchmail" on your server and have it delivered to an address on your server. This would have the benefit of being more reliable and more scriptable.> ----------------- > Commentary: > ----------------- > > As is obvious from the commands and output listed above that dovecot is > running, listening on 110 and 143 - but only for localhost. When I try to > telnet mail.ut.ee 110/143 I get to see IMAP4/POP3 ready rather than > Dovecot ready.That is the expected behaviour. You installed Dovecot on your server, ergo it is only on your server. Installing Dovecot on your server doesn't magically install and configure it on other people's servers.> ----------------- > Queries > ----------------- > Shouldn't I get "Dovecot ready" message for remote servers as well?No; you only installed it on your server.> It is an MRA and we shouldn't be required to install it on remote servers, right?If, by "MRA", you mean "Mail Retrieval Agent", then no, Dovecot is not an MRA.> What should I do to make dovecot work for remote servers?Dovecot, in and of itself, won't "work for remote servers". You may be able to do what I think you want to do by pulling the mail from the remote server on to your server. You may want to look into "fetchmail". Bill
Joseph Tam
2011-Jun-29 21:50 UTC
[Dovecot] [Urgent] Email Retrieval from remote servers doesn't use Dovecot
Shazia Javed writes:> Trying 127.0.0.1... > Connected to 127.0.0.1. > Escape character is '^]'. > * OK [CAPABILITY IMAP4rev1 LITERAL+ SASL-IR LOGIN-REFERRALS ID ENABLE > STARTTLS AUTH=PLAIN] Dovecot ready. > ... > > telnet mail.ut.ee 143 > > Trying 193.40.5.156... > Connected to mailhost.ut.ee. > Escape character is '^]'. > * OK IMAP4 readyThat is weird. Maybe you got NAT forwarding going on where a firewall or other network appliance (like a load balancer) is translating ip1/143 -> ip2/143? Or you're not on the host you think you're on. You can check the dovecot logs to verify that in fact your client is connecting. Joseph Tam <jtam.home at gmail.com>
William Blunn
2011-Jun-30 13:36 UTC
[Dovecot] [Urgent] Email Retrieval from remote servers doesn't use Dovecot
On 30/06/2011 14:08, Shazia Javed wrote:> Thank you for the reply. Now I have relatively better understanding of Dovecot and email service components (MUA, MTA, MRA, etc). However, I am still struggling with the relevant conceptual understanding, and need your help: > > I have installed 'getmail' as I read that it offers ease-of-use and is relatively more secure. So far I have managed to download emails from Inbox and Sent folder. All the downloaded emails go to single folder 'new' from 'Maildir' directory. Please tell me if there is a way (configuration) to download emails in respective folders."getmail" appears to support delivery to an arbitrary Maildir folder. See "getmail" documentation. You might want to read up about Maildir to see how it works. In particular you need to know that mail is delivered to a directory "new" (the delivery process involves the directory "tmp", but the message isn't considered delivered until it reaches the directory "new"), but gets moved to a folder "cur" when the Maildir is looked at. So mail could be in either directory "new" or "cur". (The design of Maildir attempts to address various problems, and only partially succeeds, and in other cases makes things worse than they would have been otherwise. But despite its flaws, it still has some strengths, such as reliability, (relative) simplicity, wide support, and the ease by which a message store can be queried/interrogated.)> Also, is there any need for Dovecot now? As I see it, I have managed to download emails from remote servers in maildir format using getmail. How and why would Dovecot fit in? Will Dovecot (via deliver and sieve) assist in segregated email storage (i.e. INBOX in 'new', DRAFTS in '.draft/new' etc).It might be handy to have Dovecot installed as it would mean you could "see into" the mail folders using an IMAP client such as Thunderbird. This will probably make it easier to get a handle on which messages are in which folders than trying to look in the Maildir directories directly. IMAP has a special folder called "INBOX" which appears as the Inbox in most IMAP clients. Under Maildir, in the default location, INBOX can be found at ~/Maildir/{new,cur,tmp} Other folders are mapped into directories, for example the mail folder "Sent" will appear at ~/Maildir/.Sent/{new,cur,tmp} Nested mail folders are flattened into a single directory level in the filesystem, with the folder levels separated by dots, so the mail folder "Projects/PJ1" will appear at ~/Maildir/.Projects.PJ1/{new,cur,tmp} (The above is the default way for Maildir to work. However, Dovecot can be configured to map IMAP folders into Maildir directories in other ways.) Bill