RE: [IMail Forum] IMail Server Backup

[Panda Consulting S.A. Luis Alberto Arango]

Check http://www.ipswitch.com/support/IMail/guide/imailug801/Chapter%202%20config16.html   to configure a spool and forward server.   Here is a quick list of things you need to do Install Imail in secondary server No domains need to be configured in the secondary Imail Server. It will act just as a spool and forward server. Configure DNS of the domains you want to have a backup server for. I suggest you try just with one domain, before doing the same things for all domains you have configured in your primary server.   Lets use “domainA.com” as an example and lets say that Primary Imail IP address is xx.xx.xx.10 and that the secondary box will have IP address xx.xx.xx.17. Configure MX 10 to point to xx.xx.xx.10 and MX 20 to xx.xx.xx.17 in “domainA.com” zone files   In the secondary box open the following file   (\winnt\system32\drivers\etc\hosts   edit it and add the following line xx.xx.xx.10    domainA.com   save and close   then open secondary Imail and open SMTP configuration services. Click on “SMTP Security” tab and select relay for addresses. Add address xx.xx.xx.10   That way only that address will have permission to relay.   You are ready to go.   If something is wrong with your primary server, MX 20 points to the secondary one. Secondary Imail Server receives the mail and check the “hosts” file. If the mail belongs to domainA.com Imail tries to deliver it to the IP address associated with that domain in the hosts file.   The IP address xx.xx.xx.10 is configured to relay so the incoming email will be delivered to the primary Box.   It will try to deliver the mail to the primary server during certain period of time until it finally returns the mail back to the sender. That period of time will give you the chance to solve any problem your primary mail server may have.   To estimate the period of time or change it, you have to change two variables   In smtp service screen in the IMAIL select SMTP tab, and look for “retry times before returning to sender” value and in queue manager service screen look for retry timer (minutes).   If you have 20 retry times and 30 retry minutes. It will take 20x30=600 minutes before returning the mail back to the sender if primary server is not up at the time.   If you want to add more domains, just add them to the hosts file and properly configure their DNSs records in order to add the MX20 to point to xx.xx.xx.17   I hope I am not forgetting any thing. I hope it helps. Bye   If you       -Luis         -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of William Raby Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2004 11:18 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [IMail Forum] IMail Server Backup   We are currently thinking about putting a backup server in another location to spool any email received during downtimes at our mail location.   I understand how DNS records need to be configured, but my question is how do I actually configure IMAIL for this.  Do I need to replicate all of the domains and users on the secondary server or does it just spool any email it received until the primary server comes back online and then all of the filtering and email rejections are done from there?   Thanks in Advance, Bill