On Tuesday 27 September 2005 01:50, Steve Lamb wrote: > I'd be interested in any definition of a desktop where an SMTP > server would be a requirement and not a "nice thing to have" in lieu of > some alternative for bad behaving utilities that can't manage the > failure of the SMTP server be it local or remote.
For a typical Windows-type desktop, it's not useful. But if you want to run batch jobs, you need an MTA to handle the output. The "desktop" of a typical Debian user will probably involve functions that require an MTA of some kind. > > Cron and at require a working MTA on the local machine (I think > > nullmailer is probably sufficient). > > Never understood why that is the case. What do they do when the > local MTA is unavailable? Be that as it may how Debian works it: Why the heck wouldn't you just install an MTA? The Unix tradition is that every machine has an MTA (although it might simply route everything to a mail hub) so that other tools don't need to duplicate it's functionality, in accordance with the philosophy given in ESR's Art of Unix Programming. > cron doesn't require mail-transport-agent but does recommend it. > At requires it. nullmailer fulfills that role. So in theory Debian > could move away from Exim to nullmailer as a default install if the > theory is that the default install is "smart-host for a desktop" and > anything more complex would be specificly installed by the admin > building the box. I think cron ought to require mail-transport-agent, so the output isn't lost. Your points in favour of making nullmailer the default, however, are good. > There's a whole 9 places difference between Exim4 installs, which > is by default, and people who rip Exim4 out in favor of Postfix. If > moving to nullmailer means it keeps the low-end functionality intact > and makes it easier for those who choose Exim on Debian to interact > with the larger Exim community at the nominal expense of having to do a > quick [apt-get|aptitude] install exim4-daemon[-light|-heavy] I'd say > it's worth consideration. :) Why wouldn't Debian users who prefer exim still be able to apt-get| aptitude it easily? There are packages for a variety of MTAs, all easy to install the Debian way. -- ## List details at http://www.exim.org/mailman/listinfo/exim-users ## Exim details at http://www.exim.org/ ## Please use the Wiki with this list - http://www.exim.org/eximwiki/
