On Sunday 25 September 2011 10:51:05 John Hinton wrote:
> On 9/25/2011 10:56 AM, /dev/rob0 wrote:
> > On Sunday 25 September 2011 07:27:59 Phill Edwards wrote:
> >>> Where did you look? A source install of Postfix using default
> >>> paths places an /etc/postfix/aliases file.
> >>
> >> I installed from CentOS RPMs. The version I have is
> >> postfix-2.3.3-2.3.el5_6.
> >
> > FYI that version was EOL in 2009.
>
> Note that CentOS is a clone of RedHat. Redhat has always has the
> motto of staying with base version numbering for packages
> contained in the original release... or at least when possible.
> They then 'backport' all security fixes to these old numbered
> versions. Why? Well, after running RedHat based servers for a bit
> over 15 years, I can count on one hand the number of times updates
> broke something. Config files don't change, or if they do, they
> are written as filename.rpmnew and you are warned. Rarely do you
> have to do anything about these.
>
> So, when you see folks on RedHat or any of the cloned versions,
> CentOS being by far the largest in use, and you see what appears
> to be an old version, it really isn't purely what you think. Yes,
I didn't say what I think, I only stated a fact, that 2.3 support
ended in 2009. But since you are asking (by implication) I will tell
you.
I understand well enough why such policies suit an OS distributor.
However, any site with more than trivial mail needs is likely to
benefit from new Postfix features which are added. As others have
pointed out already, it's easy enough to abandon the stock RH/CentOS
packages and build a SRPM.
> it might not contain some of the latest features, but it will
> contain all security patches and bug fixes in spite of the
> numbering.
>
> Cutting edge? Nope, RedHat is never cutting edge and us sys admins
> rarely bleed.
Internet Mail service is a bloody business, and the archives of this
very list have scores of examples to the contrary. Q: "I need to keep
spammy customers' mail away from other customers, I'm using 2.3.3 ..."
A: "You need sender-based routing, added in Postfix 2.7, or multiple
instance support, added in 2.6." Q: "But how can I do it in 2.3.3?"
Sometimes it is amusing to see the lengths to which RH fans will go,
to avoid the "pain" of a manual upgrade. Like the Cheech & Chong joke
routine whereupon our heroes encountered a mass of what appeared to be
canine droppings. Carefully examining it, including a close-up sniff
and even a taste test, they determined that it was, and the punchline
was: "Good thing we didn't step in that!"
Dude! You *tasted* it ... that has got to be far worse! Often, they
need to step back and see the Big Picture. The mail world, thanks to
spam, is constantly changing, and we have to adapt.
No, that is not the case in this thread or with this poster AFAIK ...
yet. Time and the list archives will tell.
--
Offlist mail to this address is discarded unless
"/dev/rob0" or "not-spam" is in Subject: header
