Category: FAQ

Configure Postfix Relay

Configure Simple Relay

To configure the Linux server’s postfix software to relay mail to your SMTP server, open the postfix configuration file for editing:

vim /etc/postfix/main.cf

If your SMTP server allows relay without authentication, simply add the appropriate relayhost entry:

relayhost = exchange.customerdomain.com

Restart the postfix service to apply the settings change:

service postfix reload

Configure Relay with Authentication

Open the postfix configuration file for editing:

vim /etc/postfix/main.cf

If your SMTP server requires authentication (SMTP AUTH) and a secure connection (TLS), use the following procedure (which has been tested with Google Apps and Office365):

relayhost = [smtp.gmail.com]:587
smtp_sasl_auth_enable = yes
smtp_sasl_password_maps = hash:/etc/postfix/sasl_passwd
smtp_sasl_security_options =
smtp_tls_security_level = may

Create a file where the credentials for SMTP AUTH will be stored:

vim /etc/postfix/sasl_passwd

Enter the credentials:

[smtp.gmail.com]:587 user@domain.com:password

Apply the settings:

postmap /etc/postfix/sasl_passwd
chmod 644 /etc/postfix/sasl_passwd
service postfix reload

Troubleshooting

Can’t Send Mail from Root

If your mail server requires that mail be sent from a valid address, you may have problems sending mail from the root account, which is required for backup reports and other purposes. In this case, create a mapping for the root user to a valid email address.

Add the following line to /etc/postfix/main.cf:

smtp_generic_maps = hash:/etc/postfix/generic

Add the required email address alias to /etc/postfix/generic:

root user@domain.com

Create the hash file and reload postfix:

postmap /etc/postfix/generic
service postfix reload

Vendor-Specific Notes

If you are having trouble sending outbound email with your mail server, you may refer to the hints below, or you may use a mail relay service like SendGrid.

Google

Please follow these instructions to configure postfix to relay via Google Apps or Gmail.

Microsoft Office365

Please follow these instructions to configure Office365 and postfix to work with your Eclipse server.

SendGrid

If you are having trouble with email relay using your mail server, we recommend using SendGrid.

Why do I need to upgrade from AIX 5.3 or below?

IBM has announced that it will discontinue support for AIX 5.3 as of 4/30/12. IBM has previously stopped supporting all prior versions of AIX (5.2, 5.1, 4.3, etc.).

Our policy is to certify our software with the current version (AIX 7.1) and one previous version (AIX 6.1) of each applicable software product. This guarantees our customers plenty of time to upgrade software and hardware to keep their system up to date. For example, AIX 6.1 has been certified for Eclipse and supported by IBM since 2007, and AIX 5.3 had a lifespan of 8 years between 2004 and 2012.

Per this policy, Eclipse discontinued support for AIX 5.3 as of release 8.7.2 (see our database requirements for more details).

If you have any questions about your server’s OS level, or if you would like to discuss upgrade or migration paths, please open a service request or contact your sales representative.

Customers who wish to remain on an unsupported OS platform do so at their own risk, as neither IBM nor Eclipse will be able to provide technical support services for servers running unsupported OS levels. To receive technical support from the Eclipse Systems team, customers must have an active support contract in place with their hardware and software vendors. Additionally, customers on unsupported OS versions will be unable to upgrade to new versions of the Eclipse software.

How do I view my AIX server configuration?

To view basic hardware and configuration details for your AIX server, shell out as root and type:

lsconf|more

Press [SPACE] to proceed, page by page.

Here’s an example:

System Model: IBM,9131-52A
Machine Serial Number: 104XXXX
Processor Type: PowerPC_POWER5
Processor Implementation Mode: POWER 5
Processor Version: PV_5_3
Number Of Processors: 4
Processor Clock Speed: 1648 MHz
CPU Type: 64-bit
Kernel Type: 64-bit
LPAR Info: 1 typhoon
Memory Size: 7952 MB
Good Memory Size: 7952 MB
Platform Firmware level: SF240_320
Firmware Version: IBM,SF240_320
Console Login: enable
Auto Restart: true
Full Core: false

Reference:

How do filesystem snapshots work in AIX?

To perform valid backups of your database, it is important to suspend the database. This prevents modifications of files during the backup process. By taking a point-in-time snapshot of your database files, your backup program will be capturing a “frozen” database instead of an “in motion” database.

Eclipse has an updated backup script that uses database suspension with snapshots to create point-in-time images of your database files. If you would like this script installed on your AIX server, please submit a service request for the support team to review your system’s configuration, validate that it meets the appropriate requirements, and implement the changes.

The snapshot script is typically scheduled to run at regular intervals via crontab to create new filesystem snapshots.

After running the script, the snapshot filesystems are mounted under /snap, allowing read-only access by backup software. For example, the snapshot of the /u2/eclipse/LEDGER file would be located at /snap/u2/eclipse/LEDGER. When configuring backup software, it is recommended to backup every file under /snap/u2.

Since every change (delta) between the snapshot and the “live” filesystem must be recorded, the snapshots have a finite lifespan. By default, the snapshot script is configured to hold 1GB of changes before requiring a refresh. On busier systems, or on systems where the snapshots must be retained for a longer period of time to accommodate a slow backup process, the snapshot volume size may be increased by editing the snapshot backup script.

When the snapshot volume has reached its maximum capacity for tracking changes, it must be recreated by running the snapshot script again.

For troubleshooting purposes, a log of the snapshot backup script is kept at /tmp/snapsave.log.

For more information, refer to the following resources:

Configuring Fax on Demand

The VSI-FAX server installation program automatically installs the Fax on Demand Connector and creates a fax destination called FoDC for you. This is the destination that should be used for sending fax jobs to the Esker Fax on Demand server.

To be able to fax through Esker on Demand, you simply need to enter the following connection information you should have received via email when subscribing to the service:

  • Account ID
  • Password

To configure the connector:

vfxadmin config -a -i FODC DEVICE hostname na.ondemand.esker.com
vfxadmin config -a -i FODC DEVICE accountid 00012345
vfxadmin config -a -e -i FODC DEVICE password WwVEbyrp

To enable the connector:

vfxadmin enable fodc

If you are migrating from a VSI-FAX configuration that used modems, you’ll need to remove the existing default fax1 class and replace it with a new one containing only fodc:

vfxadmin class -d -a fodc temp
vfxadmin class -x fax1
vfxadmin class -d -a fodc fax1
vfxadmin class -x temp

If you are not using modems, and this is your first time configuring VSI-FAX, all you need to do is create a “class” called “fax1” and add the device “fodc” to the fax1 class:

vfxadmin class -d -a fodc fax1

When the connector has been configured and set as the default destination, you are ready to fax via Fax on Demand.

Esker’s service requires 10-digit dialing, so you should verify that Eclipse is configured to use 10-digit dialing rather than 7-digit dialing: F2 -> P -> A -> Fax -> ALT-F

Testing the Fax on Demand Connector

To send a test fax via FoDC:

vfx -n +5087788384 -d FoDC /etc/hosts

To check the status (where 1013 is the fax job number output from the previous command):

vfxstat 1013

Reference