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FOCUS: Basic Mail (Postfix) Setup
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This lab will show you how to set up a Postfix email server using a Fedora 13 installed PC.
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You will need at least two systems to do this lab. The first could be Fedora on your removable hard drive while the second could be a virtual machine.
 +
PART A - Prerequisites
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Your hard drive should have Fedora 13, 64 bit Live edition already installed.
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You should have at least one VM installed: also Fedora 13, 64 bit Live edition.
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Both your host and guest should have default firewalls enabled.
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Both your host and guest should have SELinux enabled.
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Both host and guest should have all software updated. [ yum update ]
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Ensure the clocks on both machines are set to the correct date and time.
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PART B - Testing your network
  
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Start Firefox on your host and authenticate yourself on Sene2net with your LEARN account.
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Ensure you can surf the web on your host machine.
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Start Firefox on your guest.
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Ensure you can surf the web on your guest. NOTE: you should not have to authenticate yourself on the guest.
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PART C - Testing email to the outside world using mailx and sendmail
  
 
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Sendmail is installed and running by default on Fedora 13 so there is no need to install it.
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Install mailx on both the host and the guest. [ yum install mailx ]
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Test email from the host by sending an email to your LEARN account. [ mail -s "PART C3" xxxxxx@learn.senecac.on.ca ]
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Note: xxxxxx is your LEARN ID.
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Note: after you type in your letter, enter a period in the first column on the last line and hit the ENTER key.
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Check your LEARN email to see if you got the email. If you did make a note of the return address.
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Test email from the host by sending an email to your LEARN account. [ mail -s "PART C4" -r hacker@evil.com xxxxxx@learn.senecac.on.ca ]
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Note: xxxxxx is your LEARN ID.
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Note: after you type in your letter, enter a period in the first column on the last line and hit the ENTER key.
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Check your LEARN email to see if you got the email. If you did make a note of the return address.
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Repeat steps 3 and 4 on the guest machine.
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PART D - Install and configure Postfix
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On both machines do the following:
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Stop sendmail. [ service sendmail stop ]
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Install Postfix - yum install postfix
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Edit the Postfix configuration file, /etc/postfix/main.cf, and change the following lines:
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mydomain = example.org
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myorigin = $mydomain
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inet_interfaces = all
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mynetworks = 127.0.0.0/8, 192.168.122.0/24
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relay_domains =
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Start Postfix [ service postfix start ] on both host and guest machines
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PART E - Testing email using IP Addresses
  
OPEN SERVER ADMINISTRATION
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If you have problems with the following you may have to set SELinux to permissive mode and/or adjust your firewall to allow traffic to/from port 25.
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Try sending an email from your guest to your host. [ mail -s "PART E2" yyyyyy@[192.168.122.1] ]
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Note: yyyyyy is your host ID
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Note: the square brackets around the host IP address
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Try sending an email from your host to your guest. [ mail -s "PART E3" zzzzzz@[192.168.122.ZZZ] ]
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Note: zzzzzz is your guest ID
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Note: ZZZ is your guest IP address
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PART F - Set up a DNS server
  
Lab #03
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Refer to Lab #3 and set up a DNS server on your host.
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Set your host name to f13.
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Set your guest name to vm01.
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Set your domain name to example.org.
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Test your DNS on both host and guest to ensure it works properly.
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PART F - Test email using host names
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Now try sending mail to yourself on both machines. For example, as joker on f13, use the command:
  
FOCUS: Domain Name System
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$ mail joker@f13
In this lab you will configure a Linux host to be a DNS server for the rest of the machines in your intranet. You'll use example.org as your domain with IP addresses in the range 192.168.X.1 - 192.168.X.254. The server will handle all queries for names in the example.org domain and all reverse lookups for addresses in the given range of local IP numbers. The server will pass DNS queries for other names and addresses out to the Internet (i.e. to Seneca's DNS server).
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the machine will prompt for a subject: enter "testing" without the quotes.
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Now enter the body of your letter. When you're done, enter a period (.) in column 1 on the last line of your letter. This will signal end-of-file and your letter will be mailed. You should end up back at the $ prompt. If you mess up use CTRL-C to cancel the email, DO NOT USE CTRL-Z.
  
You're going to populate your server with the following records:
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Use the mailq command (you will need to be root) to view the mail queue.  
 
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Use the mail command to check if you have mail.
Fully Qualified Domain Name
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PART G - Test your configuration and view your logs
IP Address
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Restart your postfix servers on both machines.
 
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Check your /var/log/messages file to see that your postfix servers started without error.
f13.example.org
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Send some emails from both guest and host to each other and to the outside world.
192.168.X.1
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Check your /var/log/maillog file to see that your email messages were sent correctly.
 
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PART H - Learning the mail command
vm01.example.org
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Read the mail manual page and learn how it works.
192.168.X.2
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PART I - Answer the following questions and and email them to your teacher in ASCII text format.
 
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What is your full name and 9-digit Seneca student ID?
vm02.example.org
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Include a copy of your main.cf file on vm01 (your guest) with this lab - but delete all commented and blank lines first - like this. [ cat /etc/postfix/main.cf | grep -v ^# | awk 'NF > 0 {print $0}'
192.168.X.3
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What is the output of the iptables-save command on both your host and guest machines?
 
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What firewall rule or rules, if any, did you have to enter on the guest and/or host so that email to/from each other would work?
vm03.example.org
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What is the meaning of the square brackets surrounding the IP address in PART E?
192.168.X.4
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What were your results to PART G? Show log segments to verify your answers.
 
 
NOTE: For those of you using Fedora 13 installed on one removable HD and used as a host for one or more guest VMs, X will default to 122. You need at least two machines to do this lab (one host and one guest). The first will be set up as your gateway/firewall and DNS server. The others will be client hosts inside the intranet.
 
 
 
Here's what your network will look like:
 
Part A: Perform these steps on your gateway/firewall/DNS machine.
 
Start up your Fedora 13 PC, login as joker, open a terminal window and "su -" to root. This PC will be f13. It will be your gateway/firewall as well as the domain name server for your intranet.
 
Ensure you are connected to the Internet. Use firefox to authenticate yourself so you can surf the web outside of the Seneca domain.
 
Use yum to update your system if necessary.
 
yum update
 
 
 
Use yum to install the DNS server.
 
 
 
yum install bind
 
 
 
Also start your ssh server.
 
 
 
service sshd start
 
 
 
Set your hostname to f13.
 
 
 
hostname f13
 
 
 
Set your domainname to example.org.
 
 
 
domainname example.org
 
 
 
Edit the file /etc/named.conf and enter the following: But use your own X value where applicable. If no file exists, create one. If one is already there, delete it and make a new one.
 
 
 
options {
 
directory "/var/lib/named";
 
auth-nxdomain no;
 
forwarders { 142.204.1.2; 142.204.43.43;};
 
};
 
 
 
zone "localhost" {
 
type master;
 
file "localhost.zone";
 
};
 
 
 
zone "X.168.192.in-addr.arpa" {
 
type master;
 
file "mydb-for-192-168-X";
 
};
 
 
 
zone "example.org" {
 
type master;
 
file "mydb-for-example-dot-org";
 
};
 
 
 
Make a new directory called 'named', like this
 
 
 
mkdir /var/lib/named
 
 
 
Now edit /var/lib/named/localhost.zone and enter the following:
 
$TTL 604800
 
@ IN SOA localhost. root.localhost. (
 
1 ; Serial
 
604800 ; Refresh
 
86400 ; Retry
 
2419200 ; Expire
 
604800 ); Negative Cache TTL
 
;
 
@ IN NS localhost.
 
@ IN A 127.0.0.1
 
 
 
Now edit /var/lib/named/mydb-for-example-dot-org and enter the following: But use your own X value where applicable.
 
 
 
$TTL 604800
 
@ IN SOA localhost. root.localhost. (
 
1 ; Serial
 
604800 ; Refresh
 
86400 ; Retry
 
2419200 ; Expire
 
604800 ); Negative Cache TTL
 
;
 
@ IN NS localhost.
 
f13 IN A 192.168.X.1
 
vm01 IN A 192.168.X.2
 
vm02 IN A 192.168.X.3
 
vm03 IN A 192.168.X.4
 
 
 
Next, edit /var/lib/named/mydb-for-192-168-X and enter the following:
 
 
 
$TTL 604800
 
@ IN SOA localhost. root.localhost. (
 
1 ; Serial
 
604800 ; Refresh
 
86400 ; Retry
 
2419200 ; Expire
 
604800 ); Negative Cache TTL
 
;
 
@ IN NS localhost.
 
1 IN PTR f13.example.org
 
2 IN PTR vm01.example.org
 
3 IN PTR vm02.example.org
 
4 IN PTR vm03.example.org
 
 
 
Now set up your resolver to point to itself. Edit /etc/resolv.conf, delete what's there and enter this data instead. Remember to use your value for X.
 
 
 
nameserver 192.168.X.1
 
domain example.org
 
 
 
Start your DNS server with the command
 
service named start
 
 
 
Check that your name server is running
 
 
 
ps ax | grep named
 
or
 
service named status
 
 
 
When starting or restarting your name server view the log file (/var/log/messages) to ensure it started without error.
 
 
 
Try a few lookups:
 
 
 
host f13.example.org
 
host vm01.example.org
 
host vm02.example.org
 
host vm03.example.org
 
host cbc.ca
 
 
 
Now try a few reverse lookups:
 
 
 
host 192.168.X.1
 
host 192.168.X.2
 
host 192.168.X.3
 
host 192.168.X.4
 
 
 
Part B: Perform these steps on your Intranet machine.
 
Use virt-manager on Fedora 13 to install at least one VM called vm01. Feel free to install several more if you have time. Make sure the host name is set to vm01 and the domain is example.org. You may use vm01 from the previous lab if you wish.
 
On this machine edit the /etc/resolv.conf file and enter the following:
 
 
 
nameserver 192.168.X.1
 
domain example.org
 
 
 
Now try the commands
 
 
 
host f13.example.org
 
host vm01.example.org
 
host vm02.example.org
 
host vm03.example.org
 
host yahoo.ca
 
 
 
And the commands
 
 
 
host 192.168.X.1
 
host 192.168.X.2
 
host 192.168.X.3
 
host 192.168.X.4
 
 
 
Now, still on the second machine, try surfing the web with Firefox. NOTE: you should not need to authenticate yourself through SeneNet on this machine.
 
 
 
Finally, on all machines in your network, experiment with the following commands. Be sure to use several different command options to learn and understand  how they work.
 
 
 
host
 
dig
 
nslookup
 
Part C: Now answer the following questions.
 
 
 
What is your full name and nine digit Seneca ID?
 
Use iptables-save command to show the rules relating to DNS. Only show these rules.
 
Show the log messages generated when starting your DNS server.
 
What is a zone file and what is it used for?
 
Name the zone files used in this lab.
 
What is the purpose of /etc/nsswitch.conf?
 
What is the purpose of /etc/resolv.conf?
 
Under what circumstances does DNS use TCP vs UDP?
 
What is meant by the term "negative cache"?
 
Name 5 top level domains.
 

Revision as of 22:32, 30 August 2011

FOCUS: Basic Mail (Postfix) Setup This lab will show you how to set up a Postfix email server using a Fedora 13 installed PC. You will need at least two systems to do this lab. The first could be Fedora on your removable hard drive while the second could be a virtual machine. PART A - Prerequisites Your hard drive should have Fedora 13, 64 bit Live edition already installed. You should have at least one VM installed: also Fedora 13, 64 bit Live edition. Both your host and guest should have default firewalls enabled. Both your host and guest should have SELinux enabled. Both host and guest should have all software updated. [ yum update ] Ensure the clocks on both machines are set to the correct date and time. PART B - Testing your network

Start Firefox on your host and authenticate yourself on Sene2net with your LEARN account. Ensure you can surf the web on your host machine. Start Firefox on your guest. Ensure you can surf the web on your guest. NOTE: you should not have to authenticate yourself on the guest. PART C - Testing email to the outside world using mailx and sendmail

Sendmail is installed and running by default on Fedora 13 so there is no need to install it. Install mailx on both the host and the guest. [ yum install mailx ] Test email from the host by sending an email to your LEARN account. [ mail -s "PART C3" xxxxxx@learn.senecac.on.ca ] Note: xxxxxx is your LEARN ID. Note: after you type in your letter, enter a period in the first column on the last line and hit the ENTER key. Check your LEARN email to see if you got the email. If you did make a note of the return address. Test email from the host by sending an email to your LEARN account. [ mail -s "PART C4" -r hacker@evil.com xxxxxx@learn.senecac.on.ca ] Note: xxxxxx is your LEARN ID. Note: after you type in your letter, enter a period in the first column on the last line and hit the ENTER key. Check your LEARN email to see if you got the email. If you did make a note of the return address. Repeat steps 3 and 4 on the guest machine. PART D - Install and configure Postfix On both machines do the following: Stop sendmail. [ service sendmail stop ] Install Postfix - yum install postfix Edit the Postfix configuration file, /etc/postfix/main.cf, and change the following lines: mydomain = example.org myorigin = $mydomain inet_interfaces = all mynetworks = 127.0.0.0/8, 192.168.122.0/24 relay_domains = Start Postfix [ service postfix start ] on both host and guest machines PART E - Testing email using IP Addresses

If you have problems with the following you may have to set SELinux to permissive mode and/or adjust your firewall to allow traffic to/from port 25. Try sending an email from your guest to your host. [ mail -s "PART E2" yyyyyy@[192.168.122.1] ] Note: yyyyyy is your host ID Note: the square brackets around the host IP address Try sending an email from your host to your guest. [ mail -s "PART E3" zzzzzz@[192.168.122.ZZZ] ] Note: zzzzzz is your guest ID Note: ZZZ is your guest IP address PART F - Set up a DNS server

Refer to Lab #3 and set up a DNS server on your host. Set your host name to f13. Set your guest name to vm01. Set your domain name to example.org. Test your DNS on both host and guest to ensure it works properly. PART F - Test email using host names Now try sending mail to yourself on both machines. For example, as joker on f13, use the command:

$ mail joker@f13 the machine will prompt for a subject: enter "testing" without the quotes. Now enter the body of your letter. When you're done, enter a period (.) in column 1 on the last line of your letter. This will signal end-of-file and your letter will be mailed. You should end up back at the $ prompt. If you mess up use CTRL-C to cancel the email, DO NOT USE CTRL-Z.

Use the mailq command (you will need to be root) to view the mail queue. Use the mail command to check if you have mail. PART G - Test your configuration and view your logs Restart your postfix servers on both machines. Check your /var/log/messages file to see that your postfix servers started without error. Send some emails from both guest and host to each other and to the outside world. Check your /var/log/maillog file to see that your email messages were sent correctly. PART H - Learning the mail command Read the mail manual page and learn how it works. PART I - Answer the following questions and and email them to your teacher in ASCII text format. What is your full name and 9-digit Seneca student ID? Include a copy of your main.cf file on vm01 (your guest) with this lab - but delete all commented and blank lines first - like this. [ cat /etc/postfix/main.cf | grep -v ^# | awk 'NF > 0 {print $0}' What is the output of the iptables-save command on both your host and guest machines? What firewall rule or rules, if any, did you have to enter on the guest and/or host so that email to/from each other would work? What is the meaning of the square brackets surrounding the IP address in PART E? What were your results to PART G? Show log segments to verify your answers.