Hello.
On Tuesday, 05 May, 2026, you wrote
> The TLDR; is - First time poster here, hoping
> that someone might be able to direct me to a
> guide to help me install a Postfix/Dovecot/
> MariaDB setup on a Raspberry Pi 4B running
> Trixie please?
Well, I have two systems running Postfix and
Dovecot. I don't use MariaDB, though, nor do I use
a RaspberryPi.
> Current setup:-
>
> * Nominated Mail Server Host – Raspberry Pi 4B / running “Trixie”
> * Proposed MTA – Postfix (“Compatability Level 3.6”)
> * Proposed MDA/IMAP/POP3 – Dovecot 2.4.1-4
> * Proposed SQL Server – MariaDB 11.8.5 [hosted on primary QNAP NAS]
> * Existing DNS Infrastructure – Technitium DNS running on a
> Primary/Secondary pair of Pi4Bs...
>
> Current State of Play:-
>
> * I have set up most of the requirements DNS – all but the DKIM record…
I've not attempted DKIM - so far, SPF seems
sufficient for me.
> * I have [I think!] successfully installed and configured Postfix,
> using this guide:-
>
> https://raw.org/tutorial/seting-up-email-server-with-postfix-dovecot-and-mysql/
...
> * I’ve followed the guide all the way through editing Dovecot
...
My first question would be whether you actually
need an SQL database. Will you be hosting mail for
many people?
My two installations use either the hash or cdb
storage methods, which are file-based.
> /“dovecot[20420]: doveconf: Fatal: Error in configuration file
> /etc/dovecot/conf.d/auth-sql.conf.ext line 186: passdb_args: Unknown
> setting: passdb_args (passdb_passdb_args or passdb_sql_passdb_args
> not found either.)”/
I can't see the string "passdb_args" in the
instructions you have listed above, or in Dovecot's
documentation. Is it simply a typo?
My initial advice would be to start with a simpler
system. Test the Postfix configuration first,
preferably using local users. You should be able
to send mail to the Postfix server and have it
delivered to a mailbox on the RaspberryPi.
Once that is working, you can set up Dovecot to
read that local mailbox - perhaps just using IMAP
to start with.
Running up a reliable and secure mail system is
hard. It's best to use the simplest possible
configuration.
Nick.
--
Nick Chalk ................. once a Radio Designer
Confidence is failing to understand the problem.
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