1SSMTP(8) System Manager's Manual SSMTP(8)
2
6 ssmtp, sendmail - send a message using smtp
7
9 ssmtp [ flags ] [ address ... ]
10 /usr/lib/sendmail [ flags ] [ address ... ]
11
13 ssmtp is a send-only sendmail emulator for machines which normally pick
14 their mail up from a centralized mailhub (via pop, imap, nfs mounts or
15 other means). It provides the functionality required for humans and
16 programs to send mail via the standard or /usr/bin/mail user agents.
17 It accepts a mail stream on standard input with recipients specified on
19 the command line and synchronously forwards the message to the mail
20 transfer agent of a mailhub for the mailhub MTA to process. Failed mes‐
21 sages are placed in dead.letter in the sender's home directory.
22 Config files allow one to specify the address to receive mail from
24 root, daemon, etc.; a default mailhub; a default domain to be used in
25 From: lines; and per-user From: addresses and mailhub names.
26 It does not attempt to provide all the functionality of sendmail: it is
29 intended for use where other programs are the primary means of at last
30 mail delivery. It is usefull with pop/imap, or to simulate the Sun
31 shared mail spool option for non-Sun machines, for machines whose send‐
32 mails are too difficult (or various) to configure, for machines with
33 known disfeatures in their sendmails or for ones where there are ``mys‐
34 terious problems''.
35 It does not do aliasing, which must be done either in the user agent or
37 on the mailhub. Nor does it honor .forwards, which have to be done on
38 the recieving host. It especially does not deliver to pipelines.
39
42 Most sendmail options are irrelevent to sSMTP. Those marked ``ignored''
43 or ``default'' have no effect on mail transfer. Those marked ``unsup‐
44 ported'' are fatal errors. Those marked ``simulated'' are not errors,
45 but the result is for the program to exit with an informative message.
46 A sort of fatal non-error.
47 -4 Forces ssmtp to use IPv4 addresses only.
50 -6 Forces ssmtp to use IPv6 addresses only.
53 -auusername
56 Specifies username for SMTP authentication.
57 -appassword
60 Specifies password for SMTP authentication.
61 -ammechanism
64 Specifies mechanism for SMTP authentication. (Only LOGIN and
65 CRAM-MD5)
66 -ba (unsupported) ARPANET mode. All input lines must end with a
69 LINEFEED, and all messages will be generated with a CR-LF at the
70 end. Also, the ``From:'' and ``Sender:'' fields are examined for
71 the name of the sender.
72 -bd (unsupported) Run as a daemon.
75 -bi (ignored) Initialise the alias database.
78 -bm (default) Deliver mail in the usual way.
81 -bp (simulated) Print a summary of the mail queue.
84 -bs (unsupported) Read SMTP commands from stdin.
87 -bt (unsupported) Run in address test mode.
90 -bv (unsupported) Verify names only.
93 -bz (unsupported) Create the configuration freeze file.
96 -Cfile Use alternate configuration file.
99 -dX Set debugging value to X.
102 -E (ignored) Don't trust userid of sender.
105 -Ffullname
108 Set the full name of the sender.
109 -fname Sets the name of the ``from'' person. This option is valid only
112 if no From: line is specified within the header of the email.
113 -h (ignored) Set the hop count to N.
116 -m (ignored) Ignore originator in alias.
119 -Mid (ignored) Attempt to deliver the queued message with message-id
122 id.
123 -N dsn (ignored) Set delivery status notification conditions to dsn.
126 -n (default) Do not do aliasing.
129 -oAfile
132 (ignored) Use alternate alias file.
133 -oc (ignored) Delay ``expensive'' connections.
136 -od (ignored) Set the delivery mode to interactive/synchronous,
139 background or queue (Always interactive).
140 -oD (ignored) Run newaliases if required.
143 -oe (ignored) Set error processing to mail, write, print or quit.
146 (Always print).
147 -oFmode
150 (ignored) The mode to use when creating temporary files.
151 -of (ignored) Save UNIX-system-style ``From'' lines at the front of
154 messages.
155 -ogN (ignored) Set group ID to use when calling mailers.
158 -oHfile
161 (ignored) Set SMTP help file.
162 -oi (default) Do not take dots on a line by themselves as a message
165 terminator.
166 -oLn (ignored) The log level.
169 -om (default) Send to ``me'' (the sender) also if in an alias.
172 -oo (unsupported) If set, this message may have old style headers.
175 -oQqueuedir
178 (ignored) Select the directory in which to queue messages.
179 -ortimeout
182 (ignored) The timeout on reads.
183 -oSfile
186 (ignored) Save statistics in the named file.
187 -os (ignored) Always instantiate the queue.
190 -oTtime
193 (ignored) Set timeout on messages.
194 -otstz,dtz
197 (ignored) Set the name of the time zone.
198 -ouN (ignored) Set the default user id for mailers.
201 -q[time]
204 (simulated) Process the queue.
205 -rname Same as -f.
208 -Rstring
211 (ignored) Process queue for recipient.
212 -R return
215 (ignored) Set the amount of the message to be returned if the
216 message bounces.
217 -t Read message, searching for recipients. ``To:'', `Cc:'', and
220 ``Bcc:'' lines will be scanned for people to send to. Any
221 addresses in the argument list will be suppressed (not sup‐
222 ported).
223 -v Go into verbose mode.
226 -V Say version and quit.
229
232 A reverse alias gives the From: address placed on a user's outgoing
233 messages and (optionally) the mailhub these messages will be sent
234 through. Example:
235 root:jdoe@isp.com:mail.isp.com
237 Messages root sends will be identified as from jdoe@isp.com and sent
239 through mail.isp.com.
240
243 /etc/ssmtp/ssmtp.conf - configuration file
244 /etc/ssmtp/revaliases - reverse aliases file
245
248 RFC821, RFC822, ssmtp.conf(5).
249
252 Matt Ryan (mryan@debian.org) Hugo Haas (hugo@debian.org) Christoph
253 Lameter (clameter@debian.org) Dave Collier-Brown (davecb@hobbes.ss.org)
254
257 sSMTP does not support exception lists to the -t option (never seen it
258 used).
259 sSMTP will fail if the mailhub is unreachable.
261 Last change: 4 February 2005 SSMTP(8)