Running Mailman with Cpanel, or on a different server
Dear All
Apologies in advance if this is too newbieish -- I have consulted the online materials but to no avail.
The web hosting company I use has Mailman configured for use under Cpanel. Unfortunately they have a rule which limits outgoing emails to 200 per hour. I know from online materials that it would be difficult to throttle the number of emails sent out, so I need to explore several alternatives.
As I understand it, the Cpanel install creates a lists subdirectory for each mailing list it creates.
- Can I override the HTML template used to generate pipermail archives by putting an appropriate file in the list subdirectory?
- Can I direct mailman to use a different machine or MTA through the list subdirectory?
If the Cpanel approach is too inflexible, I'm hoping to run Mailman and the MTA on my own server but keep the web-related parts on the web host company servers. (Primarily so there's no hassle to get an appropriate subdomain, so that the web and search engine traffic goes to their servers, etc.)
- Is it possible to get Mailman on my server to archive mail to the web host company server? Perhaps by using ftp? (Are the archives static files or cgi generated?)
- How about the web front ends to the mailing list, is it possible to somehow rewire the cgi to interface with the Mailman on my system?
- Can I get Mailman to talk to an MTA on a different server? e.g. my ISP server?
Cheers, Glen Low
pixelglow software | simply brilliant stuff www.pixelglow.com
At 9:02 AM +0800 2005-01-05, Glen Low wrote:
- Can I override the HTML template used to generate pipermail archives by putting an appropriate file in the list subdirectory?
I don't believe so, but cPanel may have made changes to the version of Mailman that they provide. Please see http://www.python.org/cgi-bin/faqw-mm.py?req=show&file=faq06.011.htp.
- Can I direct mailman to use a different machine or MTA through the list subdirectory?
It is possible to configure Mailman to use a different MTA for outgoing mail, but not via a file in the list subdirectory. You'd have to modify the mm_cfg.py file.
- Is it possible to get Mailman on my server to archive mail to the web host company server? Perhaps by using ftp? (Are the archives static files or cgi generated?)
You can't do this directly, but the archives are generated as static files by Mailman, so you could ftp the HTML and other files up to their server. However, you'd also need to edit the HTML to use the URLs that would be correct for the appropriate locations on the hosting server as opposed to your local Mailman machine. That would take some work, but is do-able.
Of course, this would need to be automated via some mechanism outside of the scope of Mailman, such as cron.
- How about the web front ends to the mailing list, is it possible to somehow rewire the cgi to interface with the Mailman on my system?
I'm not entirely sure what you're asking here, but if I'm correct, then I don't think that this is possible. You could set up a reverse proxy on your hosting provider server (or have them set up a reverse proxy for you), but I don't know if that is within the scope of the contract you have with them.
- Can I get Mailman to talk to an MTA on a different server? e.g. my ISP server?
Yes, by making the appropriate modifications to the mm_cfg.py file. However, I believe that changing your outgoing MTA in this file will only affect lists that are created after the change is made, and all previously existing lists will continue to use the old configuration.
You'd need to do some work to copy all the list configuration items over to another list, delete the old list, then move the list configuration items back over again, with all subscriptions intact, etc....
This can be a "non-trivial" task, depending on your particular list configuration, your subscriber list, etc....
-- Brad Knowles, brad@stop.mail-abuse.org
"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
-- Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), reply of the Pennsylvania
Assembly to the Governor, November 11, 1755SAGE member since 1995. See http://www.sage.org/ for more info.
Brad:
Thanks for your quick reply.
On 05/01/2005, at 9:20 AM, Brad Knowles wrote:
- Is it possible to get Mailman on my server to archive mail to the web host company server? Perhaps by using ftp? (Are the archives static files or cgi generated?)
You can't do this directly, but the archives are generated as static files by Mailman, so you could ftp the HTML and other files up to their server. However, you'd also need to edit the HTML to use the URLs that would be correct for the appropriate locations on the hosting server as opposed to your local Mailman machine. That would take some work, but is do-able.
Are not the URL's relative URL's? If not, isn't there a config option I can use to set the base URL's for them -- and hopefully won't spoil some other part of the system?
Of course, this would need to be automated via some mechanism outside of the scope of Mailman, such as cron.
- How about the web front ends to the mailing list, is it possible to somehow rewire the cgi to interface with the Mailman on my system?
I'm not entirely sure what you're asking here, but if I'm correct, then I don't think that this is possible. You could set up a reverse proxy on your hosting provider server (or have them set up a reverse proxy for you), but I don't know if that is within the scope of the contract you have with them.
Some possible avenues of attack:
- Leave the CGI's on the web host company servers but have them communicate with Mailman on a different server. (Can the Mailman CGI's communicate this way?)
- Leave only static files for the web front end, and have any CGI form processing happen on my local server. (Are CGI's used to dynamically generate any files in the web front end?) At the very least I have a static IP so would that be enough?
- I suppose I could write a simple wrapper CGI for the web host company server that transparently forwards and retrieves information from the true Mailman CGI's on my own local server...
- Can I get Mailman to talk to an MTA on a different server? e.g. my ISP server?
Yes, by making the appropriate modifications to the mm_cfg.py file.
However, I believe that changing your outgoing MTA in this file will only affect lists that are created after the change is made, and all previously existing lists will continue to use the old configuration.
What I don't understand (showing my newbishness) is, how does Mailman realize there's been mail sent to the list email address, when the MTA is on a different server?
Cheers, Glen Low
pixelglow software | simply brilliant stuff www.pixelglow.com
From: Brad Knowles wrote:
At 9:02 AM +0800 2005-01-05, Glen Low wrote:
- Can I override the HTML template used to generate pipermail archives by putting an appropriate file in the list subdirectory?
I don't believe so, but cPanel may have made changes to the version of Mailman that they provide. Please see http://www.python.org/cgi-bin/faqw-mm.py?req=show&file=faq06.011.htp.
I don't know about cPanel, but in standard Mailman you can replace any of the standard templates in the templates/ directory with per-list templates in the lists/ directory. See http://www.python.org/cgi-bin/faqw-mm.py?req=show&file=faq04.048.htp
-- Mark Sapiro msapiro@value.net The highway is for gamblers, San Francisco Bay Area, California better use your sense - B. Dylan
At 6:53 PM -0800 2005-01-04, Mark Sapiro wrote:
I don't know about cPanel, but in standard Mailman you can replace any of the standard templates in the templates/ directory with per-list templates in the lists/ directory. See http://www.python.org/cgi-bin/faqw-mm.py?req=show&file=faq04.048.htp
There are eight standard templates which start with "arch" in the templates/en directory, and which could by over-ridden by list-specific versions in the lists/<listname>/en directory, but I don't think that changing these will have the desired effect. Moreover, I don't think that cPanel would allow you to have this level of access to the templates, but I may be wrong.
Anyway, check out the following files in the templates/en directory:
archidxentry.html archlistend.html archtocentry.html
archidxfoot.html archliststart.html archtocnombox.html
archidxhead.html archtoc.html-- Brad Knowles, brad@stop.mail-abuse.org
"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
-- Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), reply of the Pennsylvania
Assembly to the Governor, November 11, 1755SAGE member since 1995. See http://www.sage.org/ for more info.
participants (3)
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Brad Knowles -
Glen Low -
Mark Sapiro