Setup ubuntu server to send mail()

Question

I tried searching a lot but unable to find how to actually setup a ubuntu server, so that I can send mails through php using mail() function in php.

I have apache2, mysql and php5 installed on my server.

Thank You.

Answer 1

I also agree there is a lack of tutorials for people who just need a script to send, e.g. error emails, and don't need a full-blown mail server.

First, if postfix not already installed do:

sudo apt-get install postfix

It prompts with a couple of questions. For the first I chose "Internet site"; for a machine behind a firewall I might choose smarthost instead. For the second question it defaults to the machine name; I appended a domain name that I control (so I can set DNS for it later, should I need to).

At this point you should be able to use "mail" from the commandline to send a test.

Then under /etc/php5/conf.d create a file (e.g. mailconfig.ini) with these contents:

sendmail_from = me@example.com
sendmail_path = /usr/sbin/sendmail -t -i -f me@example.com

Change me@example.com to your email address. They mean all email will look like it is sent by you, which can help prevent it being rejected. This is sufficient for just sending error emails to a developer.

(The above instructions tested on both Ubuntu 10.04 and 11.04.)

Answer 2

You'll need to setup the ubuntu server to be able to send mail ... as an example, you could install and configure postfix.

The Ubuntu documentation has a nice page at https://help.ubuntu.com/community/MailServer

Answer 3

Either go through the painful process of setting up a mail server directly on your server (postfix, etc) or use a library that will allow you to connect directly to a smtp server.

Answer 4

You should first install xmail package, and if it still does not work, have a look over here.