Create a normal email with chatmail (I'm an admin)

Mutual Help
1

Hi, I was trying to install a chatmail on a server.
Since I am the administrator, could I create a normal email address for myself with running chatmail? something like admin@mydoman.com that can receive and send normal emails?
If it’s possible, how should I do it?
I tried to look between the documenation and in the issues and also here on the forum but I did not find the answer.

Thanks

2

Yes, see chatmail.ini config file. Namely apparently you have to specify

# list of chatmail addresses which can send outbound un-encrypted mail
passthrough_senders = admin@mydoman.com

# list of e-mail recipients for which to accept outbound un-encrypted mails
# (space-separated, item may start with "@" to whitelist whole recipient domains)
passthrough_recipients = admin@mydoman.com
3

Thanks,
but does this also create the email?

4

I don’t think so, because you need to specify a password to create an email.

5

So the way is to create an email through the deltchat interface? but this would not allow me to decide the address.

There is no way to create it manually? I saw a list of accounts in this directory /home/vmail/mail/mydomain.com
If I create everything needed in this directory would be enough to have a custom address?

6

TBH I don’t know what’s the “recommended” way to create and run such “admin” email accounts, but you can choose the address on Chatmail servers. Simply log in to the account manually as if the account already exists. The password that you use to log in to the account for the first time will be the one assigned to it. In fact, this is how Chatmail’s “instant onboarding” works.
I believe you can also use another mail client for this, it doesn’t have to be Delta Chat.

7

But in this case I have to respect the limit of 9 characters no? okay I can lower it but I would not like to lower it.
I want to do a test and try to create an account and then change the address into that folder and see if I can enter with the modified name

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8

ok I have good news, I have both populated those two configurations in the chatmail.ini on the server (and then restarted the server) and removed the “enforceE2EEincoming” file from the email directory (and for this there was no need to restart).
It’s a bit strange because this file seems to overlap with the “passthrough-recipients” option, however when I deleted that file the account could already receive unencrypted emails without restarting.
I also confirm that you can change the address simply renaming the respective directory (this is fantastic).

I must say that I was satisfied by the operation of the chatmail, there is only one problem, you can not use the client to send normal emails to new addresses but only to respond to those received (in respect of chatmail accounts enabled to send unencrypted messages, normal ones work).
It would be nice if also the client works completely, but it’s already a nice demonstration.

2 Likes
9

There is a tutorial on manually creating accounts. :slightly_smiling_face:

3 Likes
10

If Chatmail accounts could send unencrypted mails spammers would auto-register them. Some servers manually create accounts with a personal referral or a mini Turing test, but open automated account registration that can be done by a bot is unfortunately a target.

11

Thank you for the interest, I didn’t really want to offer normal emails to users, it was just to see if I could use deltachat also as a personal email and I have to say it works.

And I absolutely agree on the forcing to e2e precisely because it avoids being exploited by spammers, but if the service is yours I believe that there is no risk of keeping an email in clear (which among other things could be used as an info contact for the server).

The procedure you suggested in my opinion at this time could be useful more to customize the password than to customize the address, since I understood how to change the address while the password no (but I suspect it is all in that directory).