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Last post Author Topic: Email Server Frustration -- Looking for Advice  (Read 14020 times)

40hz

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Re: Email Server Frustration -- Looking for Advice
« Reply #25 on: November 24, 2010, 05:05 PM »
  3. Every time you add something to the system Path variable it takes the system that much longer to find out item X doesn't exist. So I've always made a point of keeping the Path down to the barest of minimums. Any time something "requires" adding yet another string to the Path variable ... I immediately start looking for why/a better way (as it's almost never actually required).

@StoicJoker: You da Man!!!!  8)

Stuff needlessly dorking with the PATH variable has been a pet peeve of mine since forever. Your words need be carved in granite above the doorway of every code shop and IT department on the planet.  :Thmbsup:  :Thmbsup:

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OMG! Is this really my 3000th post?  :-[

« Last Edit: November 24, 2010, 05:08 PM by 40hz »

megar

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Re: Email Server Frustration -- Looking for Advice
« Reply #26 on: December 10, 2010, 10:29 AM »
I'm surprised no one pointed you to Google Apps.

I switched from my linux mail Server+webmail to Google, and I am very pleased in it. It also supports fetching others account and acts as a centralized IMAP server if you want to use it with a mail client program.
It means switching your MX server in the DNS domain definition from you server to google's, so it is really a big step to make, because in a way, you loose ownership of your mail. It prevented me to do it sooner. Now that I made it, I don't miss having to administer one mail server (antivirus, antispam, shitty webmail, etc.), and I am very proud I did it.

There are a tons of webpage describing  how to do it, and benefits.
One random page : http://www.nirmaltv....using-google-apps-1/

Renegade

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Re: Email Server Frustration -- Looking for Advice
« Reply #27 on: December 10, 2010, 11:15 AM »
Actually, a friend of mine did recommend that (just not here). But like you mention, it is a big step. So, I'm taking it slow. I'll phase things over to Google (I think) slowly. First I just needed things working, and as I'm out of the country right now, I just couldn't manage to take the plunge all at once.

But thanks for mentioning it! And the link too! :)
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Freedom is the right to be wrong, not the right to do wrong. - John Diefenbaker

Stoic Joker

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Re: Email Server Frustration -- Looking for Advice
« Reply #28 on: February 18, 2011, 08:25 AM »
So it was finally decided that the company website was indeed horribly dated. As I don't have the time, or art skills necessary to do it properly (I have several failed attempts as documented proof) ... We're having a third party do it. This requires adding a CMS system (CMS Made Simple), which I'm on the hook to install. Okay...

I don't even remember what the exact chain of update requirements was ... But I'm currently working on doing a test upgrade to PHP v5.3.5 (VC9 - Thread Safe) on a lab server so I don't completely torch the production server, and things do seem to have changed quite a bit.


At the moment I'm running the new PHP installation under FastCGI with the php-cgi.exe instead of the ISAPI DLL. On my other server I use the ISAPI. Both are the ZIP file and not the installer. FastCGI is supposed to give far better performance (20x?), so that's why I'm running with that.

20x?!? (Damn) ...I'll have to investigate that one myself. I actually don't recall why I went the ISAPI route originally, but it was several years ago when I first set up an IIS5 (Win2k) web server and I've just been replicating that config ever since.

I do. Because the CGI extension just didn't work reliably! :D

Seems ok now though. Microsoft is recommending FastCGI and the php-cgi.exe binary. They've got a whole truckload of open source stuff available at the MS site. Have for a while now actually.

I tried doing a manual install (without-a-net) first and that went badly mainly due to the (save for the many folks complaining about it) seemingly undocumented decision to do away with the (key Web Services Extension target file) php5isapi.dll. It is no-longer part of the package. So apparently the CGI route is now stringently recommended by way of mandate.

I ended up (just to get something to work) going the installer route, and discovered that the Web Services Extension entry is not automatically added by the installer. I went with plain CGI as I hadn't added FastCGI (testing...) yet and the server responds noticeably slower (with CPU usage spiking) even though I'm the only requester ... Zoiks!

I'll update this later with how/why/what happens info. as the story unfolds. :)