# docker-mailserver/docker-mailserver

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17,905 stars · 2,003 forks · Shell · mit

## Links

- GitHub: https://github.com/docker-mailserver/docker-mailserver
- Homepage: https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/
- awesome-repositories: https://awesome-repositories.com/repository/docker-mailserver-docker-mailserver.md

## Topics

`antispam` `antivirus` `container` `docker` `dovecot` `fail2ban` `imap` `kubernetes` `ldap` `mail` `mailserver` `postfix` `rspamd` `smtp`

## Description

This project provides a full-stack, containerized mail server platform designed for self-hosting. It functions as a complete mail transfer agent that bundles essential services—including SMTP, IMAP, and POP3—into a unified environment. By leveraging container orchestration, it enables the deployment of private email infrastructure that handles message transport, delivery, and user management within a single, manageable service.

The platform distinguishes itself through deep integration with container runtimes and robust configuration flexibility. It supports granular customization via configuration-file injection, initialization-script hooking, and volume-based persistence, allowing administrators to tune mail transport parameters and maintain state across container lifecycles. It also offers advanced operational capabilities such as multi-tenant relay routing, automated container updates, and native support for Kubernetes environments.

Beyond core delivery, the server includes a comprehensive security and filtering suite. It integrates modular middleware for real-time spam and malware analysis, enforces cryptographic signing for message authenticity, and provides automated protection against brute-force attacks and malicious traffic. Administrative tasks are simplified through a dedicated command-line utility for account management, alias configuration, and storage quota enforcement, alongside built-in observability tools for monitoring server health and filtering statistics.

The project is distributed as a container image, with documentation and configuration patterns provided to support deployment across standard container runtimes and orchestration platforms.

## Tags

### Networking & Communication

- [Mail Servers](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/networking-communication/mail-servers.md) — Provides a complete mail transfer agent and delivery system within a containerized environment.
- [Alias Management](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/networking-communication/mail-servers/alias-management.md) — Redirects incoming mail for specific addresses to local accounts or external destinations using static mappings or regular expressions. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/account-management/provisioner/file/))
- [IMAP Services](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/networking-communication/mail-servers/imap-services.md) — Provides secure access for email clients to fetch messages using encrypted IMAP connections. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/introduction/))
- [Mail Protocol Implementations](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/networking-communication/mail-servers/mail-protocol-implementations.md) — Operates standard network services for sending, receiving, and retrieving messages. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/security/understanding-the-ports/))
- [Outbound Mail Relays](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/networking-communication/mail-servers/outbound-mail-relays.md) — Delegates the delivery of outgoing emails to external services or relay hosts. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/examples/tutorials/basic-installation/))
- [Sub-addressing Extensions](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/networking-communication/network-addressing/sub-addressing-extensions.md) — Automatically organizes incoming messages into folders by parsing tags from recipient addresses. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/advanced/mail-sieve/))
- [Email Forwarding Rules](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/networking-communication/mail-servers/email-forwarding-rules.md) — Redirects incoming messages to external addresses using alias rules instead of local storage. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/examples/use-cases/forward-only-mailserver-with-ldap-authentication/))
- [Mail Routing Policies](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/networking-communication/mail-servers/mail-routing-policies.md) — Processes outgoing mail from local users and accepts incoming mail from third-party servers. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/introduction/))
- [Proxy-Aware Routing](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/networking-communication/network-infrastructure-routing/network-infrastructure-configuration/network-infrastructure/proxy-aware-routing.md) — Supports reverse proxy configurations and header preservation to maintain accurate client IP visibility.
- [Relay Server Configurations](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/networking-communication/relay-server-configurations.md) — Routes outbound mail through specific relay hosts based on the sender domain. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/advanced/mail-forwarding/relay-hosts/))

### DevOps & Infrastructure

- [Self-Hosted Infrastructure](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/devops-infrastructure/self-hosted-infrastructure.md) — Enables private, full-stack email hosting with support for standard protocols and secure delivery.
- [Kubernetes Orchestration](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/devops-infrastructure/kubernetes-orchestration.md) — Orchestrates mail services within clusters using standard manifests for configuration and storage. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/advanced/kubernetes/))
- [Server Configuration Management](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/devops-infrastructure/server-configuration-management.md) — Simplifies management of accounts, aliases, and system parameters via a dedicated command-line utility. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/introduction/))
- [Container Orchestration Management](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/devops-infrastructure/container-orchestration-management.md) — Bundles multiple independent mail services into a single container environment with unified supervision.
- [Mail Delivery Agents](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/devops-infrastructure/infrastructure/networking/messaging-infrastructure-integrations/mail-delivery-agents.md) — Supports multi-tenant relay routing and sender-dependent gateways for complex delivery requirements.
- [Automated Container Updaters](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/devops-infrastructure/automated-container-updaters.md) — Monitors and automatically updates container images to ensure the mail server runs the latest version. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/advanced/maintenance/update-and-cleanup/))
- [Sender Identity Verifications](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/devops-infrastructure/infrastructure/networking/messaging-infrastructure-integrations/sender-identity-verifications.md) — Restricts users to sending mail only from authorized addresses to prevent spoofing. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/environment/))

### Data & Databases

- [Persistent Storage Volumes](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/data-databases/persistent-storage-volumes.md) — Mounts dedicated storage volumes to ensure email data remains available outside the container after restarts. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/advanced/kubernetes/))
- [Configuration Persistence](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/data-databases/configuration-persistence.md) — Maps external directories to internal paths to ensure mail server settings persist across container lifecycles. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/advanced/optional-config/))
- [Persistent Storage Management](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/data-databases/persistent-storage-management.md) — Enforces global limits on mailbox sizes and configures storage formats for managed mail data. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/environment/))
- [Persistent Volume Mapping](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/data-databases/persistent-volume-mapping.md) — Maps internal application directories to host storage to ensure mail data and configuration persistence.
- [State Persistence](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/data-databases/state-persistence.md) — Maintains persistent storage for filtering data and learned patterns to ensure consistent performance. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/security/rspamd/))

### Security & Cryptography

- [Email Filtering](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/application-and-system-security/browser-security/content-filtering-blocking/content-filtering/email-filtering.md) — Applies custom rules globally or per-user to automatically sort, redirect, or discard messages. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/advanced/mail-sieve/))
- [Email Signing](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/code-signing/email-signing.md) — Signs and verifies email messages using cryptographic standards like DKIM. ([source](https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/gh/docker-mailserver/docker-mailserver@master/README.md))
- [Directory Service Integrations](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/identity-access-management/identity-management/identity-service-providers/directory-service-integrations.md) — Integrates with external LDAP and identity providers to centralize user authentication.
- [Mail Transmission Security](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/secure-network-communication/mail-transmission-security.md) — Enforces encrypted mail delivery protocols to protect data in transit. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/best-practices/mta-sts/))
- [Backend Security Middleware](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/security/application-and-web/web-application/backend-security-middleware.md) — Integrates modular scanning and filtering engines into the mail delivery pipeline for spam and malware analysis.
- [User Account Management](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/user-account-management.md) — Provides command-line tools for creating, deleting, and securing email accounts. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/account-management/provisioner/file/))
- [User Authentication Strategies](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/user-authentication-strategies.md) — Authenticates users against local or external providers to control access. ([source](https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/gh/docker-mailserver/docker-mailserver@master/README.md))
- [Brute Force Protections](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/brute-force-protections.md) — Protects against brute-force attacks by monitoring logs and blocking suspicious IP addresses. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/security/fail2ban/))
- [Identity Federation Providers](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/identity-federation-providers.md) — Validates user credentials against external identity providers using tokens for centralized access control. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/account-management/supplementary/oauth2/))
- [Message Encryption](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/message-encryption.md) — Encrypts stored email messages at rest to ensure data privacy. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/security/mail_crypt/))
- [Administrative Account Management](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/administrative-account-management.md) — Provides master account access for administrative maintenance and mailbox management tasks. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/account-management/supplementary/master-accounts/))
- [Authentication Security Policies](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/security-cryptography/authentication-security-policies.md) — Defines security policies for handling incoming mail that fails authentication checks. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/best-practices/dkim_dmarc_spf/))

### System Administration & Monitoring

- [Server Administration](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/system-administration-monitoring/server-administration.md) — Provides administrative commands against running containers to simplify configuration and maintenance. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/setup.sh/))
- [Usage Quota Managers](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/system-administration-monitoring/usage-quota-managers.md) — Enforces disk usage limits on individual mailboxes to prevent system-wide storage exhaustion. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/account-management/overview/))
- [Automated Server Maintenance](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/system-administration-monitoring/automated-server-maintenance.md) — Manages background services including log rotation, update checks, and automated mail retrieval. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/environment/))
- [Real-Time Monitoring Dashboards](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/system-administration-monitoring/real-time-monitoring-dashboards.md) — Exposes a web-based dashboard for viewing real-time filtering data and security statistics. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/security/rspamd/))
- [System Services](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/system-administration-monitoring/system-services.md) — Ensures mail server containers automatically start at boot and remain active as persistent system services. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/config/advanced/podman/))

### Development Tools & Productivity

- [Shell Script Execution Engines](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/development-tools-productivity/shell-script-execution-engines.md) — Executes user-defined shell scripts during container startup to patch configurations before services initialize. ([source](https://docker-mailserver.github.io/docker-mailserver/latest/usage/))

### Software Engineering & Architecture

- [YAML Configuration Files](https://awesome-repositories.com/f/software-engineering-architecture/application-lifecycle-management/configuration-management/configuration-formats-and-schemas/yaml-configuration-files.md) — Allows granular tuning of mail transport parameters by mounting external configuration files.