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Version: 1.2

Settings

Settings

The Settings panel lets you export the server configuration to a single ZIP archive and import a previously exported archive. Use it to back up the configuration or to move it to another server. It also imports the rules of the earlier MSH applications - see Import legacy settings.

Export​

Click Export... and select the sections to include in the archive:

SectionContents
Policy rulesAll policy rules with their groups
Signature rulesAll signature rules
Disclaimer rulesAll disclaimer rules
Autoresponder rulesAll autoresponder rules
TemplatesSignature and disclaimer templates, including their HTML and text content
Stored attachmentsFiles uploaded on the Attachments page
Signature positioningThe Signature position configuration
Directory service configurationThe Directory service connection configuration
Server configurationSMTP host and port used for sending messages, and the Diagnostic logging configuration
Access controlAdministrator accounts from the Access control page
warning

The Access control section contains credentials, so it is unchecked by default. Include it only when the archive is stored securely.

After confirming the selection, choose where to save the archive. The suggested file name is msh-pm-settings-YYYYMMDD-HHmm.zip.

Import​

Click Import... and choose a previously exported archive. The dialog shows the application version the archive was exported with, the export date, and the sections it contains. All the contained sections are selected by default - uncheck the ones you do not want to import.

warning

Imported sections replace the current settings on the server. Sections not present in the archive, or left unchecked, stay unchanged.

Before the import is applied, a full backup of the current settings is automatically saved next to the imported file as backup-before-import-YYYYMMDD-HHmm.zip. If anything goes wrong, import this backup to restore the previous state.

The imported sections are applied and saved to the server immediately. Restart the administrator panel afterwards to refresh all views.

Archive format​

The archive is a regular ZIP file containing:

  • manifest.xml - the application version, export date, and the list of exported sections
  • settings.xml - the exported configuration
  • templates/ - template contents
  • attachments/ - stored attachment files

An archive exported with a newer application version can still be imported; sections unknown to the current version are skipped.

Import legacy settings​

MSH Postfix Milter replaces three earlier applications: MSH Traffic Policy, MSH Disclaimer & Signatures and MSH Autoresponder. The Import legacy settings section has one button per application. Click the button of the application whose settings you want to bring across and choose one of:

  • the settings.xml the application kept its configuration in, usually etc/settings.xml of its installation, with the templates directory next to it, or
  • a tgz archive of that whole etc directory.

The import tells the two apart by content, not by file name. If the file belongs to a different application than the button you pressed, the import says so and asks you to use the other button.

See Prepare a legacy settings archive for the tar commands that pack the etc directory of each application on the server.

What is imported​

Imported rules are added to the rules you already have. Nothing is replaced and no backup is written, because nothing is overwritten:

  • A rule whose id is already taken gets a new one.
  • A template whose id is already in use is kept as it is, and the imported rules use it.
  • Signature positioning patterns are added to the ones already set.

Every condition and action of the three applications comes across, including the ones whose shape changed since - matching a directory user or group, the envelope sender and recipient conditions, the message counting conditions, the envelope recipient actions and the new message action with its attachments and headers.

  • A time range a legacy rule had among its conditions becomes the rule's schedule. A time range that was switched off is reported instead of imported.
  • Variables are rewritten into the current syntax: ${message:subject} becomes {message:subject}, a directory attribute such as ${ldap:HomePhone} becomes the user attribute variable that holds it, {homePhone}, following the labels declared in the file's own LDAP schema. The bare Autoresponder variables ($SUBJECT, $FIRSTNAME, $CITY, ...) become variables as well. See Variables for the current list.
  • Autoresponder replies written inline in the legacy file become templates of their own, named after their rule. Loop protection keeps its count, interval and unit.

Import report​

The import closes with a report: how many rules and templates arrived per section, and a Not imported list of everything it could not bring across, for example:

  • server configuration sections (config, access-control, ldap-conf) that were left alone,
  • an autoresponder forward, which has to be recreated as a policy rule with the Forward message action,
  • a directory attribute with no user attribute variable to map to, which is left as it was and renders nothing until it is replaced in the template,
  • a template or reply that held braces of its own, since the template language reads {word} as a variable now - check what it says.

A file that cannot be read is answered with a message naming the file and what was wrong with it. If it is the settings file of the application whose button you pressed, or an archive of its etc directory, send the file to contact@mshsoftware.com and we will look at it.

Additional resources​