Off topic: Roundhouse

[Stephen Swaney]

This is a bit off topic but I've found a new tool that is exceptionally
handy for testing and I'm sure some of you will be able to use to too.
Besides the list is so quiet these days that if there aren't some messages
sent a few times a day, we start getting all those "is the list down??"
messages :)

Anthony Howe has released a free beta of Roundhouse. I quote from the web
site:

"Roundhouse is an SMTP multiplexer, which takes the input from an SMTP
client connection and copies it to one or more SMTP servers. Intended as
means to debug and test different mail server configurations using a
production mail server's live data stream."

It couldn't be simpler to install and run. Just Download and compile,
carefully following the instructions on the web site. Note that for sendmail
you will need to have the sendmail-devel rpm installed (just the same as
compiling milters).

Roundhouse runs on port 25 so once Roundhouse is installed you'll need to
modify the MailScanner init script to listen on port 26. For sendmail this
is as easy as changing:

	  $SENDMAIL -bd -OPrivacyOptions=noetrn \
                       -ODeliveryMode=queueonly \
                       -OQueueDirectory=$INQDIR \
                       -OPidFile=$INPID
 to:
	  $SENDMAIL -bd -OPrivacyOptions=noetrn \
                       -ODeliveryMode=queueonly \
			     -ODaemonPortOptions=Port=26 \
                       -OQueueDirectory=$INQDIR \
                       -OPidFile=$INPID

To use Roundhouse without duplexing the conversation simply:

1. Stop MailScanner
2. Modify the MailScanner Init script
3. Start Roundhouse to simply converse with port 26:

	/usr/local/sbin/roundhouse localhost,26

4. Start Mailscanner

Any time you want to send a duplicate email stream to a test system: 

1. Stop Roundhouse 
2. Restart Roundhouse configured to send a duplicate conversation to 
   the test system: 

	/usr/local/sbin/roundhouse localhost,26 test.local.domain,25

That's all there is to it. 

We leave Roundhouse running on our spamtrap gateway and it seems to have no
impact on performance but it's had a big impact on how easy it is to send
real world messages to our test systems or to new pre-production servers on
client's sites. 

Don't forget if you do use Roundhouse, send some feed back, pro or con, to
Anthony. He's trying to get a thorough testing cycle finished so he can make
a production release.

Steve

Stephen Swaney
Fort Systems Ltd.
stephen.swaney at fsl.com
www.fsl.com

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