# hMailServer Configuration Project

## Overview
Project to document and track hMailServer SMTP relay configuration issues and resolution.

## Background

### Problem
John's hMailServer was configured to use Mailjet as an SMTP relay for outbound email. However, Mailjet disabled the account because they detected emails being sent from "suspicious/banned" addresses.

### Initial Discovery
When investigating, John found that the flagged emails were all addresses that had sent spam TO his server (john@assettrackr.co), not emails he was sending out. This was confusing because:

1. Emails addressed TO his domain should be received locally, not sent back out through the relay
2. Mailjet shouldn't have seen these messages if they were inbound only

### Root Cause
The issue was that hMailServer was not configured with proper SMTP routes to distinguish between:
- **Local traffic** - emails destined for domains hosted on this server (should be delivered locally)
- **Remote traffic** - emails for external domains (should be relayed through Mailjet)

Without this routing configuration, all outbound SMTP traffic was being sent through the relay, including what should have been local deliveries.

## Configuration Details

### hMailServer SMTP Relay Settings (Before Fix)
```
Relay server: smtp-relay.mailjet.com
Port: 587
Connection security: STARTTLS (changed from None)
Authentication: Required
Username: [API Key]
Password: [API Secret]
```

### Solution: SMTP Routes Configuration

Created route configuration in hMailServer to mark `assettrackr.co` as a local domain.

**Location in hMailServer:**
- hMailServer Administrator → Routes → Add Route

**Route Configuration:**
```
Domain: assettrackr.co
Deliver to: Local delivery
```

This tells hMailServer that any email addressed to `@assettrackr.co` should be delivered locally to the mailbox, NOT sent out through the SMTP relay.

## Files Created

### /workspace/Projects/hmailserver-configuration/README.md
This file - project documentation

### /workspace/Projects/hmailserver-configuration/ROUTING-SOLUTION.md
The solution documentation (this file)

### /workspace/Projects/hmailserver-configuration/HMAILSERVER-CONFIG.md
Detailed configuration reference

## Links & References

- **hMailServer SMTP Relay Configuration Guide:** https://techssh.com/self-hosting/configure-hmailserver-with-smtp-relay/
  - Section #4 covers SMTP routes configuration
  - Demonstrates how to mark local domains vs remote domains

- **Mailjet SMTP Documentation:** https://dev.mailjet.com/email/guides/transmission/smtp/
  - SMTP relay endpoint: smtp-relay.mailjet.com
  - Port 587 with STARTTLS

- **hMailServer Routes Documentation:** https://www.hmailserver.com/documentation/latest/?page=routes

## Testing

### Test Performed
John sent an email from ProtonMail to `john@assettrackr.co` and confirmed:
1. ✅ Email was delivered locally to the mailbox
2. ✅ The ProtonMail sender address did NOT appear on the Mailjet relay account
3. ✅ This confirms the routing fix is working correctly

## Lessons Learned

1. **SMTP relay configuration requires route definitions** - Simply setting up the relay credentials isn't enough. You must explicitly tell hMailServer which domains should be delivered locally vs relayed.

2. **Inbound emails shouldn't be relayed** - Emails addressed to local domains should NEVER be sent out through an SMTP relay. They should be delivered directly to local mailboxes.

3. **Security best practices:**
   - Always use STARTTLS or SSL/TLS for SMTP relay connections
   - Never use "None" for connection security
   - Regularly rotate API credentials
   - Monitor relay usage to detect unauthorized access

## Status
✅ RESOLVED

The SMTP routing has been configured and tested. Local domains are now properly delivered locally instead of being sent through the Mailjet relay.