Command reference

Mox is started with the "serve" subcommand, but mox also has many other subcommands.

Many of those commands talk to a running mox instance, through the ctl file in the data directory. Specify the configuration file (that holds the path to the data directory) through the -config flag or MOXCONF environment variable.

Commands that don't talk to a running mox instance are often for testing/debugging email functionality. For example for parsing an email message, or looking up SPF/DKIM/DMARC records.

Below is the usage information as printed by the command when started without any parameters. Followed by the help and usage information for each command.

Usage #

mox [-config config/mox.conf] [-pedantic] ...
mox serve
mox quickstart [-skipdial] [-existing-webserver] [-hostname host] user@domain [user | uid]
mox stop
mox setaccountpassword account
mox setadminpassword
mox loglevels [level [pkg]]
mox queue holdrules list
mox queue holdrules add [ruleflags]
mox queue holdrules remove ruleid
mox queue list [filtersortflags]
mox queue hold [filterflags]
mox queue unhold [filterflags]
mox queue schedule [filterflags] [-now] duration
mox queue transport [filterflags] transport
mox queue requiretls [filterflags] {yes | no | default}
mox queue fail [filterflags]
mox queue drop [filterflags]
mox queue dump id
mox queue retired list [filtersortflags]
mox queue retired print id
mox queue suppress list [-account account]
mox queue suppress add account address
mox queue suppress remove account address
mox queue suppress lookup [-account account] address
mox queue webhook list [filtersortflags]
mox queue webhook schedule [filterflags] duration
mox queue webhook cancel [filterflags]
mox queue webhook print id
mox queue webhook retired list [filtersortflags]
mox queue webhook retired print id
mox import maildir accountname mailboxname maildir
mox import mbox accountname mailboxname mbox
mox export maildir [-single] dst-dir account-path [mailbox]
mox export mbox [-single] dst-dir account-path [mailbox]
mox localserve
mox help [command ...]
mox backup dest-dir
mox verifydata data-dir
mox licenses
mox config test
mox config dnscheck domain
mox config dnsrecords domain
mox config describe-domains >domains.conf
mox config describe-static >mox.conf
mox config account add account address
mox config account rm account
mox config address add address account
mox config address rm address
mox config domain add domain account [localpart]
mox config domain rm domain
mox config alias list domain
mox config alias print alias
mox config alias add alias@domain rcpt1@domain ...
mox config alias update alias@domain [-postpublic false|true -listmembers false|true -allowmsgfrom false|true]
mox config alias rm alias@domain
mox config alias addaddr alias@domain rcpt1@domain ...
mox config alias rmaddr alias@domain rcpt1@domain ...
mox config describe-sendmail >/etc/moxsubmit.conf
mox config printservice >mox.service
mox config ensureacmehostprivatekeys
mox config example [name]
mox checkupdate
mox cid cid
mox clientconfig domain
mox dane dial host:port
mox dane dialmx domain [destination-host]
mox dane makerecord usage selector matchtype [certificate.pem | publickey.pem | privatekey.pem]
mox dns lookup [ptr | mx | cname | ips | a | aaaa | ns | txt | srv | tlsa] name
mox dkim gened25519 >$selector._domainkey.$domain.ed25519.privatekey.pkcs8.pem
mox dkim genrsa >$selector._domainkey.$domain.rsa2048.privatekey.pkcs8.pem
mox dkim lookup selector domain
mox dkim txt <$selector._domainkey.$domain.key.pkcs8.pem
mox dkim verify message
mox dkim sign message
mox dmarc lookup domain
mox dmarc parsereportmsg message ...
mox dmarc verify remoteip mailfromaddress helodomain < message
mox dmarc checkreportaddrs domain
mox dnsbl check zone ip
mox dnsbl checkhealth zone
mox mtasts lookup domain
mox retrain accountname
mox sendmail [-Fname] [ignoredflags] [-t] [<message]
mox spf check domain ip
mox spf lookup domain
mox spf parse txtrecord
mox tlsrpt lookup domain
mox tlsrpt parsereportmsg message ...
mox version
mox webapi [method [baseurl-with-credentials]
mox example [name]
mox bumpuidvalidity account [mailbox]
mox reassignuids account [mailboxid]
mox fixuidmeta account
mox fixmsgsize [account]
mox reparse [account]
mox ensureparsed account
mox recalculatemailboxcounts account
mox message parse message.eml
mox reassignthreads [account]

mox serve #

Start mox, serving SMTP/IMAP/HTTPS.

Incoming email is accepted over SMTP. Email can be retrieved by users using IMAP. HTTP listeners are started for the admin/account web interfaces, and for automated TLS configuration. Missing essential TLS certificates are immediately requested, other TLS certificates are requested on demand.

Only implemented on unix systems, not Windows.

usage: mox serve

mox quickstart #

Quickstart generates configuration files and prints instructions to quickly set up a mox instance.

Quickstart writes configuration files, prints initial admin and account passwords, DNS records you should create. If you run it on Linux it writes a systemd service file and prints commands to enable and start mox as service.

The user or uid is optional, defaults to "mox", and is the user or uid/gid mox will run as after initialization.

Quickstart assumes mox will run on the machine you run quickstart on and uses its host name and public IPs. On many systems the hostname is not a fully qualified domain name, but only the first dns "label", e.g. "mail" in case of "mail.example.org". If so, quickstart does a reverse DNS lookup to find the hostname, and as fallback uses the label plus the domain of the email address you specified. Use flag -hostname to explicitly specify the hostname mox will run on.

Mox is by far easiest to operate if you let it listen on port 443 (HTTPS) and 80 (HTTP). TLS will be fully automatic with ACME with Let's Encrypt.

You can run mox along with an existing webserver, but because of MTA-STS and autoconfig, you'll need to forward HTTPS traffic for two domains to mox. Run "mox quickstart -existing-webserver ..." to generate configuration files and instructions for configuring mox along with an existing webserver.

But please first consider configuring mox on port 443. It can itself serve domains with HTTP/HTTPS, including with automatic TLS with ACME, is easily configured through both configuration files and admin web interface, and can act as a reverse proxy (and static file server for that matter), so you can forward traffic to your existing backend applications. Look for "WebHandlers:" in the output of "mox config describe-domains" and see the output of "mox config example webhandlers".

usage: mox quickstart [-skipdial] [-existing-webserver] [-hostname host] user@domain [user | uid]
  -existing-webserver
    	use if a webserver is already running, so mox won't listen on port 80 and 443; you'll have to provide tls certificates/keys, and configure the existing webserver as reverse proxy, forwarding requests to mox.
  -hostname string
    	hostname mox will run on, by default the hostname of the machine quickstart runs on; if specified, the IPs for the hostname are configured for the public listener
  -skipdial
    	skip check for outgoing smtp (port 25) connectivity

mox stop #

Shut mox down, giving connections maximum 3 seconds to stop before closing them.

While shutting down, new IMAP and SMTP connections will get a status response indicating temporary unavailability. Existing connections will get a 3 second period to finish their transaction and shut down. Under normal circumstances, only IMAP has long-living connections, with the IDLE command to get notified of new mail deliveries.

usage: mox stop

mox setaccountpassword #

Set new password an account.

The password is read from stdin. Secrets derived from the password, but not the password itself, are stored in the account database. The stored secrets are for authentication with: scram-sha-256, scram-sha-1, cram-md5, plain text (bcrypt hash).

The parameter is an account name, as configured under Accounts in domains.conf and as present in the data/accounts/ directory, not a configured email address for an account.

usage: mox setaccountpassword account

mox setadminpassword #

Set a new admin password, for the web interface.

The password is read from stdin. Its bcrypt hash is stored in a file named "adminpasswd" in the configuration directory.

usage: mox setadminpassword

mox loglevels #

Print the log levels, or set a new default log level, or a level for the given package.

By default, a single log level applies to all logging in mox. But for each "pkg", an overriding log level can be configured. Examples of packages: smtpserver, smtpclient, queue, imapserver, spf, dkim, dmarc, junk, message, etc.

Specify a pkg and an empty level to clear the configured level for a package.

Valid labels: error, info, debug, trace, traceauth, tracedata.

usage: mox loglevels [level [pkg]]

mox queue holdrules list #

List hold rules for the delivery queue.

Messages submitted to the queue that match a hold rule will be marked as on hold and not scheduled for delivery.

usage: mox queue holdrules list

mox queue holdrules add #

Add hold rule for the delivery queue.

Add a hold rule to mark matching newly submitted messages as on hold. Set the matching rules with the flags. Don't specify any flags to match all submitted messages.

usage: mox queue holdrules add [ruleflags]
  -account string
    	account submitting the message
  -recipientdom string
    	recipient domain
  -senderdom string
    	sender domain

mox queue holdrules remove #

Remove hold rule for the delivery queue.

Remove a hold rule by its id.

usage: mox queue holdrules remove ruleid

mox queue list #

List matching messages in the delivery queue.

Prints the message with its ID, last and next delivery attempts, last error.

usage: mox queue list [filtersortflags]
  -account string
    	account that queued the message
  -asc
    	sort ascending instead of descending (default)
  -from string
    	from address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -hold value
    	true or false, whether to match only messages that are (not) on hold
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of message IDs
  -n int
    	number of messages to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -sort value
    	field to sort by, "nextattempt" (default) or "queued"
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -to string
    	recipient address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -transport value
    	transport to use for messages, empty string sets the default behaviour

mox queue hold #

Mark matching messages on hold.

Messages that are on hold are not delivered until marked as off hold again, or otherwise handled by the admin.

usage: mox queue hold [filterflags]
  -account string
    	account that queued the message
  -from string
    	from address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -hold value
    	true or false, whether to match only messages that are (not) on hold
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of message IDs
  -n int
    	number of messages to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -to string
    	recipient address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -transport value
    	transport to use for messages, empty string sets the default behaviour

mox queue unhold #

Mark matching messages off hold.

Once off hold, messages can be delivered according to their current next delivery attempt. See the "queue schedule" command.

usage: mox queue unhold [filterflags]
  -account string
    	account that queued the message
  -from string
    	from address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -hold value
    	true or false, whether to match only messages that are (not) on hold
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of message IDs
  -n int
    	number of messages to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -to string
    	recipient address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -transport value
    	transport to use for messages, empty string sets the default behaviour

mox queue schedule #

Change next delivery attempt for matching messages.

The next delivery attempt is adjusted by the duration parameter. If the -now flag is set, the new delivery attempt is set to the duration added to the current time, instead of added to the current scheduled time.

Schedule immediate delivery with "mox queue schedule -now 0".

usage: mox queue schedule [filterflags] [-now] duration
  -account string
    	account that queued the message
  -from string
    	from address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -hold value
    	true or false, whether to match only messages that are (not) on hold
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of message IDs
  -n int
    	number of messages to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -now
    	schedule for duration relative to current time instead of relative to current next delivery attempt for messages
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -to string
    	recipient address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -transport value
    	transport to use for messages, empty string sets the default behaviour

mox queue transport #

Set transport for matching messages.

By default, the routing rules determine how a message is delivered. The default and common case is direct delivery with SMTP. Messages can get a previously configured transport assigned to use for delivery, e.g. using submission to another mail server or with connections over a SOCKS proxy.

usage: mox queue transport [filterflags] transport
  -account string
    	account that queued the message
  -from string
    	from address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -hold value
    	true or false, whether to match only messages that are (not) on hold
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of message IDs
  -n int
    	number of messages to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -to string
    	recipient address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -transport value
    	transport to use for messages, empty string sets the default behaviour

mox queue requiretls #

Set TLS requirements for delivery of matching messages.

Value "yes" is handled as if the RequireTLS extension was specified during submission.

Value "no" is handled as if the message has a header "TLS-Required: No". This header is not added by the queue. If messages without this header are relayed through other mail servers they will apply their own default TLS policy.

Value "default" is the default behaviour, currently for unverified opportunistic TLS.

usage: mox queue requiretls [filterflags] {yes | no | default}
  -account string
    	account that queued the message
  -from string
    	from address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -hold value
    	true or false, whether to match only messages that are (not) on hold
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of message IDs
  -n int
    	number of messages to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -to string
    	recipient address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -transport value
    	transport to use for messages, empty string sets the default behaviour

mox queue fail #

Fail delivery of matching messages, delivering DSNs.

Failing a message is handled similar to how delivery is given up after all delivery attempts failed. The DSN (delivery status notification) message contains a line saying the message was canceled by the admin.

usage: mox queue fail [filterflags]
  -account string
    	account that queued the message
  -from string
    	from address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -hold value
    	true or false, whether to match only messages that are (not) on hold
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of message IDs
  -n int
    	number of messages to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -to string
    	recipient address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -transport value
    	transport to use for messages, empty string sets the default behaviour

mox queue drop #

Remove matching messages from the queue.

Dangerous operation, this completely removes the message. If you want to store the message, use "queue dump" before removing.

usage: mox queue drop [filterflags]
  -account string
    	account that queued the message
  -from string
    	from address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -hold value
    	true or false, whether to match only messages that are (not) on hold
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of message IDs
  -n int
    	number of messages to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -to string
    	recipient address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -transport value
    	transport to use for messages, empty string sets the default behaviour

mox queue dump #

Dump a message from the queue.

The message is printed to stdout and is in standard internet mail format.

usage: mox queue dump id

mox queue retired list #

List matching messages in the retired queue.

Prints messages with their ID and results.

usage: mox queue retired list [filtersortflags]
  -account string
    	account that queued the message
  -asc
    	sort ascending instead of descending (default)
  -from string
    	from address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of retired message IDs
  -lastactivity string
    	filter by time of last activity relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -n int
    	number of messages to return
  -result value
    	"success" or "failure" as result of delivery
  -sort value
    	field to sort by, "lastactivity" (default) or "queued"
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -to string
    	recipient address of message, use "@example.com" to match all messages for a domain
  -transport value
    	transport to use for messages, empty string sets the default behaviour

mox queue retired print #

Print a message from the retired queue.

Prints a JSON representation of the information from the retired queue.

usage: mox queue retired print id

mox queue suppress list #

Print addresses in suppression list.

usage: mox queue suppress list [-account account]
  -account string
    	only show suppression list for this account

mox queue suppress add #

Add address to suppression list for account.

usage: mox queue suppress add account address

mox queue suppress remove #

Remove address from suppression list for account.

usage: mox queue suppress remove account address

mox queue suppress lookup #

Check if address is present in suppression list, for any or specific account.

usage: mox queue suppress lookup [-account account] address
  -account string
    	only check address in specified account

mox queue webhook list #

List matching webhooks in the queue.

Prints list of webhooks, their IDs and basic information.

usage: mox queue webhook list [filtersortflags]
  -account string
    	account that queued the message/webhook
  -asc
    	sort ascending instead of descending (default)
  -event value
    	event this webhook is about: incoming, delivered, suppressed, delayed, failed, relayed, expanded, canceled, unrecognized
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of webhook IDs
  -n int
    	number of webhooks to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -sort value
    	field to sort by, "nextattempt" (default) or "queued"
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)

mox queue webhook schedule #

Change next delivery attempt for matching webhooks.

The next delivery attempt is adjusted by the duration parameter. If the -now flag is set, the new delivery attempt is set to the duration added to the current time, instead of added to the current scheduled time.

Schedule immediate delivery with "mox queue schedule -now 0".

usage: mox queue webhook schedule [filterflags] duration
  -account string
    	account that queued the message/webhook
  -event value
    	event this webhook is about: incoming, delivered, suppressed, delayed, failed, relayed, expanded, canceled, unrecognized
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of webhook IDs
  -n int
    	number of webhooks to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -now
    	schedule for duration relative to current time instead of relative to current next delivery attempt for webhooks
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)

mox queue webhook cancel #

Fail delivery of matching webhooks.

usage: mox queue webhook cancel [filterflags]
  -account string
    	account that queued the message/webhook
  -event value
    	event this webhook is about: incoming, delivered, suppressed, delayed, failed, relayed, expanded, canceled, unrecognized
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of webhook IDs
  -n int
    	number of webhooks to return
  -nextattempt string
    	filter by time of next delivery attempt relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)

mox queue webhook print #

Print details of a webhook from the queue.

The webhook is printed to stdout as JSON.

usage: mox queue webhook print id

mox queue webhook retired list #

List matching webhooks in the retired queue.

Prints list of retired webhooks, their IDs and basic information.

usage: mox queue webhook retired list [filtersortflags]
  -account string
    	account that queued the message/webhook
  -asc
    	sort ascending instead of descending (default)
  -event value
    	event this webhook is about: incoming, delivered, suppressed, delayed, failed, relayed, expanded, canceled, unrecognized
  -ids value
    	comma-separated list of retired webhook IDs
  -lastactivity string
    	filter by time of last activity relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)
  -n int
    	number of webhooks to return
  -sort value
    	field to sort by, "lastactivity" (default) or "queued"
  -submitted string
    	filter by time of submission relative to now, value must start with "<" (before now) or ">" (after now)

mox queue webhook retired print #

Print details of a webhook from the retired queue.

The retired webhook is printed to stdout as JSON.

usage: mox queue webhook retired print id

mox import maildir #

Import a maildir into an account.

The mbox/maildir archive is accessed and imported by the running mox process, so it must have access to the archive files. The default suggested systemd service file isolates mox from most of the file system, with only the "data/" directory accessible, so you may want to put the mbox/maildir archive files in a directory like "data/import/" to make it available to mox.

By default, messages will train the junk filter based on their flags and, if "automatic junk flags" configuration is set, based on mailbox naming.

If the destination mailbox is the Sent mailbox, the recipients of the messages are added to the message metadata, causing later incoming messages from these recipients to be accepted, unless other reputation signals prevent that.

Users can also import mailboxes/messages through the account web page by uploading a zip or tgz file with mbox and/or maildirs.

Messages are imported even if already present. Importing messages twice will result in duplicate messages.

Mailbox flags, like "seen", "answered", will be imported. An optional dovecot-keywords file can specify additional flags, like Forwarded/Junk/NotJunk.

usage: mox import maildir accountname mailboxname maildir

mox import mbox #

Import an mbox into an account.

Using mbox is not recommended, maildir is a better defined format.

The mbox/maildir archive is accessed and imported by the running mox process, so it must have access to the archive files. The default suggested systemd service file isolates mox from most of the file system, with only the "data/" directory accessible, so you may want to put the mbox/maildir archive files in a directory like "data/import/" to make it available to mox.

By default, messages will train the junk filter based on their flags and, if "automatic junk flags" configuration is set, based on mailbox naming.

If the destination mailbox is the Sent mailbox, the recipients of the messages are added to the message metadata, causing later incoming messages from these recipients to be accepted, unless other reputation signals prevent that.

Users can also import mailboxes/messages through the account web page by uploading a zip or tgz file with mbox and/or maildirs.

Messages are imported even if already present. Importing messages twice will result in duplicate messages.

usage: mox import mbox accountname mailboxname mbox

mox export maildir #

Export one or all mailboxes from an account in maildir format.

Export bypasses a running mox instance. It opens the account mailbox/message database file directly. This may block if a running mox instance also has the database open, e.g. for IMAP connections. To export from a running instance, use the accounts web page or webmail.

usage: mox export maildir [-single] dst-dir account-path [mailbox]
  -single
    	export single mailbox, without any children. disabled if mailbox isn't specified.

mox export mbox #

Export messages from one or all mailboxes in an account in mbox format.

Using mbox is not recommended. Maildir is a better format.

Export bypasses a running mox instance. It opens the account mailbox/message database file directly. This may block if a running mox instance also has the database open, e.g. for IMAP connections. To export from a running instance, use the accounts web page or webmail.

For mbox export, "mboxrd" is used where message lines starting with the magic "From " string are escaped by prepending a >. All ">*From " are escaped, otherwise reconstructing the original could lose a ">".

usage: mox export mbox [-single] dst-dir account-path [mailbox]
  -single
    	export single mailbox, without any children. disabled if mailbox isn't specified.

mox localserve #

Start a local SMTP/IMAP server that accepts all messages, useful when testing/developing software that sends email.

Localserve starts mox with a configuration suitable for local email-related software development/testing. It listens for SMTP/Submission(s), IMAP(s) and HTTP(s), on the regular port numbers + 1000.

Data is stored in the system user's configuration directory under "mox-localserve", e.g. $HOME/.config/mox-localserve/ on linux, but can be overridden with the -dir flag. If the directory does not yet exist, it is automatically initialized with configuration files, an account with email address mox@localhost and password moxmoxmox, and a newly generated self-signed TLS certificate.

Incoming messages are delivered as normal, falling back to accepting and delivering to the mox account for unknown addresses. Submitted messages are added to the queue, which delivers by ignoring the destination servers, always connecting to itself instead.

Recipient addresses with the following localpart suffixes are handled specially:

• "temperror": fail with a temporary error code
• "permerror": fail with a permanent error code
• [45][0-9][0-9]: fail with the specific error code
• "timeout": no response (for an hour)

If the localpart begins with "mailfrom" or "rcptto", the error is returned during those commands instead of during "data".

usage: mox localserve
  -dir string
    	configuration storage directory (default "$userconfigdir/mox-localserve")
  -initonly
    	write configuration files and exit
  -ip string
    	serve on this ip instead of default 127.0.0.1 and ::1. only used when writing configuration, at first launch.

mox help #

Prints help about matching commands.

If multiple commands match, they are listed along with the first line of their help text. If a single command matches, its usage and full help text is printed.

usage: mox help [command ...]

mox backup #

Creates a backup of the data directory.

Backup creates consistent snapshots of the databases and message files and copies other files in the data directory. Empty directories are not copied. These files can then be stored elsewhere for long-term storage, or used to fall back to should an upgrade fail. Simply copying files in the data directory while mox is running can result in unusable database files.

Message files never change (they are read-only, though can be removed) and are hard-linked so they don't consume additional space. If hardlinking fails, for example when the backup destination directory is on a different file system, a regular copy is made. Using a destination directory like "data/tmp/backup" increases the odds hardlinking succeeds: the default systemd service file specifically mounts the data directory, causing attempts to hardlink outside it to fail with an error about cross-device linking.

All files in the data directory that aren't recognized (i.e. other than known database files, message files, an acme directory, the "tmp" directory, etc), are stored, but with a warning.

Remove files in the destination directory before doing another backup. The backup command will not overwrite files, but print and return errors.

Exit code 0 indicates the backup was successful. A clean successful backup does not print any output, but may print warnings. Use the -verbose flag for details, including timing.

To restore a backup, first shut down mox, move away the old data directory and move an earlier backed up directory in its place, run "mox verifydata", possibly with the "-fix" option, and restart mox. After the restore, you may also want to run "mox bumpuidvalidity" for each account for which messages in a mailbox changed, to force IMAP clients to synchronize mailbox state.

Before upgrading, to check if the upgrade will likely succeed, first make a backup, then use the new mox binary to run "mox verifydata" on the backup. This can change the backup files (e.g. upgrade database files, move away unrecognized message files), so you should make a new backup before actually upgrading.

usage: mox backup dest-dir
  -verbose
    	print progress

mox verifydata #

Verify the contents of a data directory, typically of a backup.

Verifydata checks all database files to see if they are valid BoltDB/bstore databases. It checks that all messages in the database have a corresponding on-disk message file and there are no unrecognized files. If option -fix is specified, unrecognized message files are moved away. This may be needed after a restore, because messages enqueued or delivered in the future may get those message sequence numbers assigned and writing the message file would fail. Consistency of message/mailbox UID, UIDNEXT and UIDVALIDITY is verified as well.

Because verifydata opens the database files, schema upgrades may automatically be applied. This can happen if you use a new mox release. It is useful to run "mox verifydata" with a new binary before attempting an upgrade, but only on a copy of the database files, as made with "mox backup". Before upgrading, make a new backup again since "mox verifydata" may have upgraded the database files, possibly making them potentially no longer readable by the previous version.

usage: mox verifydata data-dir
  -fix
    	fix fixable problems, such as moving away message files not referenced by their database
  -skip-size-check
    	skip the check for message size

mox licenses #

Print licenses of mox source code and dependencies.

usage: mox licenses

mox config test #

Parses and validates the configuration files.

If valid, the command exits with status 0. If not valid, all errors encountered are printed.

usage: mox config test

mox config dnscheck #

Check the DNS records with the configuration for the domain, and print any errors/warnings.

usage: mox config dnscheck domain

mox config dnsrecords #

Prints annotated DNS records as zone file that should be created for the domain.

The zone file can be imported into existing DNS software. You should review the DNS records, especially if your domain previously/currently has email configured.

usage: mox config dnsrecords domain

mox config describe-domains #

Prints an annotated empty configuration for use as domains.conf.

The domains configuration file contains the domains and their configuration, and accounts and their configuration. This includes the configured email addresses. The mox admin web interface, and the mox command line interface, can make changes to this file. Mox automatically reloads this file when it changes.

Like the static configuration, the example domains.conf printed by this command needs modifications to make it valid.

usage: mox config describe-domains >domains.conf

mox config describe-static #

Prints an annotated empty configuration for use as mox.conf.

The static configuration file cannot be reloaded while mox is running. Mox has to be restarted for changes to the static configuration file to take effect.

This configuration file needs modifications to make it valid. For example, it may contain unfinished list items.

usage: mox config describe-static >mox.conf

mox config account add #

Add an account with an email address and reload the configuration.

Email can be delivered to this address/account. A password has to be configured explicitly, see the setaccountpassword command.

usage: mox config account add account address

mox config account rm #

Remove an account and reload the configuration.

Email addresses for this account will also be removed, and incoming email for these addresses will be rejected.

All data for the account will be removed.

usage: mox config account rm account

mox config address add #

Adds an address to an account and reloads the configuration.

If address starts with a @ (i.e. a missing localpart), this is a catchall address for the domain.

usage: mox config address add address account

mox config address rm #

Remove an address and reload the configuration.

Incoming email for this address will be rejected after removing an address.

usage: mox config address rm address

mox config domain add #

Adds a new domain to the configuration and reloads the configuration.

The account is used for the postmaster mailboxes the domain, including as DMARC and TLS reporting. Localpart is the "username" at the domain for this account. If must be set if and only if account does not yet exist.

usage: mox config domain add domain account [localpart]

mox config domain rm #

Remove a domain from the configuration and reload the configuration.

This is a dangerous operation. Incoming email delivery for this domain will be rejected.

usage: mox config domain rm domain

mox config alias list #

List aliases for domain.

usage: mox config alias list domain

mox config alias print #

Print settings and members of alias.

usage: mox config alias print alias

mox config alias add #

Add new alias with one or more addresses.

usage: mox config alias add alias@domain rcpt1@domain ...

mox config alias update #

Update alias configuration.

usage: mox config alias update alias@domain [-postpublic false|true -listmembers false|true -allowmsgfrom false|true]
  -allowmsgfrom string
    	whether alias address can be used in message from header
  -listmembers string
    	whether list members can list members
  -postpublic string
    	whether anyone or only list members can post

mox config alias rm #

Remove alias.

usage: mox config alias rm alias@domain

mox config alias addaddr #

Add addresses to alias.

usage: mox config alias addaddr alias@domain rcpt1@domain ...

mox config alias rmaddr #

Remove addresses from alias.

usage: mox config alias rmaddr alias@domain rcpt1@domain ...

mox config describe-sendmail #

Describe configuration for mox when invoked as sendmail.

usage: mox config describe-sendmail >/etc/moxsubmit.conf

mox config printservice #

Prints a systemd unit service file for mox.

This is the same file as generated using quickstart. If the systemd service file has changed with a newer version of mox, use this command to generate an up to date version.

usage: mox config printservice >mox.service

mox config ensureacmehostprivatekeys #

Ensure host private keys exist for TLS listeners with ACME.

In mox.conf, each listener can have TLS configured. Long-lived private key files can be specified, which will be used when requesting ACME certificates. Configuring these private keys makes it feasible to publish DANE TLSA records for the corresponding public keys in DNS, protected with DNSSEC, allowing TLS certificate verification without depending on a list of Certificate Authorities (CAs). Previous versions of mox did not pre-generate private keys for use with ACME certificates, but would generate private keys on-demand. By explicitly configuring private keys, they will not change automatedly with new certificates, and the DNS TLSA records stay valid.

This command looks for listeners in mox.conf with TLS with ACME configured. For each missing host private key (of type rsa-2048 and ecdsa-p256) a key is written to config/hostkeys/. If a certificate exists in the ACME "cache", its private key is copied. Otherwise a new private key is generated. Snippets for manually updating/editing mox.conf are printed.

After running this command, and updating mox.conf, run "mox config dnsrecords" for a domain and create the TLSA DNS records it suggests to enable DANE.

usage: mox config ensureacmehostprivatekeys

mox config example #

List available config examples, or print a specific example.

usage: mox config example [name]

mox checkupdate #

Check if a newer version of mox is available.

A single DNS TXT lookup to _updates.xmox.nl tells if a new version is available. If so, a changelog is fetched from https://updates.xmox.nl, and the individual entries verified with a builtin public key. The changelog is printed.

usage: mox checkupdate

mox cid #

Turn an ID from a Received header into a cid, for looking up in logs.

A cid is essentially a connection counter initialized when mox starts. Each log line contains a cid. Received headers added by mox contain a unique ID that can be decrypted to a cid by admin of a mox instance only.

usage: mox cid cid

mox clientconfig #

Print the configuration for email clients for a domain.

Sending email is typically not done on the SMTP port 25, but on submission ports 465 (with TLS) and 587 (without initial TLS, but usually added to the connection with STARTTLS). For IMAP, the port with TLS is 993 and without is 143.

Without TLS/STARTTLS, passwords are sent in clear text, which should only be configured over otherwise secured connections, like a VPN.

usage: mox clientconfig domain

mox dane dial #

Dial the address using TLS with certificate verification using DANE.

Data is copied between connection and stdin/stdout until either side closes the connection.

usage: mox dane dial host:port
  -usages string
    	allowed usages for dane, comma-separated list (default "pkix-ta,pkix-ee,dane-ta,dane-ee")

mox dane dialmx #

Connect to MX server for domain using STARTTLS verified with DANE.

If no destination host is specified, regular delivery logic is used to find the hosts to attempt delivery too. This involves following CNAMEs for the domain, looking up MX records, and possibly falling back to the domain name itself as host.

If a destination host is specified, that is the only candidate host considered for dialing.

With a list of destinations gathered, each is dialed until a successful SMTP session verified with DANE has been initialized, including EHLO and STARTTLS commands.

Once connected, data is copied between connection and stdin/stdout, until either side closes the connection.

This command follows the same logic as delivery attempts made from the queue, sharing most of its code.

usage: mox dane dialmx domain [destination-host]
  -ehlohostname string
    	hostname to send in smtp ehlo command (default "localhost")

mox dane makerecord #

Print TLSA record for given certificate/key and parameters.

Valid values: - usage: pkix-ta (0), pkix-ee (1), dane-ta (2), dane-ee (3) - selector: cert (0), spki (1) - matchtype: full (0), sha2-256 (1), sha2-512 (2)

Common DANE TLSA record parameters are: dane-ee spki sha2-256, or 3 1 1, followed by a sha2-256 hash of the DER-encoded "SPKI" (subject public key info) from the certificate. An example DNS zone file entry:

_25._tcp.example.com. TLSA 3 1 1 133b919c9d65d8b1488157315327334ead8d83372db57465ecabf53ee5748aee

The first usable information from the pem file is used to compose the TLSA record. In case of selector "cert", a certificate is required. Otherwise the "subject public key info" (spki) of the first certificate or public or private key (pkcs#8, pkcs#1 or ec private key) is used.

usage: mox dane makerecord usage selector matchtype [certificate.pem | publickey.pem | privatekey.pem]

mox dns lookup #

Lookup DNS name of given type.

Lookup always prints whether the response was DNSSEC-protected.

Examples:

mox dns lookup ptr 1.1.1.1 mox dns lookup mx xmox.nl mox dns lookup txt _dmarc.xmox.nl. mox dns lookup tlsa _25._tcp.xmox.nl

usage: mox dns lookup [ptr | mx | cname | ips | a | aaaa | ns | txt | srv | tlsa] name

mox dkim gened25519 #

Generate a new ed25519 key for use with DKIM.

Ed25519 keys are much smaller than RSA keys of comparable cryptographic strength. This is convenient because of maximum DNS message sizes. At the time of writing, not many mail servers appear to support ed25519 DKIM keys though, so it is recommended to sign messages with both RSA and ed25519 keys.

usage: mox dkim gened25519 >$selector._domainkey.$domain.ed25519.privatekey.pkcs8.pem

mox dkim genrsa #

Generate a new 2048 bit RSA private key for use with DKIM.

The generated file is in PEM format, and has a comment it is generated for use with DKIM, by mox.

usage: mox dkim genrsa >$selector._domainkey.$domain.rsa2048.privatekey.pkcs8.pem

mox dkim lookup #

Lookup and print the DKIM record for the selector at the domain.

usage: mox dkim lookup selector domain

mox dkim txt #

Print a DKIM DNS TXT record with the public key derived from the private key read from stdin.

The DNS should be configured as a TXT record at $selector._domainkey.$domain.

usage: mox dkim txt <$selector._domainkey.$domain.key.pkcs8.pem

mox dkim verify #

Verify the DKIM signatures in a message and print the results.

The message is parsed, and the DKIM-Signature headers are validated. Validation of older messages may fail because the DNS records have been removed or changed by now, or because the signature header may have specified an expiration time that was passed.

usage: mox dkim verify message

mox dkim sign #

Sign a message, adding DKIM-Signature headers based on the domain in the From header.

The message is parsed, the domain looked up in the configuration files, and DKIM-Signature headers generated. The message is printed with the DKIM-Signature headers prepended.

usage: mox dkim sign message

mox dmarc lookup #

Lookup dmarc policy for domain, a DNS TXT record at _dmarc., validate and print it.

usage: mox dmarc lookup domain

mox dmarc parsereportmsg #

Parse a DMARC report from an email message, and print its extracted details.

DMARC reports are periodically mailed, if requested in the DMARC DNS record of a domain. Reports are sent by mail servers that received messages with our domain in a From header. This may or may not be legatimate email. DMARC reports contain summaries of evaluations of DMARC and DKIM/SPF, which can help understand email deliverability problems.

usage: mox dmarc parsereportmsg message ...

mox dmarc verify #

Parse an email message and evaluate it against the DMARC policy of the domain in the From-header.

mailfromaddress and helodomain are used for SPF validation. If both are empty, SPF validation is skipped.

mailfromaddress should be the address used as MAIL FROM in the SMTP session. For DSN messages, that address may be empty. The helo domain was specified at the beginning of the SMTP transaction that delivered the message. These values can be found in message headers.

usage: mox dmarc verify remoteip mailfromaddress helodomain < message

mox dmarc checkreportaddrs #

For each reporting address in the domain's DMARC record, check if it has opted into receiving reports (if needed).

A DMARC record can request reports about DMARC evaluations to be sent to an email/http address. If the organizational domains of that of the DMARC record and that of the report destination address do not match, the destination address must opt-in to receiving DMARC reports by creating a DMARC record at ._report._dmarc..

usage: mox dmarc checkreportaddrs domain

mox dnsbl check #

Test if IP is in the DNS blocklist of the zone, e.g. bl.spamcop.net.

If the IP is in the blocklist, an explanation is printed. This is typically a URL with more information.

usage: mox dnsbl check zone ip

mox dnsbl checkhealth #

Check the health of the DNS blocklist represented by zone, e.g. bl.spamcop.net.

The health of a DNS blocklist can be checked by querying for 127.0.0.1 and 127.0.0.2. The second must and the first must not be present.

usage: mox dnsbl checkhealth zone

mox mtasts lookup #

Lookup the MTASTS record and policy for the domain.

MTA-STS is a mechanism for a domain to specify if it requires TLS connections for delivering email. If a domain has a valid MTA-STS DNS TXT record at _mta-sts. it signals it implements MTA-STS. A policy can then be fetched at https://mta-sts./.well-known/mta-sts.txt. The policy specifies the mode (enforce, testing, none), which MX servers support TLS and should be used, and how long the policy can be cached.

usage: mox mtasts lookup domain

mox retrain #

Recreate and retrain the junk filter for the account.

Useful after having made changes to the junk filter configuration, or if the implementation has changed.

usage: mox retrain accountname

mox sendmail #

Sendmail is a drop-in replacement for /usr/sbin/sendmail to deliver emails sent by unix processes like cron.

If invoked as "sendmail", it will act as sendmail for sending messages. Its intention is to let processes like cron send emails. Messages are submitted to an actual mail server over SMTP. The destination mail server and credentials are configured in /etc/moxsubmit.conf, see mox config describe-sendmail. The From message header is rewritten to the configured address. When the addressee appears to be a local user, because without @, the message is sent to the configured default address.

If submitting an email fails, it is added to a directory moxsubmit.failures in the user's home directory.

Most flags are ignored to fake compatibility with other sendmail implementations. A single recipient or the -t flag with a To-header is required. With the -t flag, Cc and Bcc headers are not handled specially, so Bcc is not removed and the addresses do not receive the email.

/etc/moxsubmit.conf should be group-readable and not readable by others and this binary should be setgid that group:

groupadd moxsubmit
install -m 2755 -o root -g moxsubmit mox /usr/sbin/sendmail
touch /etc/moxsubmit.conf
chown root:moxsubmit /etc/moxsubmit.conf
chmod 640 /etc/moxsubmit.conf
# edit /etc/moxsubmit.conf


usage: mox sendmail [-Fname] [ignoredflags] [-t] [<message]

mox spf check #

Check the status of IP for the policy published in DNS for the domain.

IPs may be allowed to send for a domain, or disallowed, and several shades in between. If not allowed, an explanation may be provided by the policy. If so, the explanation is printed. The SPF mechanism that matched (if any) is also printed.

usage: mox spf check domain ip

mox spf lookup #

Lookup the SPF record for the domain and print it.

usage: mox spf lookup domain

mox spf parse #

Parse the record as SPF record. If valid, nothing is printed.

usage: mox spf parse txtrecord

mox tlsrpt lookup #

Lookup the TLSRPT record for the domain.

A TLSRPT record typically contains an email address where reports about TLS connectivity should be sent. Mail servers attempting delivery to our domain should attempt to use TLS. TLSRPT lets them report how many connection successfully used TLS, and how what kind of errors occurred otherwise.

usage: mox tlsrpt lookup domain

mox tlsrpt parsereportmsg #

Parse and print the TLSRPT in the message.

The report is printed in formatted JSON.

usage: mox tlsrpt parsereportmsg message ...

mox version #

Prints this mox version.

usage: mox version

mox webapi #

Lists available methods, prints request/response parameters for method, or calls a method with a request read from standard input.

usage: mox webapi [method [baseurl-with-credentials]

mox example #

List available examples, or print a specific example.

usage: mox example [name]

mox bumpuidvalidity #

Change the IMAP UID validity of the mailbox, causing IMAP clients to refetch messages.

This can be useful after manually repairing metadata about the account/mailbox.

Opens account database file directly. Ensure mox does not have the account open, or is not running.

usage: mox bumpuidvalidity account [mailbox]

mox reassignuids #

Reassign UIDs in one mailbox or all mailboxes in an account and bump UID validity, causing IMAP clients to refetch messages.

Opens account database file directly. Ensure mox does not have the account open, or is not running.

usage: mox reassignuids account [mailboxid]

mox fixuidmeta #

Fix inconsistent UIDVALIDITY and UIDNEXT in messages/mailboxes/account.

The next UID to use for a message in a mailbox should always be higher than any existing message UID in the mailbox. If it is not, the mailbox UIDNEXT is updated.

Each mailbox has a UIDVALIDITY sequence number, which should always be lower than the per-account next UIDVALIDITY to use. If it is not, the account next UIDVALIDITY is updated.

Opens account database file directly. Ensure mox does not have the account open, or is not running.

usage: mox fixuidmeta account

mox fixmsgsize #

Ensure message sizes in the database matching the sum of the message prefix length and on-disk file size.

Messages with an inconsistent size are also parsed again.

If an inconsistency is found, you should probably also run "mox bumpuidvalidity" on the mailboxes or entire account to force IMAP clients to refetch messages.

usage: mox fixmsgsize [account]

mox reparse #

Parse all messages in the account or all accounts again.

Can be useful after upgrading mox with improved message parsing. Messages are parsed in batches, so other access to the mailboxes/messages are not blocked while reparsing all messages.

usage: mox reparse [account]

mox ensureparsed #

Ensure messages in the database have a pre-parsed MIME form in the database.

usage: mox ensureparsed account
  -all
    	store new parsed message for all messages

mox recalculatemailboxcounts #

Recalculate message counts for all mailboxes in the account, and total message size for quota.

When a message is added to/removed from a mailbox, or when message flags change, the total, unread, unseen and deleted messages are accounted, the total size of the mailbox, and the total message size for the account. In case of a bug in this accounting, the numbers could become incorrect. This command will find, fix and print them.

usage: mox recalculatemailboxcounts account

mox message parse #

Parse message, print JSON representation.

usage: mox message parse message.eml
  -smtputf8
    	check if message needs smtputf8

mox reassignthreads #

Reassign message threads.

For all accounts, or optionally only the specified account.

Threading for all messages in an account is first reset, and new base subject and normalized message-id saved with the message. Then all messages are evaluated and matched against their parents/ancestors.

Messages are matched based on the References header, with a fall-back to an In-Reply-To header, and if neither is present/valid, based only on base subject.

A References header typically points to multiple previous messages in a hierarchy. From oldest ancestor to most recent parent. An In-Reply-To header would have only a message-id of the parent message.

A message is only linked to a parent/ancestor if their base subject is the same. This ensures unrelated replies, with a new subject, are placed in their own thread.

The base subject is lower cased, has whitespace collapsed to a single space, and some components removed: leading "Re:", "Fwd:", "Fw:", or bracketed tag (that mailing lists often add, e.g. "[listname]"), trailing "(fwd)", or enclosing "[fwd: ...]".

Messages are linked to all their ancestors. If an intermediate parent/ancestor message is deleted in the future, the message can still be linked to the earlier ancestors. If the direct parent already wasn't available while matching, this is stored as the message having a "missing link" to its stored ancestors.

usage: mox reassignthreads [account]