Operating system CentOS Linux 5
Webmin version 1.410
Virtualmin version 3.56 (Pro)

Can't receive mail as mail sent to any user on the server gets a "User unknown in virtual alias table" error bounce.

Here is an example.

Create a virtual server called example.com
Administration username of admin

Add a mail user named bob

Try to send bob an email at bob@example.com
Get an error

Confirm bob has been added to the /etc/postfix/virtual file
bob@example.com bob.example


This is the error that is logged:
May 19 18:00:56 vps postfix/smtpd[7654]: NOQUEUE: reject: RCPT from wa-out-1112.google.com[209.85.146.177]: 550 5.1.1 <bob.example@example.com>: Recipient address rejected: User unknown in virtual alias table; from=<me@gmail.com> to=<bob.example@example.com> proto=ESMTP helo=<wa-out-1112.google.com>


Then it gets stranger :)

If I try to send an email to admin@example.com I get a bounce and this error is logged:
May 19 18:44:24 vps postfix/error[24549]: 1A9DA5A086A4: to=<admin@MyVPSDomain.net>, orig_to=<admin@example.com>, relay=none, delay=0.28, delays=0.23/0.02/0/0.03, dsn=5.0.0, status=bounced (User unknown in virtual alias table)

Confirm admin has been added to the /etc/postfix/virtual file
admin@example.com admin

so it looks like it is trying to map mail for the virtual server's admin to the wrong domain

MX comes up fine in a DNS lookup:
;; ANSWER SECTION:
example.com. 19249 IN MX 5 mail.example.com.

In Webmin under Network Configuration/Hostname and DNS Client I have my DNS server IP as well as 127.0.0.1

All http and mysql services are working fine.

Of course example.com has been substituted in the info above for the real domain of my virtual server.

What can I do to fix the email issue?

Post edited by: velvetpixel, at: 2008/05/19 17:11

Oh and here is my postconf output

postconf -n
alias_database = hash:/etc/aliases
alias_maps = hash:/etc/aliases
broken_sasl_auth_clients = yes
command_directory = /usr/sbin
config_directory = /etc/postfix
daemon_directory = /usr/libexec/postfix
debug_peer_level = 2
home_mailbox = Maildir/
html_directory = no
mailbox_command = /usr/bin/procmail-wrapper -o -a $DOMAIN -d $LOGNAME
mailq_path = /usr/bin/mailq.postfix
manpage_directory = /usr/share/man
mydestination = $myhostname, localhost.$mydomain, localhost, vps.MyVPSDomain.net
myorigin = $mydomain
newaliases_path = /usr/bin/newaliases.postfix
qmgr_message_active_limit = 4000
readme_directory = /usr/share/doc/postfix-2.3.3/README_FILES
sample_directory = /usr/share/doc/postfix-2.3.3/samples
sender_bcc_maps = hash:/etc/postfix/bcc
sendmail_path = /usr/sbin/sendmail.postfix
setgid_group = postdrop
smtpd_recipient_restrictions = permit_mynetworks permit_sasl_authenticated reject_unauth_destination
smtpd_sasl_auth_enable = yes
smtpd_sasl_security_options = noanonymous
unknown_local_recipient_reject_code = 550
virtual_alias_maps = hash:/etc/postfix/virtual

OK

I poked around a bit and in Webmin/Postfix/General Options the second field is "What domains to receive mail for"

Mine looked like this:
$myhostname, localhost.$mydomain, localhost, vps.MyVPSDomain.net

I added $mydomain to make it look like this:
$myhostname, localhost.$mydomain, localhost, $mydomain, vps.MyVPSDomain.net


Now mail seems to work fine! :)

Before I did that I could not send mail to any user at any of my virtual servers and I also could not check mail in the Webmin Read User Mail module as two of the accounts listed there showed they had mail but when clicked the page listed no mail.

After I added $mydomain I am able to receive mail at all accounts and am able to view old and new mail in the Webmin Read User Mail module.

Is there a way that $mydomain was not added during install? I am on a OpenVZ VPS if that matters.

Is there anything else I should do to make sure that my mail system is functioning properly?

you know mail configuration usually gives me headaches.
I have a centos 5 and default setup. all works fine.
So all i can do is post my postconf -n and per haps this helps a bit.

postconf -n
alias_database = hash:/etc/aliases
alias_maps = hash:/etc/aliases
broken_sasl_auth_clients = yes
command_directory = /usr/sbin
config_directory = /etc/postfix
daemon_directory = /usr/libexec/postfix
default_destination_concurrency_limit = 10
home_mailbox = Maildir/
html_directory = no
mailbox_command = /usr/bin/procmail-wrapper -o -a $DOMAIN -d $LOGNAME
mailq_path = /usr/bin/mailq.postfix
manpage_directory = /usr/share/man
maximal_queue_lifetime = 3d
newaliases_path = /usr/bin/newaliases.postfix
readme_directory = /usr/share/doc/postfix-2.3.3/README_FILES
sample_directory = /usr/share/doc/postfix-2.3.3/samples
sendmail_path = /usr/sbin/sendmail.postfix
setgid_group = postdrop
smtpd_recipient_restrictions = permit_mynetworks permit_sasl_authenticated rejec t_unauth_destination
smtpd_sasl_auth_enable = yes
smtpd_sasl_security_options = noanonymous
unknown_local_recipient_reject_code = 550
virtual_alias_maps = hash:/etc/postfix/virtual

Thanks for that!

It helps to be able to compare :)

I poked around a bit and in Webmin/Postfix/General Options the second field is "What domains to receive mail for"

This probably isn't actually the ideal solution. You've probably got something set incorrectly in your hostname--do you have a fully qualified domain name? e.g.:

hostname -f

Does it result in a fully qualified domain? And can that name be looked up with host?

host name.from.above

(Where name.from.above should, obviously, be replaced with the name you got back from the hostname -f command.)

Postfix is very sensitive to having a valid fully qualified host name for the system, and this bit of the log:

to=<bob.example@example.com>

Makes it seem likely that your hostname is not correct, according to Postfix.

Oh, wait. I see your problem:

myorigin = $mydomain

You almost certainly DO NOT WANT this option. Get rid of it. It's not what you think it is, and it doesn't do what you want it to do.

Thanks for the reply Joe!

Yes my hostname is a FQDN and hostname -f returns the correct hostname and host returns the hostname has address of my server so that part is working fine.

Regarding $mydomain.
When it is not in $myhostname, localhost.$mydomain, localhost, $mydomain, vps.MyVPSDomain.net then my mail is dead.

If I put it back in then mail works fine :(

How do I not get the "User unknown in virtual alias table" error without $mydomain being in that field?

I have the same problem... and its going to be a month old now. Here is my thread:

http://www.virtualmin.com/forums/virtualmin/email-system-seems-not-working-as-preferred..html

But until now...I can't have it fixed. Hope somebody here with enough knowlegde on postfix functions in virtualhosting environment can enlight us. :(

velvetpixel, you ignored the most important piece of advice, I think. Re-read my message--and look at the directive I told you to get rid of (myorigin). It is the cause of your problem. The other stuff at the beginning was just pointing out that you're treating the symptoms and not the disease. The disease is myorigin, and you need to unset that variable for mail in a virtual hosting environment to work (or you could set it correctly, but I have no idea how to set it correctly, so let Postfix set it for you--it always gets it right).

xerxeschua, you have the same problem. myorigin should not be set.