A self-hosted email server is your best option if you place a high priority on privacy and accessibility. Email is the most often used form of communication in the business sector. As a result, many organizations look for alternatives, such as self-hosted email servers, even though several email hosting service providers exist. Let’s know more about self-hosted email servers and the best platforms that provide this service.
What’s Self-Hosting?
Emails that are hosted locally or on a server are known as self-hosted emails. You can always use it by connecting with outside email accounts. Its main purpose is to enable you to create your email server.
Self-Hosted Email Server Platforms Benefits
A self-hosted mail server ensures complete privacy for all email correspondence. Your personal information is no longer shared with marketers and is subject to eavesdropping by third parties. Once these email clients are connected with outside email services, they may be accessed through the internet or a local network. You may create as many aliases as you like without spending any money if you choose to use an open source email server. These servers also allow you to send an infinite number of emails. Additionally, you have complete control over your mailbox settings. You can set rules and alter settings to meet your organization’s needs.
Using Self-Hosted Email Server: Considerations
You should carefully consider your decision before setting up and configuring a self-hosted mail server for your company. Likewise, you should check before switching from a conventional email client to it.
1 – A Mail Transfer Agent (MTA) is a program a server may use to transmit emails from various users.
2 – The two most widely used email protocols, IMAP and POP3, are supported.
3 – A strong spam filter should be in place to stop incoming email spam.
4 – If it has antivirus to secure your mailboxes from viruses and malware.
5 – A mail delivery agent should also be available to deliver emails to the inbox.
Top 12 Self-Hosted Email Server Platforms
We’ve compiled a list of Self-Hosted Email Server Platforms to Find eBooks to help you find the right one.
1. MailSlurper
You may use MailSlurper as a helpful SMTP mail server for individual and group app development. Without the effort of setting up a full-fledged email server, this lightweight server is appropriate for individual developers or small teams who wish to test email capabilities. Thanks to its straightforward user interface, you can rapidly search and check emails sent using your apps. This server will run flawlessly on any device, including laptops, commodity hardware, and tiny virtual machines. Additionally, it can manage thousands of connections at once and work with databases like SQLite, MySQL, and MSSQL. This email server offers a responsive web-based interface and is simple to set up. Windows, OS X, and Linux all support running MailSlurper. It stores commonly searched phrases and lets you search emails by subject, recipient, sender, and email content.
2. Modoboa
Your privacy is prioritized by the open source email server known as Modoboa. It just takes around 10 minutes to create a mail server for you, so it is an excellent substitute for other email service options. Here, you can find the best installation, configuration, and security tools for open source email servers. This platform provides webmail, email organization using filters, calendar management, contact list management, auto-responder for emails, and unlimited mailboxes, aliases, and domains. It also supports all the fundamental email functions. Additionally, it provides a number of administrative tools, including statistics and a data movement tool. Since its installer does 95% of the work, you don’t have to go through the laborious process of installing each component one at a time. Data security and privacy are the two main benefits of using Modoboa. The email service provider encrypts all data communications between email server and the outside world using the TLS protocol. Other app tactics it employs to safeguard your online reputation include SPF, DKIM, and DMARC.
3. Docker MailServer
An open source, full-stack mail server called Docker MailServer offers email service over SMTP, LDAP, and IMAP. Only configuration files make up this production-ready solution, which keeps things straightforward and versioned. The server is easily deployable and upgradeable and has no SQL database. Additionally, it allows the automatic updating of custom rules for ClamAV and SpamAssassin. For data security, the server makes use of LetsEncrypt and self-signed certificates. A setup script for server configuration and maintenance, minimal support for Sieve through Dovecot, persistent data and state, and extension delimiters are further features available to users. To run this server, your device must have one vCore and 512MB of RAM. However, for a host with 512MB of RAM to run, you should disable services like ClamAV. The suggested configuration is for a single Core processor, two gigabytes of RAM, and swapping on the container for maximum performance.
4. Mailu
Choose Mailu if you want a feature-rich yet user-friendly self-hosted email server. With the help of this free software, users will have access to a simple server to set up and manage. It doesn’t include any extraneous features that are common in groupware. The platform lets you use common email servers and protocols such as SMTP, Submission, IMAP, and IMAP+. It includes features like numerous webmail, domain aliases, personalized routing, administrative interfaces, and online access. Users may quickly use aliases, auto-forward, autoreply, and fetched accounts to save time and effort. You can easily operate this email server because of some of its administrative features, like quotas, announcements, per-domain delegation, and global admins. To further assure optimum security, the platform uses TLS, Letsencrypt! Certificate, outbound DKIM, greylisting, antivirus scanning, anti-spam, auto-learn, DMARC, and SPF.
5. Poste.io
With Poste.io, you can install online email on your server with features like anti-spam, antivirus protection, and web management in under 5 minutes. The user data and configuration are kept separate from the binaries on this fully functional mail server. This platform may be used with external storage since it stores user data in SQLite database files. Updating, backup, and migration procedures become simple using this self-hosted email server. Due to its emphasis on data security, Poste.io is filled with strong contemporary security measures rather than outmoded authentication procedures. The system administrator, domain administrator, and email owner can each be given a separate set of permissions. Additionally, a mailbox storage and email count quota can be set. Your mailbox is safe because of its integrated spam filter and antivirus engine, which finds viruses, malware, and trojans. Email filtering, autoreply, email redirection, and data encryption are some of their more remarkable features. Additionally, it has an integrated autodiscovery that works with Thunderbird and Microsoft 365.
6. Mail-in-a-Box
Mail-in-a-Box is an easy-to-deploy self-hosted email server that gives you complete control over your emails. You may turn in your mail service provider with the help of this platform. Technically speaking, this platform transforms a cloud computer into a usable mail server. However, to set things up, you can be something other than particularly tech-savvy. Users of this platform may access webmail and an IMAP/SMTP server using the desktop tool and mobile device. You may find all the typical email features here, such as auto-configuration, backups, spam filtering, greylisting, and mail filter rules. You may also sync contacts and calendars with it in addition to these. This platform’s support for hosting many domain names and users is a useful feature for large businesses and corporations. Using its web-based management panel, you may add email accounts, aliases, and custom DNS records.
7. IRedMail
Choose iRedMail to develop a mail server using open source solutions. You may use this open source mail server with Red Hat, CentOS, Ubuntu, Debian, OpenBSD, and FreeBSD. Every component of iRedMail is open source, and users will get updates and bug fixes from reputable Linux/BSD suppliers. On its user-friendly online interface based on Roundcube webmail, you may filter emails and group them into folders. By using secure connections (POP3, IMAP, and SMTP) and encrypting emails in transit, iRedMail ensures that no outside entity may access the content of your emails. On this platform, you may create infinite users, administrators, domains, and mailing lists without worrying about the cost. Furthermore, you have total control over email security, which you can check through the transaction log because the personal data is stored on your hard drive.
8. HMailServer
For a free self-hosted mail server, Microsoft Windows users should choose hMailServer. Since its extensible source code is available on GitHub, you may use it in most business settings. Any webmail system that supports IMAP and SMTP can be used with hMailServer. A seamless and rapid installation and configuration of hMailServer is guaranteed. Users may add accounts and domains, change settings, and turn on virus scanning with the help of its simple administrative tool. Integration with additional software, such as your existing IT systems, is supported through the COM library of this platform. Because of its pre-configured security tools, your server will never be used to deliver spam.
9. Dovecot
You may use Dovecot, a secure IMAP server, for small and big setups. It is regarded as one of the best IMAP servers that supports the common Maildir and MBOX file formats. The server enables interoperability with current mailbox management tools while transparently indexing the mailboxes. The self-optimizing indexes have everything the clients require in them. The user authentication options included with Dovecot are adaptable and can accommodate different authentication databases and procedures. Additionally, it enables you to move email data across IMAP and POP3 servers. Because of the platform’s security-focused design and implementation, you won’t need to be concerned about your data privacy. It produces clear error messages since it is an admin-friendly server. Using plugins, it is possible to expand its present features. You may add new commands, such as allocating quota with ACL support, or alter the existing ones using plugins. If the server crashes for whatever reason, the problem is fixed. Users can simultaneously update mailboxes and indexes from various devices using this email server. Dovecot works well with clustered filesystems; therefore, it is feasible.
10. Apache James
SMTP and POP3 are supported by the open source mail transmission agent Apache James. Java Apache Mail Enterprise Server is known as James. It comprises a modular architecture packed with durable and contemporary components. The server supports email protocols, including SMTP, LMTP, POP3, IMAP, ManageSieve, and IMAP. In addition, it implements storage using MySQL, HSQLDB, Cassandra, and PostgreSQL. Mailbox API, expandable email processing agents, command-line administration, etc., are a few of its other features.
11. WildDuck Mail Server
People frequently rely on WildDuck Mail Server when choosing a current POP3 and IMAP mail server software. This server favors Unicode and is fully scalable, with API control. Users may create a comprehensive mail server by integrating it with Haraka and ZoneMTA. Since it provides excellent IMAP support, using it with any email client shouldn’t be a problem. Any email data is stored in a MongoDB cluster rather than a file system. Furthermore, you can set up a cluster in any size you choose. This email server was created using a memory-safe programming language. You do not need to grant root rights or file system access.
12. Magma Server Daemon
Your data is safe and secure using the open source email system Magma Server Daemon since it employs encryption. The server supports the POP, HTTP, SMTP, IMAP, and MOLTEN protocols. It will also shortly increase support for DMTP and DMAP. This commercial-grade email server was created back in 2004 by its creators. The server and all other users currently serve SMEs or businesses.
The Bottom Line:
Self-hosted email servers are advantageous for businesses that must create many email accounts and have total control over the email server data and data. Additionally, you may protect your privacy and add customization by choosing any email platform from the list above.