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Majordomo Configuration

Below is the documentation for the configuration options available for use with your mailing list. It is taken directly from the configuration file itself, with only a few changes to reflect AAPT's mailing list setup.

There are two types of options used in the configuration file:

Single values
In the config file, you use "option = value". For example:
subscribe_policy = open
Array (multi-line) values
In the config file, you use a special format to allow multiple lines. (Perl programmers would call it a "here document".) You start with "option << END", then include values as needed, then the word "END" on a line by itself. For example:
```
message_footer  <<  END
--
Widgets discussion list. To leave the list, send "unsubscribe"
in the body of an email to widgets-request@lists.connect.com.au.
END
```

For each option, we list the type of value to use, the default value, and if appropriate, a list of values to choose from. Here are the types of values used:

Boolean - yes or no
Enumerated - you choose from a predefined list of values
String - some text (a "string" of characters)
Word - a single word (no whitespace)
Integer - a whole number
Regexp - a regular expression
Filename - a file on the mailing list server
Directory - a directory on the mailing list server

A trailing "_array" on any of the value types means that the option will accept more than one value, as described above.

Configuration Options

welcome: Type: boolean Use: yes or no Default: yes
If set to yes, a welcome message (and the 'intro' file, if you have one) will be sent to new subscribers.
announcements: Type: boolean Use: yes or no Default: no
If set to yes, comings and goings to the list will be sent to the list owner. These subscribe/unsubscribe event announcements are informational only (no action is required), although it is highly recommended that they be monitored to watch for list abuse.
get_access: Type: enumerated Use: open, list, or closed Default: list
Open allows anyone access to this command and closed completely disables the command for everyone. List allows only list members access, or if restrict_post is defined, only the addresses in those files are allowed access.
index_access: Type: enumerated Use: open, list, or closed Default: open
Open allows anyone access to this command and closed completely disables the command for everyone. List allows only list members access, or if restrict_post is defined, only the addresses in those files are allowed access.
who_access: Type: enumerated Use: open, list, or closed Default: list
Open allows anyone access to this command and closed completely disables the command for everyone. List allows only list members access, or if restrict_post is defined, only the addresses in those files are allowed access.
which_access: Type: enumerated Use: open, list, or closed Default: list
Open allows anyone access to this command and closed completely disables the command for everyone. List allows only list members access, or if restrict_post is defined, only the addresses in those files are allowed access.
info_access: Type: enumerated Use: open, list, or closed Default: open
Open allows anyone access to this command and closed completely disables the command for everyone. List allows only list members access, or if restrict_post is defined, only the addresses in those files are allowed access.
intro_access: Type: enumerated Use: open, list, or closed Default: open
Open allows anyone access to this command and closed completely disables the command for everyone. List allows only list members access, or if restrict_post is defined, only the addresses in those files are allowed access.
advertise: Type: regexp_array Default:Undefined
If the requester email address matches one of these regular expressions, then the list will be listed in the output of a lists command. Failure to match any regexp excludes the list from the output. The regexps under noadvertise override these regexps.
comments: Type: string_array Default:Undefined
Comment string that will be retained across config file rewrites.
noadvertise: Type: regexp_array Default:Undefined
If the requester name matches one of these regular expressions, then the list will not be listed in the output of a lists command. Noadvertise overrides advertise.
description: Type: string Default: specified on the mailing list order form
Used as description for mailing list when replying to the lists command. There is no quoting mechanism, and there is only room for 50 or so characters.
subscribe_policy: Type: enumerated Use: open, closed, or auto Default:
One of three values: open, closed, auto; plus an optional modifier: '+confirm'. Open allows people to subscribe themselves to the list. Auto allows anybody to subscribe anybody to the list without maintainer approval (not recommended). Closed requires maintainer approval for all subscribe requests to the list. Adding '+confirm', eg. 'open+confirm', will cause majordomo to send a reply back to the subscriber which includes a authentication number which must be sent back in with another subscribe command. (This helps prevent people from signing up addresses other than their own.)
unsubscribe_policy: Type: enumerated Use: open, closed, or auto Default:
One of three values: open, closed, auto; plus an optional modifier: +confirm'. Open allows people to unsubscribe themselves from the list. Auto allows anybody to unsubscribe anybody to the list without maintainer approval. Closed requires maintainer approval for all unsubscribe requests to the list. Adding '+confirm', eg. 'auto+confirm' will cause majordomo to send a reply back to the subscriber if the request didn't come from the subscriber. The reply includes a authentication number which must be sent back in with another unsubscribe command.
mungedomain: Type: boolean Use: yes or no Default: no
If set to yes, a different method is used to determine a matching address. When set to yes, addresses of the form user\@dom.ain.com are considered equivalent to addresses of the form user\@ain.com. This allows a user to subscribe to a list using the domain address rather than the address assigned to a particular machine in the domain. This keyword affects the interpretation of addresses for subscribe, unsubscribe, and all private options.
admin_passwd: Type: string Default: Provided in the initial details issued by AAPT
The password for handling administrative tasks on the list.
strip: Type: boolean Use: yes or no Default: yes
When adding address to the list, strip off all comments etc, and put just the raw address in the list file. In addition to the keyword, if the file <listname>.strip exists, it is the same as specifying a yes value. That yes value is overridden by the value of this keyword.
date_info: Type: boolean Use: yes or no Default: yes
Put the last updated date for the info file at the top of the info file rather than having it appended with an info command. This is useful if the file is being looked at by some means other than majordomo (e.g. finger).
date_intro: Type: boolean Use: yes or no Default: yes
Put the last updated date for the intro file at the top of the intro file rather than having it appended with an intro command. This is useful if the file is being looked at by some means other than majordomo (e.g. finger).
moderate: Type: boolean Use: yes or no Default: no
If yes, all postings to the list will be bounced to the moderator for approval.
moderator: Type: email address Default: Undefined
Address for directing posts which require approval. Such approvals might include moderated mail, administrivia traps, and restrict_post authorizations. If the moderator address is not set, it will default to the list-approval address.
approve_passwd: Type: string Default: Provided in the initial details issued by AAPT
Password to be used in the approved header to allow posting to moderated list, or to bypass resend checks.
sender: Type: word Default: listname
The envelope and sender address for the resent mail. This string has "@" and the value of resend_host appended to it to make a complete address. For majordomo, it provides the sender address for the welcome mail message generated as part of the subscribe command.
maxlength: Type: integer Default: 40000
The maximum size of an unapproved message in characters. When used with digest, a new digest will be automatically generated if the size of the digest exceeds this number of characters.
precedence: Type: word Use: bulk, junk, or list Default: bulk
Put a precedence header with value <value> into the outgoing message.
reply_to: Type: email address Default: Undefined
Put a reply-to header with value <value> into the outgoing message. If the token $SENDER is used, then the address of the sender is used as the value of the reply-to header. This is the value of the reply-to header for digest lists.
restrict_post: Type: filename Default: Undefined
If defined, only addresses listed in these files (colon or space separated) can post to the mailing list. By default, these files are relative to the lists directory. These files are also checked when get_access, index_access, info_access, intro_access, which_access, or who_access is set to 'list'. This is less useful than it seems it should be since there is no way to create these files if you do not have access to the machine running resend. This mechanism will be replaced in a future version of majordomo/resend.
resend_host: Type: hostname Default: Undefined
The host name that is appended to all address strings specified for resend.
purge_received: Type: boolean Use: yes or no Default: no
Remove all received lines before resending the message.
administrivia: Type: boolean Use: yes or no Default: yes
Look for administrative requests (e.g. subscribe/unsubscribe) and forward them to the list maintainer instead of the list.
debug: Type: boolean Use: yes or no Default: no
Don't actually forward message, just go though the motions.
archive_dir: Type: directory name Use: Not supported by AAPT Default: Undefined
The directory where the mailing list archive is kept. This item does not currently work. Leave it blank.
message_fronter: Type: string_array Default: Undefined
Text to be prepended to the beginning of all messages posted to the list. The text is expanded before being used. The following expansion tokens are defined: $LIST - the name of the current list, $SENDER - the sender as taken from the from line, $VERSION, the version of majordomo. If used in a digest, only the expansion token _SUBJECTS_ is available, and it expands to the list of message subjects in the digest
message_footer: Type: string_array Default: Undefined
Text to be appended at the end of all messages posted to the list. The text is expanded before being used. The following expansion tokens are defined: $LIST - the name of the current list, $SENDER - the sender as taken from the from line, $VERSION, the version of majordomo. If used in a digest, no expansion tokens are provided
message_headers: Type: string_array Default: Undefined
These headers will be appended to the headers of the posted message. The text is expanded before being used. The following expansion tokens are defined: $LIST - the name of the current list, $SENDER - the sender as taken from the from line, $VERSION, the version of majordomo.
subject_prefix: Type: string_array Default: Undefined
This word will be prefixed to the subject line, if it is not already in the subject. The text is expanded before being used. The following expansion tokens are defined: $LIST - the name of the current list, $SENDER - the sender as taken from the from line, $VERSION, the version of majordomo.
taboo_headers: Type: regexp_array Default: Undefined
If any of the headers matches one of these regexps, then the message will be bounced for review.
taboo_body: Type: regexp_array Default: Undefined
If any line of the body matches one of these regexps, then the message will be bounced for review.
digest_volume: Type: integer Use: Any positive number Default: 1
The current volume number
digest_issue: Type: integer Use: Any positive number Default: 1
The issue number of the next issue
digest_work_dir: Type: directory Default: Configured by AAPT
The directory used as scratch space for digest. Don't change this unless you know what you are doing
digest_name: Type: string Default: listname
The subject line for the digest. This string has the volume and issue appended to it.
digest_archive: Type: directory Default: Not supported by AAPT
The directory where the digest archive is kept. This item does not currently work. Leave it blank.
digest_rm_footer: Type: word Default: Currently not implemented
The value is the name of the list that applies the header and footers to the messages that are received by digest. This allows the list supplied headers and footers to be stripped before the messages are included in the digest.
digest_rm_fronter: Type: word Default: Currently not implemented
Works just like digest_rm_footer, except it removes the front material.
digest_maxlines: Type: integer Use: Any positive number Default: Undefined
automatically generate a new digest when the size of the digest exceeds this number of lines.
digest_maxdays: Type: integer Default: Undefined
automatically generate a new digest when the age of the oldest article in the queue exceeds this number of days.

Regular Expressions

As you can see above, some commands make use of regular expressions. Majordomo is written in Perl, which essentially means that to match something, you enclose it in forward slashes (/).

For example, to block messages containing the word "damn", you could use:

taboo_body  <<  END
/damn/
END

Many non-alphanumeric characters have special meanings. To match a special character, you need to "turn off" its special meaning by escaping it with a backslash (\). Here are some of the common special characters:

. (full stop) - match any single character.
* (asterisk) - match zero or more occurrences of the previous character.
^ (caret) - match the start of a line.
$ (dollar) - match the end of a line.

For example, to block messages sent from example.com where the username starts with "cla", you could use:

taboo_headers  <<  END
/cla.*\@example.com/
END

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