Linux Mail Server Setup and Howto Guide

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) enables the HTTP protocol to be secured. This page will show you how to configure SSL in Apache and SquirrelMail.

Generate a Private Key

Make sure you are logged in as the root user when doing steps below.

1. Generate a pass phrase protected private key using the command below. Provide a pass phrase when asked.

openssl genrsa -des3 -out localhost.key 1024

2. Remove the pass phrase protection using the command below. Provide the pass phrase when asked.

openssl rsa -in localhost.key -out localhost.key

3. Type in the command below to ensure that the private key will be readable by the root user only.

chmod 400 localhost.key

Generate a Certificate

1. Generate a certificate signing request by typing in the command below and filling in your host information.

openssl req -new -key localhost.key -out localhost.csr

Signing options

• For a publicly accessible site, have it signed by a reputable third party like Verisign
• For Active Directory intranets, you can sign it using the Microsoft Certificate Services. Learn how to submit a certificate request to the Microsoft Certificate Services.
• For intranets or testing sites, you can sign it yourself.

To self sign your certificate request, type in the command below.

openssl x509 -req -days 365 -in localhost.csr
 -signkey localhost.key -out localhost.crt

Configuring Apache for SSL

1. Move the file localhost.key into /etc/pki/tls/private/

mv localhost.key /etc/pki/tls/private/

2. Place the certificate file into /etc/pki/tls/certs/ and name the file as localhost.crt. The command below applies to self-signed certificate only.

mv localhost.crt /etc/pki/tls/certs/

3. Edit the file /etc/httpd/conf.d/ssl.conf and edit the lines below.

DocumentRoot = /usr/share/squirrelmail
ServerName = mail.acme.local:443

Replace mail.acme.local with your server name.

4. Restart the httpd service. Learn how to restart services here.

5. Try accessing SquirrelMail using https instead of http.

You can force browsers to always use the SSL version. See Locating SquirrelMail into the domain root.

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Posted on 8/18/2008 and last updated on 10/11/2008
Filed under SSL , SquirrelMail