Postfix manual - postsuper(1)

    POSTSUPER(1)                                                      POSTSUPER(1)

    NAME
           postsuper - Postfix superintendent

    SYNOPSIS
           postsuper [-psSv] [-c config_dir] [-d queue_id]
                   [-h queue_id] [-H queue_id]
                   [-r queue_id] [directory ...]

    DESCRIPTION
           The  postsuper(1)  command  does maintenance jobs on the Postfix queue.
           Use  of  the  command  is  restricted  to  the  superuser.    See   the
           postqueue(1)  command for unprivileged queue operations such as listing
           or flushing the mail queue.

           By default, postsuper(1) performs the operations requested with the  -s
           and  -p  command-line  options  on all Postfix queue directories - this
           includes the incoming, active and deferred directories with mail  files
           and the bounce, defer, trace and flush directories with log files.

           Options:

           -c config_dir
                  The main.cf configuration file is in the named directory instead
                  of the default configuration directory. See also the MAIL_CONFIG
                  environment setting below.

           -d queue_id
                  Delete  one  message with the named queue ID from the named mail
                  queue(s) (default: hold, incoming, active and deferred).

                  If a queue_id of - is specified, the  program  reads  queue  IDs
                  from  standard  input.  For  example,  to  delete  all mail with
                  exactly one recipient user@example.com:

                  mailq | tail +2 | grep -v '^ *(' | awk  'BEGIN { RS = "" }
                      # $7=sender, $8=recipient1, $9=recipient2
                      { if ($8 == "user@example.com" && $9 == "")
                            print $1 }
                  ' | tr -d '*!' | postsuper -d -

                  Specify "-d ALL" to remove all messages;  for  example,  specify
                  "-d  ALL deferred" to delete all mail in the deferred queue.  As
                  a safety measure, the word ALL must be specified in upper  case.

                  Warning:  Postfix  queue  IDs are reused (always with Postfix <=
                  2.8; and with Postfix  >=  2.9  when  enable_long_queue_ids=no).
                  There  is  a  very  small possibility that postsuper deletes the
                  wrong message file when it is executed while  the  Postfix  mail
                  system is delivering mail.

                  The scenario is as follows:

                  1)     The  Postfix queue manager deletes the message that post-
                         super(1) is asked to delete, because Postfix is  finished
                         with  the  message (it is delivered, or it is returned to
                         the sender).

                  2)     New mail arrives, and the new message is given  the  same
                         queue  ID as the message that postsuper(1) is supposed to
                         delete.  The probability for reusing a deleted  queue  ID
                         is  about 1 in 2**15 (the number of different microsecond
                         values that the system clock  can  distinguish  within  a
                         second).

                  3)     postsuper(1)  deletes the new message, instead of the old
                         message that it should have deleted.

           -h queue_id
                  Put mail "on hold" so that no attempt is  made  to  deliver  it.
                  Move  one  message  with  the named queue ID from the named mail
                  queue(s) (default: incoming, active and deferred)  to  the  hold
                  queue.

                  If  a  queue_id  of  - is specified, the program reads queue IDs
                  from standard input.

                  Specify "-h ALL" to hold all messages; for example, specify  "-h
                  ALL  deferred"  to  hold  all  mail in the deferred queue.  As a
                  safety measure, the word ALL must be specified in upper case.

                  Note: while mail is "on hold" it will not expire when  its  time
                  in    the    queue   exceeds   the   maximal_queue_lifetime   or
                  bounce_queue_lifetime setting. It becomes subject to  expiration
                  after it is released from "hold".

                  This feature is available in Postfix 2.0 and later.

           -H queue_id
                  Release  mail that was put "on hold".  Move one message with the
                  named queue ID from the named mail queue(s) (default:  hold)  to
                  the deferred queue.

                  If  a  queue_id  of  - is specified, the program reads queue IDs
                  from standard input.

                  Note: specify "postsuper -r" to release mail that  was  kept  on
                  hold  for  a  significant fraction of $maximal_queue_lifetime or
                  $bounce_queue_lifetime, or longer.

                  Specify "-H ALL" to release all mail that is "on  hold".   As  a
                  safety measure, the word ALL must be specified in upper case.

                  This feature is available in Postfix 2.0 and later.

           -p     Purge  old  temporary  files  that are left over after system or
                  software crashes.

           -r queue_id
                  Requeue the message with the named queue ID from the named  mail
                  queue(s)  (default:  hold,  incoming,  active and deferred).  To
                  requeue multiple  messages,  specify  multiple  -r  command-line
                  options.

                  Alternatively,  if  a  queue_id  of  - is specified, the program
                  reads queue IDs from standard input.

                  Specify "-r ALL" to requeue all messages. As a  safety  measure,
                  the word ALL must be specified in upper case.

                  A requeued message is moved to the maildrop queue, from where it
                  is copied by the pickup(8) and cleanup(8) daemons to a new queue
                  file.  In  many respects its handling differs from that of a new
                  local submission.

                  o      The message is not  subjected  to  the  smtpd_milters  or
                         non_smtpd_milters settings.  When mail has passed through
                         an external content filter, this would produce  incorrect
                         results  with Milter applications that depend on original
                         SMTP connection state information.

                  o      The message is subjected again to mail address  rewriting
                         and substitution.  This is useful when rewriting rules or
                         virtual mappings have changed.

                         The address rewriting context (local or  remote)  is  the
                         same as when the message was received.

                  o      The  message is subjected to the same content_filter set-
                         tings (if any) as used for new  local  mail  submissions.
                         This is useful when content_filter settings have changed.

                  Warning: Postfix queue IDs are reused (always  with  Postfix  <=
                  2.8;  and  with  Postfix  >= 2.9 when enable_long_queue_ids=no).
                  There is a very small possibility that postsuper(1) requeues the
                  wrong  message  file  when it is executed while the Postfix mail
                  system is running, but no harm should be done.

                  This feature is available in Postfix 1.1 and later.

           -s     Structure check and structure repair.  This should be done  once
                  before Postfix startup.

                  o      Rename  files  whose name does not match the message file
                         inode number. This operation is necessary after restoring
                         a  mail  queue  from  a different machine or from backup,
                         when queue files were created with Postfix <= 2.8 or with
                         "enable_long_queue_ids = no".

                  o      Move  queue files that are in the wrong place in the file
                         system hierarchy and remove subdirectories  that  are  no
                         longer  needed.   File position rearrangements are neces-
                         sary  after  a  change  in  the  hash_queue_names  and/or
                         hash_queue_depth configuration parameters.

                  o      Rename  queue files created with "enable_long_queue_ids =
                         yes" to short names, for migration  to  Postfix  <=  2.8.
                         The procedure is as follows:

                         # postfix stop
                         # postconf enable_long_queue_ids=no
                         # postsuper

                         Run postsuper(1) repeatedly until it stops reporting file
                         name changes.

           -S     A redundant version of -s that requires  that  long  file  names
                  also match the message file inode number. This option exists for
                  testing purposes, and is available with Postfix 2.9 and later.

           -v     Enable verbose  logging  for  debugging  purposes.  Multiple  -v
                  options make the software increasingly verbose.

    DIAGNOSTICS
           Problems are reported to the standard error stream and to syslogd(8).

           postsuper(1) reports the number of messages deleted with -d, the number
           of messages requeued with -r, and the number of  messages  whose  queue
           file  name  was  fixed  with  -s. The report is written to the standard
           error stream and to syslogd(8).

    ENVIRONMENT
           MAIL_CONFIG
                  Directory with the main.cf file.

    BUGS
           Mail that is not sanitized by Postfix (i.e. mail in the maildrop queue)
           cannot be placed "on hold".

    CONFIGURATION PARAMETERS
           The  following  main.cf parameters are especially relevant to this pro-
           gram.  The text below provides only  a  parameter  summary.  See  post-
           conf(5) for more details including examples.

           config_directory (see 'postconf -d' output)
                  The  default  location of the Postfix main.cf and master.cf con-
                  figuration files.

           hash_queue_depth (1)
                  The number of subdirectory levels for queue  directories  listed
                  with the hash_queue_names parameter.

           hash_queue_names (deferred, defer)
                  The  names  of  queue directories that are split across multiple
                  subdirectory levels.

           queue_directory (see 'postconf -d' output)
                  The location of the Postfix top-level queue directory.

           syslog_facility (mail)
                  The syslog facility of Postfix logging.

           syslog_name (see 'postconf -d' output)
                  The mail system name that is prepended to the  process  name  in
                  syslog  records,  so  that  "smtpd" becomes, for example, "post-
                  fix/smtpd".

           Available in Postfix version 2.9 and later:

           enable_long_queue_ids (no)
                  Enable long, non-repeating, queue IDs (queue file names).

    SEE ALSO
           sendmail(1), Sendmail-compatible user interface
           postqueue(1), unprivileged queue operations

    LICENSE
           The Secure Mailer license must be distributed with this software.

    AUTHOR(S)
           Wietse Venema
           IBM T.J. Watson Research
           P.O. Box 704
           Yorktown Heights, NY 10598, USA

           Wietse Venema
           Google, Inc.
           111 8th Avenue
           New York, NY 10011, USA

                                                                      POSTSUPER(1)