<!doctype html public "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd"> <html> <head> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=us-ascii"> <title> Postfix manual - master(8) </title> </head> <body> <pre> MASTER(8) MASTER(8) <b>NAME</b> master - Postfix master process <b>SYNOPSIS</b> <b>master</b> [<b>-Dtv</b>] [<b>-c</b> <i>config</i><b>_</b><i>dir</i>] [<b>-e</b> <i>exit</i><b>_</b><i>time</i>] <b>DESCRIPTION</b> The <b>master</b> daemon is the resident process that runs Post- fix daemons on demand: daemons to send or receive messages via the network, daemons to deliver mail locally, etc. These daemons are created on demand up to a configurable maximum number per service. Postfix daemons terminate voluntarily, either after being idle for a configurable amount of time, or after having serviced a configurable number of requests. Exceptions to this rule are the resident queue manager and the resident address verification server. The behavior of the <b>master</b> daemon is controlled by the <b>master.cf</b> configuration file. The table specifies zero or more servers in the <b>UNIX</b> or <b>INET</b> domain, or servers that take requests from a FIFO. Precise configuration details are given in the <b>master.cf</b> file, and in the manual pages of the respective daemons. Options: <b>-c</b> <i>config</i><b>_</b><i>dir</i> Read the <b>main.cf</b> and <b>master.cf</b> configuration files in the named directory instead of the default con- figuration directory. <b>-e</b> <i>exit</i><b>_</b><i>time</i> Terminate the master process after <i>exit</i><b>_</b><i>time</i> sec- onds. Child processes terminate at their conve- nience. <b>-D</b> After initialization, run a debugger on the master process. The debugging command is specified with the <b><a href="postconf.5.html#debugger_command">debugger_command</a></b> in the <b>main.cf</b> global configu- ration file. <b>-t</b> Test mode. Return a zero exit status when the <b>mas-</b> <b>ter.pid</b> lock file does not exist or when that file is not locked. This is evidence that the <b>master</b> daemon is not running. <b>-v</b> Enable verbose logging for debugging purposes. This option is passed on to child processes. Multiple <b>-v</b> options make the software increasingly verbose. Signals: <b>SIGHUP</b> Upon receipt of a <b>HUP</b> signal (e.g., after <b>postfix</b> <b>reload</b>), the master process re-reads its configura- tion files. If a service has been removed from the <b>master.cf</b> file, its running processes are termi- nated immediately. Otherwise, running processes are allowed to terminate as soon as is convenient, so that changes in configuration settings affect only new service requests. <b>SIGTERM</b> Upon receipt of a <b>TERM</b> signal (e.g., after <b>postfix</b> <b>abort</b>), the master process passes the signal on to its child processes and terminates. This is useful for an emergency shutdown. Normally one would ter- minate only the master (<b>postfix stop</b>) and allow running processes to finish what they are doing. <b>DIAGNOSTICS</b> Problems are reported to <b>syslogd</b>(8). <b>ENVIRONMENT</b> <b>MAIL_DEBUG</b> After initialization, start a debugger as specified with the <b><a href="postconf.5.html#debugger_command">debugger_command</a></b> configuration parameter in the <b>main.cf</b> configuration file. <b>MAIL_CONFIG</b> Directory with Postfix configuration files. <b>CONFIGURATION PARAMETERS</b> Unlike most Postfix daemon processes, the <a href="master.8.html">master(8)</a> server does not automatically pick up changes to <b>main.cf</b>. Changes to <b>master.cf</b> are never picked up automatically. Use the <b>postfix reload</b> command after a configuration change. <b>RESOURCE AND RATE CONTROLS</b> <b><a href="postconf.5.html#daemon_timeout">daemon_timeout</a> (18000s)</b> How much time a Postfix daemon process may take to handle a request before it is terminated by a built-in watchdog timer. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#default_process_limit">default_process_limit</a> (100)</b> The default maximal number of Postfix child pro- cesses that provide a given service. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#max_idle">max_idle</a> (100s)</b> The maximum amount of time that an idle Postfix daemon process waits for the next service request before exiting. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#max_use">max_use</a> (100)</b> The maximal number of connection requests before a Postfix daemon process terminates. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#service_throttle_time">service_throttle_time</a> (60s)</b> How long the Postfix <a href="master.8.html">master(8)</a> waits before forking a server that appears to be malfunctioning. <b>MISCELLANEOUS CONTROLS</b> <b><a href="postconf.5.html#config_directory">config_directory</a> (see 'postconf -d' output)</b> The default location of the Postfix main.cf and master.cf configuration files. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#daemon_directory">daemon_directory</a> (see 'postconf -d' output)</b> The directory with Postfix support programs and daemon programs. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#debugger_command">debugger_command</a> (empty)</b> The external command to execute when a Postfix dae- mon program is invoked with the -D option. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#inet_interfaces">inet_interfaces</a> (all)</b> The network interface addresses that this mail sys- tem receives mail on. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#import_environment">import_environment</a> (see 'postconf -d' output)</b> The list of environment parameters that a Postfix process will import from a non-Postfix parent pro- cess. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#mail_owner">mail_owner</a> (postfix)</b> The UNIX system account that owns the Postfix queue and most Postfix daemon processes. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#process_id">process_id</a> (read-only)</b> The process ID of a Postfix command or daemon pro- cess. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#process_name">process_name</a> (read-only)</b> The process name of a Postfix command or daemon process. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#queue_directory">queue_directory</a> (see 'postconf -d' output)</b> The location of the Postfix top-level queue direc- tory. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#syslog_facility">syslog_facility</a> (mail)</b> The syslog facility of Postfix logging. <b><a href="postconf.5.html#syslog_name">syslog_name</a> (postfix)</b> The mail system name that is prepended to the pro- cess name in syslog records, so that "smtpd" becomes, for example, "postfix/smtpd". <b>FILES</b> /etc/postfix/main.cf, global configuration file. /etc/postfix/master.cf, master server configuration file. /var/spool/postfix/pid/master.pid, master lock file. <b>SEE ALSO</b> <a href="qmgr.8.html">qmgr(8)</a>, queue manager <a href="verify.8.html">verify(8)</a>, address verification <a href="postconf.5.html">postconf(5)</a>, configuration parameters syslogd(8), system logging <b>LICENSE</b> The Secure Mailer license must be distributed with this software. <b>AUTHOR(S)</b> Wietse Venema IBM T.J. Watson Research P.O. Box 704 Yorktown Heights, NY 10598, USA MASTER(8) </pre> </body> </html>