individual components to understand how they work. Good luck!

Then I asked him about books for them which he answered as

You're embarking on an ambitious and valuable project! Building a self-hosted email service is a deep dive into Linux, networking, and system administration. Finding one comprehensive book that covers every single open-source tool and concept you'll need is difficult, as the field is vast and constantly evolving.
Instead, I'll suggest a combination of books that cover the fundamental concepts and key tools, along with advice on where to find the most up-to-date information, which is often online documentation and community forums for specific open-source projects.
Here are book suggestions for each area:
I. Core Concepts and Protocols:
* Linux Fundamentals:
* Book: How Linux Works, 3rd Edition: What Every Superuser Should Know by Brian Ward
* Why: This book is excellent for understanding the underlying principles of Linux – how the kernel works, processes, networking, filesystems, and more. It's not a "how-to" for specific commands, but rather a conceptual guide that will significantly deepen your understanding, which is crucial for troubleshooting and advanced configuration.
* Alternative/Complementary: Linux Command Line and Shell Scripting Bible by Richard Blum and Christine Bresnahan
* Why: If you need more hands-on practical guides for the CLI and noscripting, this is a very comprehensive resource.
* Networking & Email Protocols (SMTP, IMAP, POP3, DNS):
* Book (for general networking): CompTIA Network+ Study Guide: Exam N10-008 by Todd Lammle
* Why: While geared towards certification, this book provides a solid foundation in networking concepts, including TCP/IP, DNS, ports, protocols (including email-related ones), and network security. You don't need to pursue the certification, but the content is highly relevant.
* Book (for deeper protocol understanding): Internetworking with TCP/IP Vol. I: Principles, Protocols, and Architecture by Douglas E. Comer
* Why: This is a classic academic text that provides a thorough understanding of the TCP/IP suite, including how applications like email clients and servers interact using protocols. It's dense but invaluable for a deep dive.
* For DNS Specifics: While there are books on DNS, much of the practical, up-to-date information on SPF, DKIM, and DMARC is best found in online resources, RFCs, and specialized articles, as these standards evolve. Look for official documentation from organizations like the M3AAWG (Messaging, Malware and Mobile Anti-Abuse Working Group).
II. Essential Open-Source Tools/Software (Specifics):
Finding dedicated, up-to-date books for every single open-source project is challenging due to their rapid development cycles. However, you can find excellent resources for the major components:
* Mail Transfer Agent (MTA) - Postfix:
* Book: The Book of Postfix: State-of-the-Art Message Transport by Ralf Hildebrandt and Patrick Koetter
* Why: This is considered the definitive guide to Postfix. It covers everything from basic setup to advanced features, security, and troubleshooting. It might be slightly older but the core concepts and configuration syntax remain highly relevant.
* Crucial Complement: The official Postfix documentation (postfix.org/documentation.html) is incredibly detailed and always up-to-date.
* Mail Delivery Agent (MDA) / IMAP/POP3 Server - Dovecot:
* Book: Dedicated books on Dovecot are less common.
* Crucial Resource: The official Dovecot documentation (wiki.dovecot.org) is exceptionally comprehensive, well-organized, and frequently updated. This is your primary resource for learning and configuring Dovecot. It covers installation, configuration, authentication, SSL/TLS, and integration with various storage backends.
* Webmail Interface - Roundcube / SOGo / RainLoop:
* Book: Books specifically for these webmail clients are rare.
* Crucial Resource: Their official documentation is the best place to learn about installation, configuration, and integration.

They are generally simpler to set up compared to MTAs/MDAs.
* Spam and Antivirus Filtering - SpamAssassin & ClamAV:
* Book: Dedicated books are uncommon.
* Crucial Resource: The official documentation and wiki pages for SpamAssassin (spamassassin.apache.org) and ClamAV (www.clamav.net) are your primary resources. They detail installation, configuration, rule sets, and integration with your MTA.
* Database (MariaDB/MySQL/PostgreSQL):
* Book (MariaDB/MySQL): MySQL for Developers: A Guide to Learning the SQL Database Language by Larry Ullman
* Why: This book provides a solid foundation in SQL and database administration relevant to MySQL/MariaDB. You'll need to understand how to create databases, users, and tables to store mail server data.
* Book (PostgreSQL): PostgreSQL 14 Administration Cookbook by Simon Riggs and Gianni Ciolli
* Why: If you choose PostgreSQL, this cookbook-style book offers practical recipes for administration tasks.
* Security Tools (SSL/TLS, Firewall, Fail2Ban):
* Book (General Linux Security): Linux Security Cookbook by Daniel J. Barrett, Richard E. Silverman, and Robert G. Byrnes
* Why: This book provides practical recipes and advice for securing a Linux system, including firewall configuration, system hardening, and understanding common vulnerabilities.
* For Let's Encrypt: The official Certbot documentation (certbot.eff.org) is the best and most up-to-date guide for obtaining and managing Let's Encrypt certificates.
* For Fail2Ban: The official Fail2Ban documentation and man pages are sufficient for learning its configuration.
General Advice on Learning:
* Start with Fundamentals: Don't skip the Linux and networking basics. A strong foundation here will save you immense headaches later.
* Official Documentation is Gold: For open-source projects, the project's official documentation, wikis, and community forums are often more current and authoritative than any single book.
* Hands-on Practice: Set up a virtual machine (using VirtualBox, KVM, or a cloud VPS) and experiment. Break things, fix them, and learn from your mistakes.
* Follow Tutorials (Critically): Many excellent online tutorials exist. Use them as a starting point, but always try to understand why each step is performed and refer back to official documentation.
* Community Forums: When you encounter specific problems, search and ask questions in relevant forums (e.g., Postfix mailing lists, Dovecot forums, Linux user groups).
Building a self-hosted email server is a significant undertaking, but incredibly educational. Good luck!

So I want to know if all these books are necessary because it will take me forever
And if no please guide me in this journey
Thank you



https://redd.it/1l2d8up
@r_linux

How come it can be such a pain in the ass to install some apps when they all have a native android version which is just linux?

I just got a steam deck and was looking in to installing netflix and such and found a couple of videos but in every one of them had people in the comments were having issues or it wasnt working at all for them.

Im sure it's possible but the process isn't that simple. Bht how come? Dont they all just have native linux versions already on android?

https://redd.it/1l2esns
@r_linux

How is wayland on Nvidia cards in 2025?

In your experience what is the performance difference between X11 and Wayland in 2025? I've used KDE Plasma in the past on an AMD laptop and have really enjoyed it, but I want to get into tiling WMs (and I have an Nvidia desktop now, currently running windows). An obvious choice is Hyprland (for the ricing), but ive heard that wayland hasn't been kindest to Nvidia cards in the past.

The Nvidia performance drop-off from windows to linux is already pretty rough (from what ive seen), so if wayland only amplifies that I think ill hold off the switch for now.

https://redd.it/1l2g6ni
@r_linux

Tux Video from 2018
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1195554580713459743/1379183536094838947/gahsheh.mp4?ex=683ff902&is=683ea782&hm=b0acbdfe1b45a096b7871a432f47ef008091f0a07305be87c00c31f8e2aa33e4&

https://redd.it/1l2jhi5
@r_linux

Ubuntu pre-installed Laptop

Hi folks,

For a new project at work, I am advised to get a laptop with Ubuntu. I do not have the patience to install an OS so I am looking for one with Ubuntu pre-installed. I have some level of knowledge on hardware and software but it has been a long while since I last had an interest at the market. Recently I have little to none patience / attention span to read and digest what I read. (Under too much stress lately and dealing with a lot of anxiety.) I do not want to take the pen and paper to write down possible options and make a comparison list. Hence I come to ask for your help on this.


Considering that this laptop will be used for basic work stuff (very likely that none to very little coding) what would be your suggestion? I don't want to buy a used or second hand one but I am open for buying a refurbished item from the original seller. I had a look at the brands that sells laptops with re-installed Ubuntu and I have a slight inclination towards Dell rather than Lenovo but if I am open for all suggestions. If I can find something silent, light and cool, I will be the happiest!


TIA!

https://redd.it/1l2jf3b
@r_linux

LinuxToys - a multitool/installer with an extra punch

https://preview.redd.it/mqyxw02gas4f1.png?width=779&format=png&auto=webp&s=b6bae6a14178403ca8c320efa2522fc65c1fb2bd

I've been hard at work lately developing an application to simplify migrating to Linux from basic users, to gamers and developers, and now I feel like it's the time to finally bring it over here to everyone. You can find it here, and quickly install it using the proper package for your system. It is available as .deb and .rpm packages and a PKGBUILD and .install coupling for Arch-based distros.

Features

\- Allows batch-installing many common applications, fast tracking post install.
\- Includes tweaks to some of them tailored for newbies, like Steam installing both native and flatpak versions as there are games that only work properly in one or the other, and making them show up in applications menu separately.
\- Also includes fixes to many common problems, like audio crackling on OBS Studio - for which my installation process includes the Pipewire Audio Capture plugin, allowing to get audio I/O from Pipewire and not having Pulse-related issues.
\- Streamlines installation procedures for many developer tools that otherwise have very convoluted installations, and for DaVinci Resolve for creators.
\- Includes many tweaks, some of my own design, like the shader booster for increasing maximum shader cache sizes for any GPU and fixing stutters, in the Extras section.
\- The Extras section also has installers for the CachyOS optimized kernel - for Debian/Ubuntu I advise caution since it's a bit experimental; while it works very well on my Debian Testing, it might not work everywhere with the default settings of the compiler; I do recommend, however, sticking to the default version choice if you like more stability, since that one is handpicked by me for the smoothest experience. If you choose to do so, opening LinuxToys will also check if I rolled an update to the kernel version, keeping it easy to keep track of things.
\- It also has an installer for Nvidia GPU drivers (both latest and 470 for Kepler cards) for Fedora and OpenSUSE, and a couple things that OpenSUSE users may find handy - media codecs and SELinux setup for gaming.

Despite the screenshot being in portuguese (since that's my language) it has an english version - and if anyone wanna contribute with translations, it will be really appreciated; there are clear instructions to do so in the GitHub repo's readme. It's always being improved upon by me and receiving new features.

Hope you find it useful and convenient!

https://redd.it/1l2p1az
@r_linux

Is there a way to get fortnite to run on Linux?

What's up, im using windows 11 pro rn and I'm low-key tired of how crap it is, I mainly play fortnite and forza on my PC, is there a way to get those games to run under da penguin?

Please and thank you

https://redd.it/1l2qfdn
@r_linux

[OC] How I discovered that Bill Gates monopolized ACPI in order to break Linux
https://enaix.github.io/2025/06/03/acpi-conspiracy.html

https://redd.it/1l2rn3t
@r_linux

How do you break a Linux system?

In the spirit of disaster testing and learning how to diagnose and recover, it'd be useful to find out what things can cause a Linux install to become broken.

Broken can mean different things of course, from unbootable to unpredictable errors, and system could mean a headless server or desktop.

I don't mean obvious stuff like 'rm -rf /*' etc and I don't mean security vulnerabilities or CVEs. I mean mistakes a user or app can make. What are the most critical points, are all of them protected by default?

https://redd.it/1l2tjjm
@r_linux

What makes Deepin Linux better and rendering my native language Urdu compared to any other Linux distribution?

So I have been using Linux since the early days of Unity desktop. Over the years, I have tried many Linux distributions i.e. Ubuntu based, Debian based, Fedora based, Arch based and many independent Linux distros. Currently I am using Solus and it works great but the Urdu characters look horrible. Individually, these characters may look just fine but Urdu characters are connected when typed without spaces. That is where the words made from Urdu characters start to look bad.

I have tried to work with Urdu on all Linux distributions that I have used but apparently only Deepin seems to be rendering Urdu almost perfectly. It does have some issues here and there but those issues are ignorable. While the same cannot be said for other Linux distributions. I have tried changing fonts on Ubuntu, Fedora and OpenSUSE but doing so does not make this issue go away. Microsoft Windows has perfect support for Urdu language and Urdu characters are rendered perfectly.

In LibreOffice, we have to activate the support for complex languages before adding Urdu support. Only then Urdu start to look as good as it does on Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office. I mentioned this here to ask whether there is something specific to install in Linux for enabling good support for Urdu language. If not and if only changing font is an option, then please suggest some good fonts for my Solus OS KDE to make Urdu characters look good on this Linux distribution.

https://redd.it/1l2xrgd
@r_linux

Any multiboot USB alternative to ventoy on Flathub?

Hi,

I have been using venoty for multiple years and every some time it disappears from boot menu and I need to install it again.

So, is there any alternative but I can install it from Flathub (Or snap maybe)? I am using Fedora and prefer using installed apps not extracted compressed files.

Thanks in advance.

https://redd.it/1l321uo
@r_linux

surface studio laptop 2 trying to install linux.

I have a surface studio laptop 2, but currently the battery life is pretty shit. Can anyone reccomend me a linux distro to use, that increases battery life, easy to install + beginner friendly, performs well with surface hardware, and can still optimize the performance.

https://redd.it/1l33x6l
@r_linux

PeerTube v7.2 is out!
https://joinpeertube.org/news/release-7.2

https://redd.it/1l36y35
@r_linux

TIL: modules.dep is a Makefile

The modules.dep file (usually under /lib/modules/<kernel version>) lists kernel modules and their dependencies. Here's a sample:

kernel/fs/ext4/ext4.ko.gz: kernel/lib/crc16.ko.gz kernel/fs/mbcache.ko.gz kernel/fs/jbd2/jbd2.ko.gz
kernel/fs/ext2/ext2.ko.gz: kernel/fs/mbcache.ko.gz
kernel/fs/jbd2/jbd2.ko.gz:

Hey, that looks like a Makefile full of empty rules! But how is that useful?

I recently challenged myself to write an initramfs (the minimal environment that the kernel invokes to find the real root filesystem) using only busybox and make—for reasons... Along the way, I discovered that while it's easy to copy a static busybox and write a noscript that mounts the standard root directories, if you need to do anything that requires kernel modules in order to find your root, things get a lot more complicated. In particular, busybox modprobe doesn’t support some flags that would've helped with dependency resolution at both build and run time.

At first, I tried writing a shell-based resolver in my /init, but it looked nasty and debugging was a pain in such a minimal environment. Then I realized: I could offload all that logic to make at build time.

Here's my Makefile:

# install-modules.mk
ifndef MODULEDIR
$(error MODULEDIR is not set. Please set it to the directory containing your kernel modules, e.g., /lib/modules/$(shell uname -r).)
endif

include $(MODULEDIR)/modules.dep

%:
install -D -m 0644 $(MODULEDIR)/$@ ./$@
echo $@ >> ./modules.order

I include modules.dep to populate make’s rules, and then define a catch-all target that installs any requested module into the current directory while appending its path to modules.order.

When I invoke make with a target like kernel/fs/ext4/ext4.ko.gz, it resolves all dependencies automatically and installs them in the correct order.

In my main initramfs Makefile, I run something like this:

# -r -R since we don't need the more compilation-oriented default rules and variables
$(MAKE) -r -R -C lib/modules/${KERNELVERSION} \
-f install-modules.mk \
MODULEDIR=${ROOTFS}/lib/modules/${KERNELVERSION}/ \
kernel/fs/ext4/ext4.ko.gz # TODO: add other module paths as targets

And here's the output:

make: Entering directory '/build/lib/modules/6.12.30-1-lts/'
install -D -m 0644 /lib/modules/6.12.30-1-lts//kernel/lib/crc16.ko.gz ./kernel/lib/crc16.ko.gz
echo kernel/lib/crc16.ko.gz >> ./modules.order
install -D -m 0644 /lib/modules/6.12.30-1-lts//kernel/fs/mbcache.ko.gz ./kernel/fs/mbcache.ko.gz
echo kernel/fs/mbcache.ko.gz >> ./modules.order
install -D -m 0644 /lib/modules/6.12.30-1-lts//kernel/fs/jbd2/jbd2.ko.gz ./kernel/fs/jbd2/jbd2.ko.gz
echo kernel/fs/jbd2/jbd2.ko.gz >> ./modules.order
install -D -m 0644 /lib/modules/6.12.30-1-lts//kernel/fs/ext4/ext4.ko.gz ./kernel/fs/ext4/ext4.ko.gz
echo kernel/fs/ext4/ext4.ko.gz >> ./modules.order
make: Leaving directory '/build/lib/modules/6.12.30-1-lts/'

Since it's make, I can also use -p, -d, and --trace to get more detailed information on my dependency graph—something my noscript based solution couldn't do.

At boot time, my /init noscript can simply loop through the generated modules.order and insmod each module, in order and exactly once. With set -x, it's easy to confirm that everything loads correctly.

One shortcoming is that changes to the source modules currently don't trigger updates. When I tried adding them as prerequisites to the pattern rule it no longer matched the empty rules. Realistically, this isn't an issue because I'm only dealing with around 20 modules so I can just clean and re-run. But I'm sure I'd want that if I were doing module development or needed more in my initramfs.

I imagine I’m not the first person to discover this trick,

and I wouldn’t be surprised if the creator of modules.dep deliberately formatted it this way with something like this in mind. It seems in keeping with the Unix philosophy. But I haven’t seen any existing initramfs generation tools doing this—though this is my first time digging into them in detail.

So what do you think: hacky, elegant, or both?

https://redd.it/1l3a7eo
@r_linux

I want to switch to Ubuntu

I've distrohopped many times and I can say that I have tried the " normal" base distro's out there ( Debian, Arch, Fedora, Opensuse, no Slackware/Gentoo/Solus though) . I haven't really got my perfect fit. Arch, bothers me with too many updates; Like I've gotten 2 updates in a single day from Electron 34! Can't use debian for being too "old". Can't use other Ubuntu based distros because they are mostly based on ubuntu LTS, which I don't want. Fedora is the one I am most comfortable with , but it has the problem of relying on flatpaks too much! And the flatpak subsystem takes too much of my storage, which I don't like. Like, different flatpaks need multiple versions of the same "runtime". However, I now want to give ubuntu a shot! Most of the packages available for linux are available as deb! But many many people suggest against ubuntu. But what if I take a customized approch; Can I customize ubuntu enough to make it "good"? Not using snap and things like that? Are there any other objections against ubuntu, that I might not be able to fix easily?

https://redd.it/1l3csty
@r_linux

What's the best lightweight distro?

I currently use arch, but have an old laptop and I wnat to get it usable again. Does anyone know any lightweight distro which takes less space and is more usable than tinycore. It can also be something like from scratch, or a summer project to set up.

Edit:
The laptop is a tinkpad x200, from 2008

https://redd.it/1l3eccc
@r_linux

Finally made the jump to join the penguin!

For some context. I have been a multi-os user for many years. Partly cause i am a bit of a nerd who likes to stay updated. And partly because i find operating systems fascinating. So, i have been running windows for gaming mostly, and then had Linux in some form or capacity on my laptops etc. But recently.... Like so many others it seems.. I had been playing with the thought of pulling the switch on Windows. This time around i did as i always do, pull out a spare ssd, start distro hopping. Never had in mind to fully switch just yet. After 8 different newly and freshly updated Linux distros (that i usually try out), there was one part of Linux which I never dared trying cause honestly - The community and skillset that was highlighted for using and running the os was intimidating.

Now I am an IT technician by education, so not intimidating in that manner. But - Time spent, contra time returned is quite important for me.

Either way - Arch was luring me in. And CachyOS made me try it out. Now - I know! It is Arch, but perhaps not the full and true Arch experience. But alas here we are.

Now to current day - I am almost 3 and a half week in - which in my book tells me that the honeymoon phase is passed with flying colors - And i have not turned on my Win disk for anything else than COD, due to anticheat.

So, what is the point with this post?
To encourage! Try things out, you may be positively surprised. This OS has truly changed me. I am fully converted, i have all my apps i usually use and work with. And the system is rocking an Intel i5 12400 paired with a Nvidia 4060. And guys, i literally have no issues.

Gaming experience is excellent, even better than windows in some aspects. And before y'all say it, no it is not a buffed out setup, but its okay, i think most guys in their mid 30's to 40's might be rocking this type of setup. :)

I am such a happy camper that i felt inspired to tell people about it.

In addition i am also rocking a ROG ally on the side which I also ditched windows. The penguin is here to stay!

cheers everyone, and stay curious!

https://redd.it/1l3f8a1
@r_linux

Built, operated, controlled, and secured in Europe: AWS unveils new sovereign controls and governance structure for the AWS European Sovereign Cloud
https://www.aboutamazon.eu/news/aws/built-operated-controlled-and-secured-in-europe-aws-unveils-new-sovereign-controls-and-governance-structure-for-the-aws-european-sovereign-cloud

https://redd.it/1l3h08i
@r_linux

Python Script to Control Thermalright CPU Cooler Digital LCD Display

Hello,

I’ve put together a Python noscript that lets you control the digital screen on your Thermalright CPU cooler, since the official TRCC software isn’t compatible with Linux. The noscript, along with setup instruction including how to run it as a service at startup and a user interface for managing the display, is available on my GitHub.

So far, I’ve only tested it on my system (Ryzen 3900X and Radeon 7900XT), so I’d really appreciate feedback if you try it on other hardware.

If you run into any issues, need help or even have an idea for improvement, feel free to reach out here or open an issue on GitHub!





https://redd.it/1l3iues
@r_linux