[Spambayes-checkins] website server_side.ht,1.5,1.6

[Tony Meyer]

Update of /cvsroot/spambayes/website
In directory sc8-pr-cvs1.sourceforge.net:/tmp/cvs-serv31250

Modified Files:
	server_side.ht 
Log Message:
Add description from Aaron Konstam.  Note that this isn't really
what you would think of as server side filtering (AFAICT) - it's more like making
client side filtering much easier, but it can't hurt to have the
description here.

Index: server_side.ht
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RCS file: /cvsroot/spambayes/website/server_side.ht,v
retrieving revision 1.5
retrieving revision 1.6
diff -C2 -d -r1.5 -r1.6
*** server_side.ht	22 Jul 2004 03:20:26 -0000	1.5
--- server_side.ht	9 Aug 2004 06:22:47 -0000	1.6
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*** 130,131 ****
--- 130,183 ----
  an IMAP server</a>, using imapfilter.py (now sb_imapfilter.py) and
  hammiefilter.py (now sb_filter.py).</p>
+ 
+ <h2>An Alternate method of Server Mail filtering in Linux or Unix
+ environments</h2>
+ <p>Aaron Konstam has given us this description of the setup used at
+ Trinity University.</p>
+ 
+ <p>As opposed to other suggested server filtering setups with SpamBayes
+ this approach has the advantage that although the server is doing all the
+ filtering each, user on a client machine has complete control of the
+ training of the filtering process to meet his or her own tastes. It is
+ ideal for the university student lab environment but could be used in
+ commercial environments as well.</p>
+ 
+ <p>The basis of this method is that all the user directories as well as
+ the password authentication data are kept on the server.  The
+ authentication data is made available to all the client machines through a
+ well known Unix and Linux service called NIS. Any user can sit at any
+ machine and log in using the same password, change passwords and make any
+ other changes to their user environment.</p>
+ 
+ <p>The home directories are NFS mounted from the server on all the client
+ machines. Therefore, the users home directory on the client machine is
+ identical to the one on the server. The user has access to his hammie.db
+ file, his personal configuration file and all the SpamBayes software that
+ has been installed on the clients. Of course the SpamBayes software is also
+ installed on ther server.</p>
+ 
+ <p>Mail is filtered by the server using a .procmailrc file in the user's
+ directory that runs sb_filter.py. One further thing, which should be
+ obvious, is that we have created MX records so that all mail addressed to a
+ client is actually delivered to the server.</p>
+ 
+ <p>Training can easily be done with a simple script such as:</p>
+ 
+ <pre>
+ #!/bin/bash
+ #script: trainsb
+ 
+ /usr/bin/sb_mboxtrain.py -d $HOME/.hammie.db -g  $HOME/Mail/$1 -s $HOME/Mail/$2
+ </pre>
+ 
+ <p>used as follows: <pre>trainsb ham spam</pre></p>
+ 
+ <p>Notice that no proxy servers of any kind are necessary for the user to
+ read their mail, train it, manipulate it or do anything else they want to
+ do. However, if they want to use the web interface on the local client
+ machine to train their mail that is also available to them.</p>
+ 
+ <p>As a side note we run our lab Windows machines in exactly the same way.
+ There is a server for authenticating users and user's directories are kept
+ on a central server.  One imagines one could train users mail in exactly
+ the same way on our Windows machines in our labs.</p>