Pull requests gladly accepted
Webmin is a web-based, server configuration tool – or, control panel, like cPanel and Plesk – and its versatility allows even novice Linux users to deploy, and administer, a full-fledged mail server.
First, follow the steps outlined in How To Create Your First DigitalOcean Droplet Virtual Server to deploy the latest release of Ubuntu 12.04 Server
.
A 32-bit operating system is recommended for cloud servers with less than 3 GB of RAM – this is especially true for servers with 1 GB, or less, of RAM. Processes can require significantly more memory on the 64-bit architecture. On servers with a limited amount of RAM, any performance benefits that one might gain from a 64-bit operating system would be diluted by having less memory available for buffers and caching.
For increased security, it is advisable that you:
- Create your droplet with pre-installed SSH keys. See How To Use SSH Keys with DigitalOcean Droplets (Windows users: Refer to the article cited, next); and
- Disable password logins. See How To Create SSH Keys with PuTTY to Connect to a VPS | DigitalOcean.
Then, complete the steps outlined in Initial Server Setup with Ubuntu 12.04 | DigitalOcean.
If you deployed a cloud server with 512MB of RAM, you're best advised to add swap. See How To Add Swap on Ubuntu 12.04 | DigitalOcean. Allowing Webmin to swap out infrequently-used processes, and data, leaves more memory available for active processes.
Next, follow the steps outlined in Setting the Hostname & Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) on Ubuntu 12.04 or CentOS 6.4.
Now, follow the steps in How to Install Webmin on an Ubuntu Cloud Server | DigitalOcean to deploy the Webmin control panel.
This article assumes that you do not wish to manage your DNS records via Webmin.
One of Webmin's benefits is that its capabilities can be expanded via modules. Modules make it easy to add new functionality to your server.
In order for mail to start flowing through your new mail server, an MX record
needs to be added to your DNS records. See How To Set Up a Host Name with DigitalOcean.
How To use an SPF Record to Prevent Spoofing & Improve E-mail Reliability | DigitalOcean
As always, if you need help with the steps outlined in this How-To, look to the DigitalOcean Community for assistance by posing your question(s), below.
Pull requests gladly accepted