We probably don’t have a straight-forward spamd configuration so there wasn’t much noise out there from other people suffering this same issue so i think it may be peculiar to us.
I upgraded from spamassassin 3.2.3 to 3.2.4 but received the following error when starting the service:
cannot use –sql-config without -u
As we are using the -q and -x options when starting the daemon. Removing the -q -x and the associated values from the local.cf file got things running in the meantime but afterwards I needed to add the -u (user) option – which we had not been using previously. Using -u root (not an idea I was happy with but wanted to see if it got running) resulted with /var/log/maillog informing us that:
spamd: cannot run as nonexistent user or root with -u option
So amending the “-u root” to read “-u nobody” got the service running again.
For reference here is the SPAMDCONFIG options in /etc/sysconfig/spamassassin
-x -q -u nobody –round-robin -m 25 -i 1.2.3.4 -A 2.3.4.5,1.2.3.5 -d -c
And for more reference here is an explanation of the spamd options:
-l, --allow-tell Allow learning/reporting
-c, --create-prefs Create user preferences files
-C path, --configpath=path Path for default config files
--siteconfigpath=path Path for site configs
-d, --daemonize Daemonize
-h, --help Print usage message.
-i [ipaddr], --listen-ip=ipaddr Listen on the IP ipaddr
-p port, --port=port Listen on specified port
-m num, --max-children=num Allow maximum num children
--min-children=num Allow minimum num children
--min-spare=num Lower limit for number of spare children
--max-spare=num Upper limit for number of spare children
--max-conn-per-child=num Maximum connections accepted by child
before it is respawned
--round-robin Use traditional prefork algorithm
--timeout-tcp=secs Connection timeout for client headers
--timeout-child=secs Connection timeout for message checks
-q, --sql-config Enable SQL config (only useful with -x)
-Q, --setuid-with-sql Enable SQL config (only useful with -x,
enables use of -H)
--ldap-config Enable LDAP config (only useful with -x)
--setuid-with-ldap Enable LDAP config (only useful with -x,
enables use of -H)
--virtual-config-dir=dir Enable pattern based Virtual configs
(needs -x)
-r pidfile, --pidfile Write the process id to pidfile
-s facility, --syslog=facility Specify the syslog facility
--syslog-socket=type How to connect to syslogd
-u username, --username=username Run as username
-g groupname, --groupname=groupname Run as groupname
-v, --vpopmail Enable vpopmail config
-x, --nouser-config Disable user config files
--auth-ident Use ident to authenticate spamc user
--ident-timeout=timeout Timeout for ident connections
-A host,..., --allowed-ips=..,.. Limit ip addresses which can connect
-D, --debug[=areas] Print debugging messages (for areas)
-L, --local Use local tests only (no DNS)
-P, --paranoid Die upon user errors
-H [dir], --helper-home-dir[=dir] Specify a different HOME directory
--ssl Run an SSL server
--server-key keyfile Specify an SSL keyfile
--server-cert certfile Specify an SSL certificate
--socketpath=path Listen on given UNIX domain socket
--socketowner=name Set UNIX domain socket file's owner
--socketgroup=name Set UNIX domain socket file's group
--socketmode=mode Set UNIX domain socket file's mode
