cqrenet/relay
4
0
Fork 0
mirror of https://github.com/chatmail/relay.git synced 2026-05-19 12:28:06 +00:00
Code Issues Packages Projects Releases Wiki Activity

Split README into sphinx doc structured sections (#711)

Browse Source 
refactor README.rst and architecture file into sphinx doc project, automatically deploying on main merges and PRs.

* add FAQs from https://chatmail.at/relays landing page

* fix links, and streamline postfix/dovecot mentioning

* add linkcheck to CI, fix several links and streamlihne DKIM section while at it

* some streamlining, rename to "overview"

* ci: upload documentation to chatmail.at/doc/relay

* ci: main should be uploaded when docs.yaml changes

* ci: fix typo

* Update .github/workflows/docs-preview.yaml

Co-authored-by: missytake <missytake@systemli.org>
This commit is contained in:
holger krekel
2025-11-11 14:49:25 +01:00
committed by GitHub
parent f24bc99c6f
commit 50b986a265
19 changed files with 1005 additions and 604 deletions
Download Patch File Download Diff File Expand all files Collapse all files

61
doc/source/faq.rst Normal file
View File

@@ -0,0 +1,61 @@
Frequently asked questions
===========================
What is the difference between chatmail relays and classic email servers?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
A chatmail relay is a minimal Mail Transport Agent (MTA) setup that
goes beyond what classic email servers offer:
- **Zero State:** no private data or metadata collected, messages are auto-deleted, low disk usage
- **Instant/Realtime:** sub-second message delivery, realtime P2P
streaming, privacy-preserving Push Notifications for Apple, Google, and `Ubuntu Touch <https://docs.ubports.com/en/latest/appdev/guides/pushnotifications.html>`_;
- **Security Enforcement**: only strict TLS, DKIM and OpenPGP with minimized metadata accepted
- **Reliable Federation and Decentralization:** No spam or IP reputation checks, federating
depends on established IETF standards and protocols.
How about interoperability with classic email servers?
-------------------------------------------------------
Generally, chatmail relays interoperate well with classic email servers.
However, some chatmail relays may be blocked by Big-Tech email
providers that use intransparent and proprietary techniques for scanning
and looking at cleartext email messages between users, or because they
use questionable IP-reputation systems that break interoperability.
**Chatmail relays instead use and require strong cryptography, allowing
anyone to participate, without having to submit to Big-Tech
restrictions.**
.. _selfhosted:
How are chatmail relays run? Can I run one myself?
--------------------------------------------------
Chatmail relays are designed to be very cheap to run, and are generally
self-funded by respective operators. All chatmail relays are
automatically deployed and updated using `the chatmail relay
repository <https://github.com/chatmail/relay>`__. Chatmail relays are
composed of proven standard email server components, Postfix and
Dovecot, and are configured to run unattended without much maintenance
effort. Chatmail relays happily run on low-end hardware like a Raspberry
Pi.
How trustable are chatmail relays?
----------------------------------
Chatmail relays enforce end-to-end encryption,
and chatmail clients like `Delta Chat <https://delta.chat>`_
enforce end-to-end encryption on their own.
The end-to-end encryption protection includes attached media, user
display names, avatars and group names. What is visible to operators is:
message date, sender and receiver addresses.
Please see the `Delta Chat FAQ on encryption and security <https://delta.chat/en/help#e2ee>`_ for further info.