Linux Network Administrator's Guide, Second Edition

UUCP Setup

Exim does not have any specific code for transporting mail via UUCP, nor does it support UUCP bang path addresses. However, if domain addressing is being used, Exim can be interfaced to UUCP fairly simply. Here is a configuration fragment for sending certain domains to UUCP, taken from a real installation:

# Transport
uucp:
  driver = pipe
  user = nobody
  command = "/usr/local/bin/uux -r - \
    ${substr_-5:$host}!rmail ${local_part}"
  return_fail_output = true

# Router
uucphost:
  transport = uucp
  driver = domainlist
  route_file = /usr/exim/uucphosts
  search_type = lsearch

In a complete configuration file, the transport would be inserted among the other transports, and the router probably defined as the first router. The file /usr/exim/uucphosts contains entries like this:

darksite.example.com:           darksite.UUCP

which is interpreted to mean, “Send mail addressed to the domain darksite.example.com to the UUCP host darksite.” This configuration could be set up more simply without the router adding the suffix .UUCP to darksite only to have the transport take it off again, but this way is useful because it makes clear the distinction between the domain name darksite.example.com and the UUCP host name darksite.

Whenever the router comes across a domain that is in the route file, it will send the address to the UUCP transport, which subsequently pipes it to the uux command (described in Chapter 16). If there is a problem, uux will generate some output and terminate with a non-zero error code. ...