The Queue

• Here's how qmail-queue puts a new message into the queue

  1. It creates a new file in queue/pid with a unique name

     • (The name contains qmail-queue's pid, the time, and a sequence number)

  2. This new file has some i-number, say 123456

  3. The new file is moved to mess/123456

  4. qmail-queue writes the message contents to mess/123456

  5. it writes the envelope information to intd/123456

  6. it links intd/123456 to todo/123456

• The message is now queued

• qmail-queue pulls a trigger to wake up qmail-send

• Exercise: what if qmail-queue is killed partway through?

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Copyright © 2004 M. J. Dominus