2008/03/15

Leopard: Periodic scripts don't email results (postfix)

I've been round-and-round on this one and can't find the break; hopefully someone will jump in and point out my error!

I configure /etc/aliases so that postfix knows where to send stuff addressed to root. I use "mail root" to test and it works.

Here's the first strangeness: Postfix no longer logs the send, as it did by default in Tiger. And I can't find where to bump the logging level.

I then configure /etc/periodic.conf.local to send output of the periodic scripts to both root and /var/log. The scripts run (both interactively via "periodic daily" and timed, via launchd) and logs are written in /var/log, but no email.

The behavior is consistent across every Leopard machine I've configured.

So both pieces of the puzzle seem to be working properly, though not the combination - what's missing?

AHA! After a false start, simply trying to explain it, did indeed bring on the solution, and it's painfully easy: Update to 10.5.2. :)

I had forgotten two factors:

1) Running "periodic " interactively did indeed email the results properly.

2) One of my Leopard installs "strangely" did, when kicked off by launchd, email the periodics' results properly - the one updated to 10.5.2. :))

(Credit to an Apple Discussion for the final kick to put all the pieces together.)

Update #2: It's not quite so easy (as updating to 10.5.2); the default config on a Mac OS X *Server* box is somewhat different: Comment out the references to Cyrus in both master.cf & main.cf (in /etc/postfix); for those of us simply wanting to email cron/launchd results out, it's just getting in the way.

BTW: Increasing the postfix logging level is so simple it's embarrassing: Edit /etc/syslog.conf. :)

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