TekGuard EMail Interceptor

What's Different?

Today's email servers are typically written in C and C++, and are based on 20-year old Unix Sendmail code and implementation strategies. For example, these legacy email servers support insecure commands such as "Finger" and "Whois" which allow bulk emailers ("spammers") to query your mail server for information about particular users, or even ask for a complete list of email clients.

The cost of junk email is rising tremendously. Consumers are attempting, in vain, to stop the flow by changing email addresses, using add-in products, and a variety of other strategies. Unfortunately, the old email servers do not have the necessary architecture and software hooks to support an effective defense.

EMail Interceptor is a total, from the ground up implementation of an email server. Built with the latest software technologies, it implements an open, "inside out" architecture to provide effective, secure mail service with simple configuration. The mail server is designed to work hand in hand with the TekGuard Microsoft Outlook PlugIn and Spam Tracking Search Engine Spider and Browser.

Highlights:

Fast, secure, stable, fully featured native Microsoft .Net mail server (Cb)
Ease of use and setup (Cb)
Full multi domain support (Cb)
Security, anti spam and anti relay, anti-virus options (Cb, V1)
Multiple CPU Support (Cb)
ODBC and High Speed Mode Support (Cb, V1)
Server, user, domain statistics (Vx)
MX and DNS record caching (V1)
Open Internet Standards compliant (Cb)
Support for IPv6 (Vx)
Integrated Firewall (Cb)
POP3 and SMTP support (Cb)
Can import NT users (V1)
Mailbox manager view - Ability to - Redirect, copy and move message within mailboxes (V1)
Status display view (Cb)
Network connection support (Cb)
Proxy support (V1)
Advanced MX record mail delivery or directly to your ISP's mail server (V1)
If no other DNS records are available the mail server will use the standard windows HOSTS file to try and look up a domain name. (V1)
SMTP and POP3 ports can be bound to an IP address and the listening ports can be changed. (Cb)
Optional support for IMAP4 reV1 (Vx)

Why get an expensive e-mail server with a lot of features you really don't need? With EMail Interceptor, you get features you can really use.

The EMail Interceptor is a full featured Internet standards compliant, electronic mail server. It is the central repository for all electronic mail communication to and from your organization and allows your computer to communicate with other mail servers on the Internet. It acts as the post office for the Internet e-mail clients on other computers on your network. E-mail clients can communicate with the server to send and receive e-mail locally or to the world via the Internet.

Features:

Administration - The EMail Interceptor Cockpit Window makes e-mail management so easy that even a novice can perform account maintenance and other common administrative tasks. (Cb)

Scalability - True scalability allows the mail server to fit into any size organization, from a handful of employees, to handling thousands of employees and customers. With the unlimited user option, the price per user actually decreases as your business grows. ODBC database support allows for fast import of account and domain information and mailing list addresses, eliminating traditional administrative burden. (Cb)

Protocols - EMail Interceptor supports the SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) and POP3 (Post Office Protocol 3). These are the standard Electronic mail transfer protocols used on the Internet for exchanging mail. SMTP is used for client-to-server and server-to-server mail delivery and POP3 allows e-mail clients to receive mail (Cb). The IMAP protocol provides a superior combination of stability, security, and scalability. (V1)

Speed - As a native .Net multithreaded application, with Multiple CPU Support, EMail Interceptor processes email faster than its competitors (Cb). The Cached Memory Mode stores account information in RAM, further increasing the server's speed and stability. (V1)

Domains / IP Addresses - You can use the EMail Interceptor to deliver mail inside your organization with or without a connection to the Internet. And the EMail Interceptor supports multiple virtual domains across multiple IP addresses. (Cb)

Mail-to-Pager & Mail-to-Fax - EMail Interceptor can route messages to users' alphanumeric pagers. Additional add-ons let you send e-mail to fax machines. (Vx)

User Mailboxes - For POP3 mail pickup from the server. (Cb)

Support forwarding of mail to another e-mail address (V1)
Supports auto replies (V1)
Supports maximum number of messages (V1)
Supports maximum size of messages (V1)
Supports maximum disk space usage (V1)

Alias Mailboxes - For the representation of multiple mail names as a single mailbox. (Cb)

Supports auto replies (V1)

Group Mailboxes - For the representation of several mailboxes as a single one. (Cb)

Supports auto replies (Cb)
Supports distribution of messages, based on message arrival, to each member (useful for sales or support departments where the department is represented by one email address) (V1)

Auto Reply Support - EMail Interceptor can be set up to automatically mail a user-defined message anytime an email is received to the specified users account. Particularly useful for employees who spend a great deal of time out of the office, or during vacations. (V1)

Auto-response filtering support - prevents auto response to automated mailboxes to prevent message looping. (V1)
Auto reply macro substitution support - facilitates the customization of the responding message. (V1)
Optional return to sender or forward to ISP for undeliverable outgoing mail (IA)

Architecture:

TekGuard Email Interceptor System Architecture

EMail Interceptor runs "out of the box", as well as provides an open architecture for developers. The package includes source code for programmers that wish to customize or integrate our product into their environment. This version will include the mail server central source code, along with source for the security component.

Administration

Scheduled Backup - Administrators can configure EMail Interceptor to automatically backup critical system information, such as user account data, server configurations, and license data, and will store the backup file separate from the mail server. Should anything happen to EMail Interceptor or the computer it is running on, restoration is made easier with the backup file safely stored elsewhere. It is also possible to run a manual backup at any time. (V1)

Watchdog - The watchdog on EMail Interceptor ensures that SMTP, POP3, and IMAP services are always running. If, for any reason, any of the services stop, the watchdog feature will restart the service automatically. Administrators can set the time interval at which the watchdog should start downed services. By automatically monitoring these delivery protocols, EMail Interceptor is better equipped run smoothly and deliver email. (V1)

Disk Space Monitor - The Disk Space monitor will track the available hard disk space on the server computer. When the free space reaches a user specified level, the Disk Space Monitor will trigger EMail Interceptor to send notification to the server administrator. By actively tracking the disk space, EMail Interceptor protects against failure caused by a lack of memory. (V1)

Extensive Logging - 4 levels of server information logging. Separate logs can be produced for each individual service in EMail Interceptor (including POP3, SMTP, IMAP, and Control and HTTP services). As well, EMail Interceptor can produce logs showing activity by users, including the size and number of messages sent and received by each account. (Cb, V1)

ODBC (Open DataBase Connectivity) Support - EMail Interceptor supports the Windows NT/2000/XP user account database, its own database, or can connect to any ODBC compliant database (e.g. SQL®, MySQL, Access®, Oracle® databases). This simplifies setup of user accounts, mailing lists, etc., as existing lists can be imported into TekGuard: EMail Interceptor. Support for ODBC connections also allows for centralized management of user data. Instead of creating and maintaining user data in multiple applications, administrators can manage and backup the data in one place, accessing it fromEMail Interceptor with ease. This makes EMail Interceptor integration with your existing customer billing, student enrollment, HR, or other systems a snap. (Cb, V1)

Source Code Support - EMail Interceptor runs "out of the box", as well as provides an open architecture for developers. The package includes source code for programmers that wish to customize or integrate our product into their environment. This version will include the mail server central source code, along with source for the security component. (Cb)

Security

Spam Control- Stop Spammers from using your server with these powerful tools, and prevent unwanted email from being delivered to your system. (Cb)

Real time blacklist support:Support for various Real-time black hole lists, checking sender's IP address for each incoming SMTP connection. If the IP address is in the MAPS or ORBS database of open-relay servers identified as spammers, the incoming email is refused (see http://www.mail-abuse.org. (V1)

SMTP authorization by IP address: Limits SMTP relay access to specified range of IP addresses. Relay access is usually allowed for users within your Local Area Network (LAN). (Cb)

Content filtering by address, subject, content or size: Allows rejection of emails from notorious spammers not known to public blacklists. Allows creation of a custom blacklist. This provides an efficient measure to fight empty "From" fields in spam emails. (Cb, V1)

The mail server can validate a sender's domain name as given in the SMTP MAIL FROM: command via a MX/DNS record lookup and reject the email message if the validation is not successful. (V1)
Kill lists based on domain, mailbox or complete address (Cb, V1)
Connection restrictions based on senders domain via the SMTP "HELO" command (Cb, V1)
Support for the refusal of anonymous connections via the SMTP "HELO" command (Cb, V1)
Connection restrictions based on sender's IP address (Cb)

"Sent email per hour" quota: Limits number of emails that one user (IP address) can send within a specific time period. Significantly reduces the risk of mail server abuse if spammer has accidentally acquired trusted user access rights. (V1)

"Concurrent connection" limit: Limits number of concurrent SMTP connections made from one IP address (one user). Protects mail server resources by limiting mail load. Prevents the use of specially designed spam programs that create multiple connections to increase the number of emails being sent to SMTP server. (V1)

Tarpitting - Administrators can configure EMail Interceptor to check for unsuccessful attempts to deliver emails to unknown users by external or local non-existing users. If the number of attempts in a session exceeds the number specified by the Admin, the IP address of the sender will be remembered for that period and no access from that IP address will be allowed within the period. (V1)

Open Relay Blocking - prevent Spammers from hijacking your email server by allowing only valid users to send mail to non-local destinations. (Cb)

POP-Authenticated Relay - Requires the client software to establish a valid POP3 login session before allowing the client to relay mail through the server via SMTP. Useful for remote users (Cb)
Restrictions on SMTP Relaying based on IP and allowed server list (Cb)
Restrictions on SMTP Relaying by requiring a valid local address in the SMTP MAIL FROM: command (Cb)
Outgoing connection can log into a POP3 mailbox on your ISP's server before SMTP messages are transferred. This is now being required by some ISPs. (POP-Authenticated Relay ) (V1)
The mail server can be set to restrict the size of incoming email messages to help prevent Email Bombing (IA)

Authentication Support - EMail Interceptor allows email clients to authenticate before sending and receiving email. By using authentication methods, EMail Interceptor can further protect itself from being used as a relay point. Users must identify themselves to the server and be approved to use the mail server. (Cb)

SMTP authorization by user name and password: Requires users to authenticate before sending email through SMTP.(V1)

Content Filtering - Filter incoming and outgoing emails based on a number of variables including, subject, sender and/or recipient, key words in the text, and more. Set the content filter to delete or forward filtered messages. (V1)

Anti-Virus Support – Support for anti-virus plugins. (V1)

Corporate Policy for increased security - EMail Interceptor supports 2 methods for helping to enforce Corporate Policies governing email usage.

Set Rules for Incoming messages based on a wide variety of factors (V1)
Set Rules for Outgoing messages based on a wide variety of factory (V1)

Mailbox Restrictions - Restrictions can be placed on mailboxes according to overall size, maximum number of megabytes sent per day, even maximum number of messages sent per day. These restrictions help administrators control bandwidth across all accounts. (V1)

Multiple Domains

Multiple Service Support - EMail Interceptor will support running multiple instances of POP3, SMTP and optional IMAP servers. These servers can have their own distinct settings, mailboxes, domains and be bound to specific IP addresses. (Cb)

Multiple CPU Support - EMail Interceptor will recognize and utilize multiple processors installed on the server computer. This results in optimum performance when the server experiences heavy traffic. By taking advantage of all the available processing power, EMail Interceptor is able to handle more email faster than its competitors. (Cb)

Multiple Domains - using multiple IP addresses or not (Cb) With Multiple Domain Support, a single EMail Interceptor instance can handle several unique domains (or different addresses). If a company has several identities, all mail can be handled through one server. By reducing the administration burden inherent in running multiple email servers, all email tasks can be made more efficient, and a company can apply consistent routing and filtering rules across all of its accounts. This gives your network room to grow without affecting productivity and is especially useful for service providers with multiple clients who each want their own domain. (Cb)

Supports Alias, virtual and sub-domains (Cb)
Undeliverable mail can be forwarding to ISP, returned to sender, sent to postmaster, delivered to a catch all message box or delivered to the matching system user (Cb, V1)
Most mailboxes can be unique to a domain (user mailboxes are the exception ) (Cb, V1)

Supports Multiple Domains using three different methods:

Virtual domains where domains are all associated with one IP address (Cb)
Multi-homed domains, where domains each have their own distinct IP addresses (Cb)
A mixture of the above (Cb)

Requirements:

Windows XP, 2000, or NT 4.0 (with .Net runtime)
Intel Pentium II, equivalent or higher (multiple processors supported)
128 MB RAM (512 MB recommended)
CD-ROM drive
4 GB hard drive
EMail Interceptor is available for a range of scalable Intel platforms with the following minimum requirements:

Note: These requirements are estimates only. Actual requirements may vary.