Installing RainLoop Webmail on Nginx for Email Management
RainLoop is a web-based email system developed in PHP that allows users to aggregate multiple email accounts for convenient management. Recently, I encountered some minor issues while installing RainLoop in an Nginx environment and would like to share the installation method.
Download RainLoop
Official download link: Downloads / RainLoop Webmail
Navigate to your site's root directory and execute the following commands:
### Download RainLoop
wget http://www.rainloop.net/repository/webmail/rainloop-community-latest.zip
### Unzip
unzip rainloop-community-latest.zip
### Set user/group permissions
chown -R www:www ./*
My blog uses the OneinStack integrated environment where both the user and group are www, hence the command chown -R www:www ./*. Please adjust this according to your actual Nginx user.
Access Test
My blog has bound the domain mail.hixz.org. The RainLoop backend address is http://your-domain/?admin, with the default username admin and password 12345.
Upon accessing, I encountered a "[105] Missing version directory" error. According to the official documentation, this was a permission issue. Execute the following commands in the site root directory to fix it:
find . -type d -exec chmod 755 {} \;
find . -type f -exec chmod 644 {} \;
Re-access http://mail.hixz.org/?admin. It now works correctly. Enter the username admin and password 12345 to log in.
Basic Settings
RainLoop supports multiple languages. After entering the backend, select Chinese (Simplified) from the options shown in the screenshot.
On the first login, the system will prompt you to change the administrator password. Click to change it.
Set Email Domains
This step is important. In the backend, click on "Domains". You will see that RainLoop has Gmail enabled by default. If you need to use Outlook, QQ Mail, etc., you can enable them as well.
Next, add an alias, which essentially means adding the email accounts you need to manage. For example, since I frequently use an Outlook email, I will add one.
Return to the homepage (http://mail.hixz.org/), enter the newly added Outlook email and your password to log in. If all goes well, you can send and receive emails.
Other Notes
RainLoop is developed in PHP and can normally run in a PHP environment. However, it has special requirements for certain components, so issues may arise on virtual hosts. It is recommended to install it on a VPS. If you need to enable email contacts, you will need a database (MySQL); you can explore this further on your own.
Summary
RainLoop relies on the server's network. If the server is located in China and you are using overseas email accounts, sending and receiving emails may be difficult and not very stable. For higher requirements, consider using email clients like Foxmail.
RainLoop Official Address: www.rainloop.net