Exim4 delivers mail to mail instead to root

[brad]

Linux mx-linux 5.10.0-19-amd64 #1 SMP Debian 5.10.149-2 (2022-10-21) x86_64 GNU/Linux

I just wanted to use exim4 instead sendmail or postfix which btw works great.
If anybody can understand and reproduce this issue please help, for the ones who copy and paste from google please refrain, I did search.

I configured local-only (no network):

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dpkg-reconfigure exim4-config

and

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update-exim4.conf

Thanks!

[brad]

mail is delivered to users but not to root. Instead /var/mail/root all mail is delivered to /var/mail/mail

2022-11-21 14:55:41 1oxCtJ-0009R0-Cd => /var/mail/mail (root@mx-linux) <root@mx-linux> R=mail4root T=address_file

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root@mx-linux:/var/mail# tail /var/log/exim4/mainlog
2022-11-21 14:46:13 End queue run: pid=35890
2022-11-21 14:47:51 1oxClj-0009PG-PK <= root@mx-linux U=root P=local-esmtp S=432 id=a8d4d2d2-66dc-34b-f222-27821553cbe4@mx-linux
2022-11-21 14:47:52 1oxClj-0009PG-PK => /var/mail/mail (root@mx-linux) <root@mx-linux> R=mail4root T=address_file
2022-11-21 14:47:52 1oxClj-0009PG-PK => brad <brad@mx-linux> R=local_user T=mail_spool
2022-11-21 14:47:52 1oxClj-0009PG-PK Completed
2022-11-21 14:55:41 1oxCtJ-0009R0-Cd <= root@mx-linux U=root P=local S=321
2022-11-21 14:55:41 1oxCtJ-0009R0-Cd => /var/mail/mail (root@mx-linux) <root@mx-linux> R=mail4root T=address_file
2022-11-21 14:55:41 1oxCtJ-0009R0-Cd Completed
2022-11-21 15:16:29 Start queue run: pid=38616
2022-11-21 15:16:29 End queue run: pid=38616

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root@mx-linux:/var/mail# ll
total 720
drwxrwsrwt  2 root mail   4096 Nov 21 14:55 ./
drwxr-xr-x 13 root root   4096 Jan 14  2022 ../
-rw-rw----  1 brad mail   4430 Nov 21 14:52 brad
-rw-------  1 mail mail 716127 Nov 21 14:55 mail
-rw-------  1 root mail      0 Oct  8  2021 root

I added mail: root but still delivers to mail

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root@mx-linux:/var/mail# cat /etc/aliases
# /etc/aliases
mailer-daemon: postmaster
postmaster: root
nobody: root
hostmaster: root
usenet: root
news: root
webmaster: root
www: root
ftp: root
abuse: root
noc: root
security: root
backuppc: root
mail: root

[brad]

so what is the workaround folks? Maybe I am not setting the /etc/aliases correctly?

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### router/mmm_mail4root
1446 #################################
1447 # deliver mail addressed to root to /var/mail/mail as user mail:mail
1448 # if it was not redirected in /etc/aliases or by other means
1449 # Exim cannot deliver as root since 4.24 (FIXED_NEVER_USERS)

[FullScale4Me]

A quick search gives exim4 cannot send email to root (all localhost users) There are two issues on that page with fixes. There could be more.

Google search term used

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exim4 route to root on localhost

[brad]

A quick search gives exim4 cannot send email to root (all localhost users) There are two issues on that page with fixes. There could be more.

Google search term used

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exim4 route to root on localhost

Have you been successful with any of those?

[figueroa]

Run newaliases after making changes to your aliases file. Usually, all mail to root is redirected to a real user with a line in aliases like:

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# Put your local aliases here.
root:          user@domain

[brad]

Run newaliases after making changes to your aliases file. Usually, all mail to root is redirected to a real user with a line in aliases like:

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# Put your local aliases here.
root:          user@domain

FYI: You don't need to run newaliases on an exim system, it's just provided as a compatibility layer for applications expecting a more "sendmail-like" environment. Exim directly scans the contents of the /etc/aliases file the first time it reads it and caches results, remembering it for subsequent lookups if there are any. It doesn't actually use the /etc/aliases.db file like sendmail does.

[figueroa]

Thanks, @brad
I've never actually used exim. I made assumptions. I actually use postfix, courier-imap, procmail with associated tools. I first learned mail under Unix so I'm a dinosaur.