hMailServer

hMailServer is an email server that runs on Windows operating systems. This server supports various email protocols, including IMAP, POP3 and SMTP, which makes it compatible with most email clients.

Likewise, it allows various ways to store configuration and index data. In this respect, it comes with its own MS SQL Compact Edition engine that does not require additional installations; however, you may also connect to MySQL, MS SQL or PostgreSQL databases if you prefer.

This product is not intended for the common user, which explains the difficulties, particularly in configuring the server. Luckily, there is a very good support as well as development forums to answer any question that may appear in the process. Moreover, it is good that configuring MySQL or Microsoft SQL databases can be done from a graphic user interface instead of the command line, which makes it much easier to do.

There are various advantages of using hMailServer. First, it is light and very stable. In this respect, it supports hosting multiple domains and a huge flow of messages. Second, it comes with various convenient features intended to keep your data secure. For instance, user accounts are virtual, which means that they do not have real access to the server. Likewise, it blocks people from using the server for email relaying. What is more, it has its own firewall to prevent unauthorized connections.

A third advantage is related to its ability to detect unwanted or dangerous mail. Thus, it is great that it can be integrated with ClamAV anti-virus software. Similarly, hMailServer can detect spam thanks to its access to blacklist DNS servers and its integration with SpamAssassin. Besides, you can create rules to block certain types of attachments. Finally, the tool has an automatic backup and restore system to prevent data loss.

Compared with other email servers, the main weakness of hMailServer is in the area of collaboration. Sadly, it does not come with some of the collaborative features that usually complement basic email services, like integrated task manager.

All in all, hMailServer is an excellent free alternative to paid software. It is very reliable and supports many of the features you can find in other similar tools. Therefore, if you are looking for an email server, this is a good place to start.