LanQin Email

LanQin Email is a self-hosted full-stack webmail solution. The frontend is built with React + TypeScript + shadcn/ui, the backend uses Go + SQLite, and deployment can run as a single all-in-one container with API, Web, Nginx, Postfix, Dovecot, and Rspamd integrated.

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Features

• Webmail client: multiple mailbox switching, folders, reading and composing messages, drafts, scheduled sending, attachments, search, labels, stars, move/delete, read/unread status.
• Mailbox enhancements: contacts, signatures, inbox rules, sender blacklist, mail statistics, archive read messages, empty Trash/Spam.
• Multi-domain / multi-mailbox: domain management, DKIM key generation, DNS record display and checks, mailbox accounts, alias forwarding, catch-all toggle.
• Accounts and permissions: login/registration, session management, TOTP two-factor authentication, Cloudflare Turnstile, user self-service mailbox requests, permission groups/RBAC.
• Admin panel: overview checklist, user/permission group/domain/mailbox/alias/all-message management, system settings, mail templates, SMTP testing.
• Mail service stack: Postfix delivery, Dovecot IMAP/POP3, Rspamd anti-spam and DKIM signing, Maildir-to-SQLite sync.
• Deployment friendly: default all-in-one single container, plus a multi-container stack for debugging Postfix/Dovecot/Rspamd.

UI Preview

Webmail reading and list	Compose · rich-text toolbar
Switch mailboxes, folders, search, labels, stars, and message reading panel.	Rich-text toolbar supports fonts, headings, bold, italic, underline, colors, highlights, lists, alignment, quotes, code blocks, attachments, emoji, and scheduled sending.
Admin panel · system overview	Third-party client configuration
Manage users, permission groups, domains, mailboxes, aliases, system settings, and send audits.	View IMAP / POP3 / SMTP servers, ports, security modes, and account information in one place.

Repository Structure

.
├── apps/api              # Go API, SQLite schema, mail sync, and business logic
├── apps/web              # React/Vite Webmail and admin panel
├── deploy                # Docker Compose, image build, Postfix/Dovecot/Rspamd config
└── .github/workflows     # Docker image release workflows

Requirements

Development

• Go 1.25+
• Node.js 20+
• pnpm 10.28.2 (can be enabled through corepack)

Deployment

• Docker Engine
• Docker Compose v2
• A resolvable mail domain, plus available ports such as 25 / 465 / 587 / 993 / 995

Public email sending and receiving also requires correct MX, SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records, and you should confirm that your cloud provider does not block SMTP ports.

Quick Start

Local Development

Backend:

cd apps/api
go mod download
go test ./...
go run ./cmd/server

Frontend (new terminal):

cd apps/web
corepack enable
corepack prepare pnpm@10.28.2 --activate
pnpm install
pnpm run dev

Open:

• Web: http://localhost:5173
• API: http://localhost:8080

The default admin email is admin@lanqin.local. For development, explicitly set LANQIN_ADMIN_PASSWORD; if it is not set, the backend generates a random password on first startup and prints it to the logs.

Docker Deployment (single container)

A server only needs the Compose files and configuration under deploy/; building from source is not required:

cd deploy
cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env: domain, public URL, admin email, admin password, etc.
docker compose pull
docker compose up -d

Common commands:

# View logs
docker compose logs -f lanqin-email

# Pull the latest image and restart
docker compose pull
docker compose up -d

# Stop services
docker compose down

To build the image locally from the full source repository:

cd deploy
cp .env.example .env
docker compose -f docker-compose.yml -f docker-compose.build.yml up -d --build

See deploy/README.md for more deployment details.

First Deployment Checklist

1. Edit deploy/.env: at minimum, change LANQIN_PUBLIC_HOSTNAME, LANQIN_PUBLIC_BASE_URL, LANQIN_ADMIN_EMAIL, and LANQIN_ADMIN_PASSWORD.
2. In production, mount real TLS certificates and set LANQIN_TLS_CERT_FILE / LANQIN_TLS_KEY_FILE.
3. Log in to the admin panel and add your mail domain.
4. Copy and configure MX, SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records from domain management, then run the DNS check.
5. Create mailbox accounts, alias forwarding, or permission groups; enable registration, 2FA, Turnstile, and self-service mailbox requests as needed.
6. Use the admin SMTP test and Webmail send/receive tests to confirm the full path works.

Key Environment Variables

See deploy/.env.example for the full configuration. Common variables:

Variable	Description	Default / Example
LANQIN_IMAGE	All-in-one image	ghcr.io/lanqin996/lanqin-email:latest
LANQIN_PUBLIC_HOSTNAME	Mail server hostname; affects Postfix/DNS display/links	mail.example.com
LANQIN_PUBLIC_BASE_URL	Public Webmail URL	https://mail.example.com
LANQIN_ADMIN_EMAIL	Initial admin email	admin@example.com
LANQIN_ADMIN_PASSWORD	Initial admin password; must be changed in production	ChangeMe123!
LANQIN_DB_PATH	SQLite database path	/data/lanqin.db
LANQIN_ALLOW_INSECURE_HTTP	Allow non-HTTPS cookies; useful for local debugging	false
LANQIN_OPEN_REGISTRATION	Enable public registration	false
LANQIN_TWO_FACTOR_ENABLED	Global 2FA feature toggle	false
LANQIN_TURNSTILE_ENABLED	Enable Turnstile	false
LANQIN_SMTP_HOST / LANQIN_SMTP_PORT	Webmail outbound SMTP	127.0.0.1 / 25
LANQIN_MAILDIR_ROOT	Maildir root directory	/var/mail/vhosts
LANQIN_CATCH_ALL_ENABLED	Whether unregistered recipient addresses go into all messages	false
LANQIN_USER_MAILBOX_APPLY_ENABLED	Allow users to request mailboxes by themselves	false
LANQIN_EXTERNAL_IMAP_ENABLED	Enable external IMAP access; also configurable in Admin > System Settings > External IMAP	false
LANQIN_EXTERNAL_IMAP_SECRET_KEY	Encryption key for external IMAP passwords; required before enabling access; also configurable in admin	Random long string
LANQIN_EXTERNAL_IMAP_SYNC_SECONDS	Sync interval for external IMAP local-storage mode; also configurable in admin	300
LANQIN_EXTERNAL_IMAP_ALLOW_PRIVATE_HOSTS	Allow external IMAP to connect to private/localhost hosts; also configurable in admin	false
LANQIN_EXTERNAL_IMAP_GMAIL_CLIENT_ID / LANQIN_EXTERNAL_IMAP_GMAIL_CLIENT_SECRET	Gmail external IMAP OAuth2; callback is /api/external-imap-oauth/gmail/callback	Empty
LANQIN_EXTERNAL_IMAP_OUTLOOK_CLIENT_ID / LANQIN_EXTERNAL_IMAP_OUTLOOK_CLIENT_SECRET	Microsoft 365 / Outlook external IMAP OAuth2; callback is /api/external-imap-oauth/outlook/callback	Empty

Architecture

┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                 lanqin-email single container              │
│                                                            │
│  ┌─────────┐       ┌────────────┐       ┌──────────────┐   │
│  │  Nginx  │ ───▶  │ Go API     │ ───▶  │ SQLite /data │   │
│  │ Web     │       │ Webmail API│       └──────┬───────┘   │
│  │ static  │       └─────┬──────┘              │           │
│  └─────────┘             │ Maildir sync        │ maps      │
│  ┌─────────┐       ┌─────▼──────┐       ┌──────▼───────┐   │
│  │ Rspamd  │ ◀───▶ │ Postfix    │ ───▶  │ Dovecot/LMTP │   │
│  │ DKIM/AS │       │ SMTP/MTA   │       │ IMAP/POP3    │   │
│  └─────────┘       └────────────┘       └──────────────┘   │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Mail flow:

1. Receiving: Postfix receives mail → Rspamd scores/marks it → Dovecot writes to Maildir → API worker syncs it into SQLite → Webmail displays it.
2. Sending: Webmail calls the API → API builds MIME → SMTP submits to Postfix or an external SMTP server → mail is delivered to the destination.
3. Local delivery: In development, internal mailboxes can send directly into the recipient Inbox; if LANQIN_SMTP_HOST is not configured, external recipients are not actually delivered.
4. Third-party clients: Connect with SMTP 465/587, IMAP 993, or POP3 995; in production, configure certificates that match LANQIN_PUBLIC_HOSTNAME.
5. External mailbox access: Users can add external IMAP accounts in personal mailbox management. Local-storage mode syncs mail into the database; remote-direct mode reads from the remote server each time and does not write into local mail tables.

Development and Verification

# API tests
cd apps/api
go test ./...

# Web checks and build
cd apps/web
pnpm run check

# Single-container source build verification
cd deploy
docker compose -f docker-compose.yml -f docker-compose.build.yml up -d --build

Production Notes

• In production, always change the default admin password and protect .env, the SQLite database, Maildir, and DKIM private keys.
• The Web UI can sit behind host Nginx / aaPanel / an edge gateway, but SMTP/IMAP/POP3 certificates must be mounted separately for Postfix/Dovecot inside the container.
• Cloud providers often block port 25 by default; if public email does not send or receive, first check ports, security groups, firewalls, and reverse DNS.
• SQLite is suitable for single-node deployments; before multi-node deployment, migrate the database and adjust Postfix/Dovecot query configuration accordingly.

SMTP Submission

• Third-party client SMTP submission on 465/587 is handled by the LanQin API process.
• Before enabling SMTP submission, configure LANQIN_TLS_CERT_FILE / LANQIN_TLS_KEY_FILE; the API will not expose 465/587 externally with a localhost self-signed certificate.
• Postfix only keeps port 25 for public inbound mail and internal/external relay.
• Webmail/API and third-party client sends are first written into Sent, then enter the send queue.
• The send queue is relayed by a LanQin API background worker to LANQIN_SMTP_HOST:LANQIN_SMTP_PORT; failures are audited and retried with backoff.
• v1 supports sending from the user's own mailbox. For send-as, use an enabled alias forwarding source that points to the user's mailbox, or configure send_as_grants in the database.
• If the client later writes its own Sent copy through IMAP APPEND, Maildir sync deduplicates by Message-ID within the Sent folder.

License

MIT

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