Removing cPanel Catch All E-mail
So your using cPanel and you’ve got a ton of spam sitting in it using up valuable server resources, you’ve Googled the problem and found out how to disable the catch all address but still it’s showing that the mail exists and is wasting space.
For those looking to turn off the catch all address first, this is how you do it in cPanel:
First log in, then click on the ‘Default Address’ icon:
You will then be presented with a list of option, you need to change the radio from ‘Forward to email address’ to ‘Discard with error to senter (at SMTP time)’:
This will then reply to all e-mails sent to addresses which have not been set up (all catch all addresses *@domain.com), the message sent can be specificied on that page but if not it will simply send ‘No such person at this address’.
As you can see, you can also discard the message totally (no reply to sender) but keep in mind if someone sends a genuine email they will not be aware they mistyped your e-mail address and thus assume . The other option is to pipe all e-mails, this is commonly used in scripts like help desks (PHP, Pearl).
Disabling catch all by default for new cPanel accounts in WHM:
If you are running WHM on your server and want to have catch all disabled by default then it’s simply, log into WHM and go to ‘Tweak Settings’:
Then scroll down to ‘Mail’ and change the setting from ‘Local’ to ‘Fail’:
Save the settings and then all new accounts will have catch all disabled.
Removing existing emails.
So now you won’t receive any more, you still need to get rid of the existing mail which could be taking up copious ammounts of space, for this you may require assistance from your web host depending on how they have everything set up because you will need to delete some files outside of your web root.
If it’s your server the path should be ‘/home/user/mail/’ if it’s not and you just have a cPanel account then you should just see ‘/mail/’.
Within the mail directory you will see three folders, cur, new and tmp:
You need to delete the ‘cur’ directory and then recreate it (basically, your deleting the contents of the folder), you then still have a cur folder with absolutely no contents.
That’s it, that’s everything!
Note: In cPanel you might still see the usage for the catch all account still takes room, well that’s not strictly true, the server simply needs to update which it will do but be rest assured the space is not actually being taken up.
As you can see in the image, there is a note stating that space usage is recalculated every few hours.
You can force an update, but I wouldn’t bother, just let cPanel do it, it’s safer. 
5 Of The Most Used Applications And Then Some
OK so they might not be your 5 most used but they are mine and if you potter around the web working on various projects or it’s something your starting to get into, then no doubt you will have your preferred applications and most likely you’ll use these for a long time come, but the following should at least be considered.
I have a mixture of systems here running on Windows XP, Ubuntu & CentOS however XP is my main platform not because it’s good, because it isn’t, but because some of the programs I use (funny enough not in this list ) only work on it, for example my network hard drives, although there is a Linux work through, it means spending time getting it running, backing up the drives because they’re file systems will need changing and the hassle is just not worth it at the moment and yes I’m aware I could install a partitioned version of XP on a Linux machine.
So for this reason, some of these applications may only be Windows based and if your on a windows machine then it’s sure worth giving them a try.
My most used daily applications are as follows:
1. Firefox – I’ve always been a fan of Mozilla and as far as browsers go this is my all time favourite, I have to admit I wasn’t to keen on the latest major release at first, but now I’ve got use to it, I love it.
Because I’m involved in various web projects I find some of the plugins available for FireFox amazing, one of my most used plugins would be Firebug – In short this will help you find faults with websites.
2. Thunderbird – Yes it’s another Mozilla product, this time a mail application which has the capability of both POP and IMAP which is important for me.
There is no special reason I use this other than it’s simple, it’s free, the spell checker works (added dictionary for English – British) and it’s not Microsoft, plus in my opinion it’s the best available.
3. WinSCP -I’ve used the rest and I truely believe this is the best and what’s more is that this is also open source and free. As far as FTP clients for windows go in my honest opinion this out performs others, I’ve never had one issue with this client yet and I’ve used it for years.
In addition to it being free, I also find it very stable and love the fact that it’s only a one button click away from loading up PuTTY. It’s secure and runs over SFTP providing your server enables SSH connections that are not “jailed” depending on your hosts settings. But not to worry if you can’t use SFTP then you can still use FTP.
4. PuTTY – If your needing a CLI then this is the application for the job, I find it simple to use with the features I need.
What makes this extra special for me is that it’s like the strong arm of WinSCP, like I said when using WinSCP it’s only a click away.
5. OpenOffice Writter – Open Office is your answer to Microsoft Office, I don’t use many of the other tools in it but you might, it comes packed with Writer, base, cal, draw, impress, math, but it’s mainly writer I use.
Basically Open Office will do everything from spread sheets, word documents to presentations and more. I was introduced to this by a good friend of mine whom I work with on another open source project and since then I’ve never looked back. Basically fulfils most of my writing needs.
And then Some……………………..
I also use many other applications which are maybe noteworthy for people to try:
Browsers:
Internet Explorer 7 (IE8 looks promising)
Safari – From Apple
I use various browsers when testing websites out to see how well they render, I also have similar browsers installed on my Linux machines.
Other:
WinMerge – Very handy when you need to compare two documents for changes and when you might need to merge them. Also handy for when your working with web projects and you need to quickly compare code which someone else has written.
PHPDesigner - I’ve not yet purchased this piece of software but I have tried the trial and a friends*cough* copy. I much prefer using PHPDesigner over any other software including Dreamweaver. Don’t be confused by it’s name though because it’s also good for HTML, CSS, JS, XML and many more.
It also integrates nicely with the PHP manuals. It’s not free but it is worth it.
And for the finale………………………………………
Ok it’s not a musical end but still this is a pretty impressive and small application which I was introduced to by my good friend James Morris:
Startup Control Panel – I couldn’t really do it any justice in my explanation so here is theirs:
Startup Control Panel is a nifty control panel applet that allows you to easily configure which programs run when your computer starts. It’s very small and won’t burden your system. A valuable tool for system administrators!
My computer can now breath again when it boots up.
With the exception of PHPDesigner, every other application linked to in this blog is FREE, some are open source, some licensed under GPL or similar but most of all did I mention, their FREE.
Finally Some action – Philips Collection Services And DVLA
Well it seems something is now starting to happen, apparently the DVLA have only just contacted Philips today to stop them harassing me, despite telling me in writing this would stop before now.
If you saw my last blog you will of seen I sent another E-mail to them both, and I got a reply from Philips Collection Service:
Dear Mr Bowers,
Thank you for the copy of the recent email sent to the DVLA.
I can confirm that we have been contacted by the DVLA today, 28.05.08 at 11:11 whereupon they have requested the case be returned back to them. This has now been done and further contact should not be received from us at this time.
Our records show that we noted your concerns onto your account and that an official Complaints Form was sent to you on 15.05.08. Once this has been returned by you we will be happy to investigate the matter in question.
In the meantime if you have any further queries please do not hesitate to contact our office.
Kind Regards
Philips
And I fired off a reply back:
I will continue to copy both Philips and the DVLA Here
The DVLA had informed me this would stop long before now, so in their slowness to act my family and I have continued to be harassed by text messages to a land line phone which gives out my personal details and circumstances without care for the data protection act.
Philips I write this E-mail because only a few minutes ago I received another text message to the land line telephone telling me my case is being passed for further action or my balance is still outstanding.
Yet more incompetence, and then to ask me to fill in another complaints form I care not for your procedures in hoping the public are to lazy to fill in a form and then no further action can be taken.I care only for the time lost and the cost incurred by myself in other words you have my complaint in writing I see no reason why I should waste more of my life on this matter except to receive justice.
I’m not sure of whom I dealt with on the phone, it could of even been you for all I know and care, my suggestion though is you send your staff on a customer relations course and train them that mistakes happen and therefore shouldn’t make accusations that a person is a criminal regardless of whether it was done direct or indirect.
Whilst typing this mail I have another message on my phone, that’s two but the first one I put the phone down on, perhaps that’s the message system redelivering.
And I won’t contact your office on the phone to discuss anything, last time we know what happened and look now I’m still being harassed.
Kind Regards
Tim Bowers
I certainly won’t contact them on the phone, the last time I tried to get help from a human in their company they basically accused me of being a criminal and a lier.
Can’t deal with automate systems and can’t deal with real people, this world is screwed.