# Install dovecot with Homebrew, apk, apt, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper IMAP/POP3 server. Version 2.4.4 via Homebrew; verified 2026-07-07. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:dovecot ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install dovecot ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install dovecot ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: mail/dovecot/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - apk (92%): ```sh sudo apk add dovecot ``` Evidence: Alpine Linux edge package indexes: dovecot from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/main/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz - Debian apt (92%): ```sh sudo apt install dovecot-auth-lua ``` Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-auth-lua from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz - dnf (92%): ```sh sudo dnf install dovecot ``` Evidence: Fedora Rawhide package metadata: dovecot from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#dovecot ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/do/dovecot/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - pacman (92%): ```sh sudo pacman -S dovecot ``` Evidence: Arch Linux sync databases: dovecot from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz - zypper (92%): ```sh sudo zypper install dovecot ``` Evidence: openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: dovecot from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:dovecot - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 2.4.4 - **Source summary:** IMAP/POP3 server - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** BSD-3-Clause AND LGPL-2.1-or-later AND MIT AND Unicode-DFS-2016 AND LicenseRef-Homebrew-public-domain - **Source archive:** - **Last updated:** 2026-07-07T20:40:41Z - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00 ## Executables - doveadm (cli) - doveconf (cli) - dovecot (cli) - dovecot-sysreport (cli) - sieve-dump (cli) - sieve-filter (cli) - sieve-test (cli) - sievec (cli) - doveadm (alias) - doveconf (alias) - dovecot (alias) - dovecot-sysreport (alias) - sieve-dump (alias) - sieve-filter (alias) - sieve-test (alias) - sievec (alias) ## Dependencies - lua@5.4 - openldap - openssl@3 ## Build dependencies - pkgconf ## Uses from macOS - bzip2 - libxcrypt - sqlite ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Service: declared - Caveats: For Dovecot to work, you may need to create a dovecot user and group depending on your configuration file options. - Bottle: available on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-08 - Package-manager version: 2.4.4 - Package-manager updated: 2026-07-07 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://dovecot.org/ - info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories. ## Project history and usage Dovecot is a widely deployed open-source IMAP and POP3 server for Linux and Unix-like systems, written with security, performance, and operational simplicity as central goals. It is one of the canonical mail-server packages, alongside MTAs such as Postfix, Exim, and OpenSMTPD. ### Project history Dovecot's own v1.0.0 release announcement in April 2007 says the 1.0 release took almost five years, placing the project's public development roots in the early 2000s. The announcement was sent by Timo Sirainen, who also authored many later release messages. The project developed from a secure IMAP server into a larger mail backend with POP3, LMTP, ManageSieve integration through Pigeonhole, the `doveadm` administration tool, flexible authentication backends, mailbox indexing, and multiple storage formats. The current documentation describes Dovecot CE as the open-source version and Dovecot Core as the documented community-edition codebase. Dovecot 2.0, released in August 2010, was a major architectural step. Its release announcement lists a redesigned master process with less code running as root, per-IP configuration support, dsync mailbox synchronization, LMTP, mdbox storage, `doveadm`, multi-connection IMAP/POP3 processes, COMPRESS=DEFLATE support, and a director service for NFS-oriented installations. Commercially, Dovecot became part of a larger email-platform ecosystem. The official docs describe Dovecot Pro as an Open-Xchange commercial product that uses Dovecot Core as part of the Palomar architecture, while the community edition remains the open-source single-server-oriented package documented at doc.dovecot.org. ### Adoption history Dovecot's adoption follows the needs of Unix mail hosting: small self-hosted servers, ISPs, universities, hosting providers, and large mailbox platforms all needed a fast, secure IMAP/POP3 backend that could work with standard mailbox formats and existing MTAs. The official site emphasizes performance, transparent mailbox indexes, standard mbox and Maildir compatibility, flexible authentication, standards compliance, and easy migration from other IMAP and POP3 servers. Package-manager adoption is broad and long-lived. Homebrew packages Dovecot for macOS and Linux users, while the package metadata for this batch shows it available across Alpine, Debian, Fedora, MacPorts, Nix, Arch, Ubuntu, and openSUSE families. That breadth is typical for infrastructure software that administrators expect to install from the base OS package ecosystem. The release stream remains active: the official site lists Dovecot 2.4.0 in January 2025, 2.4.1 in March 2025, 2.4.2 in October 2025, 2.4.3 in March 2026, and 2.4.4 in May 2026. The GitHub repository also shows active maintenance into 2026. ### How it is used Administrators use Dovecot to serve mailboxes over IMAP and POP3, receive local delivery over LMTP, authenticate users against local files, PAM, LDAP, SQL, OAuth2, and other backends, and expose mail filtering through Sieve and ManageSieve via Pigeonhole. In a common Unix mail stack, an MTA such as Postfix, Exim, or OpenSMTPD handles SMTP while Dovecot handles mailbox access and often authentication. The official site explicitly calls out direct SMTP authentication integration with Postfix 2.3+ and Exim 4.64+, and also points to Dovecot's submission service for authenticated relaying. The operational toolbox includes `dovecot` for the daemon, `doveconf` for configuration inspection, `doveadm` for administration, migration and synchronization tools such as dsync, and Sieve utilities for mail filtering workflows. ### Why package nerds care Dovecot is package-nerd significant because it is not just another network daemon; it is a core component in the Unix email stack. A working Dovecot package means config-file layout, service supervision, authentication modules, TLS support, mailbox permissions, plugins, and upgrade paths all have to line up with the host distribution's conventions. It is also a good example of infrastructure packaging longevity. A Dovecot install can sit at the boundary between decades-old mailbox formats and modern security expectations, so distro maintainers care about ABI-compatible plugins, migration notes, CVEs, service defaults, and predictable config locations. For Homebrew specifically, Dovecot is useful to developers and administrators who test mail stacks locally on macOS, run small personal servers, or need command-line utilities such as `doveadm` outside a Linux distribution. ### Timeline - 2007: Dovecot v1.0.0 is released after almost five years of development. - 2010: Dovecot v2.0.0 is released with a redesigned master process, LMTP, dsync, mdbox, doveadm, and other major changes. - 2015: The public GitHub `dovecot/core` repository is created. - 2025: Dovecot v2.4.0 is released. - 2026: Dovecot v2.4.4 is released and the core repository remains active. ### Related projects - Pigeonhole is the Dovecot project that adds Sieve and ManageSieve support. - Postfix, Exim, and OpenSMTPD are common SMTP partners for Dovecot authentication and mailbox delivery workflows. - Maildir, mbox, and mdbox are important mailbox-storage formats in Dovecot deployments. - Cyrus IMAP, Courier IMAP, UW IMAP, and other IMAP/POP3 servers are historical and operational comparison points. ### Sources - - - - - - - - - ## Security Notes broad file, network, media, or database tool signal. formula declares a Homebrew service. - **Geiger risk:** orange / medium - broad file, network, media, or database tool signal - formula declares a Homebrew service ## Configuration and credential file locations These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval. ## Configuration files - Unix: /etc/dovecot/dovecot.conf, /etc/dovecot/conf.d/*.conf ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** dovecot - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 0 - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Debian apt - dovecot-auth-lua - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-auth-lua from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - Lua authentication plugin | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-core - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-core from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - core files | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-dev - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-dev from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - header files | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-flatcurve - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-flatcurve from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - Flatcurve support | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-gssapi - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-gssapi from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - GSSAPI support | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-imapd - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-imapd from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - IMAP daemon | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-ldap - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-ldap from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - LDAP support | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-lmtpd - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-lmtpd from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - LMTP server | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-managesieved - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-managesieved from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - ManageSieve server | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-mysql - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-mysql from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - MySQL support | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-pgsql - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-pgsql from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - PostgreSQL support | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-pop3d - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-pop3d from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - POP3 daemon | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-sieve - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-sieve from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - Sieve filters support | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-solr - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-solr from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - Solr support | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-sqlite - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-sqlite from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - SQLite support | https://dovecot.org/ - Debian apt - dovecot-submissiond - 1:2.4.1+dfsg1-6+deb13u5: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: dovecot-submissiond from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | secure POP3/IMAP server - mail submission agent | https://dovecot.org/ ## Related links - [Secret-risk packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/secret-risk-packages/) - Has protected-tool coverage, approval-gate, or non-low Geiger security signals. - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [Networking and protocol packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/networking-protocol-tools/) - Matched network, protocol, or remote-service metadata. - [Security and crypto packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/security-crypto-tools/) - Matched security, identity, cryptography, password, signing, or certificate metadata. - [lua@5.4](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/lua-5-4/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [openldap](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/openldap/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [openssl@3](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/openssl-3/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [pkgconf](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/pkgconf/) - Build dependency declared by Homebrew. - [exim](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/exim/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, email, mail, mail-server, networking. - [mailutils](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/mailutils/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, email, imap, mail-server, networking. - [fetchmail](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/fetchmail/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, email, imap, networking, pop3. - [getmail6](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/getmail6/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, email, imap, networking, pop3. - [isync](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/isync/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, email, imap, networking. - [mox](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/mox/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, imap, mail-server, networking. - [mpop](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/mpop/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, email, networking, pop3. - [nginx](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/nginx/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, imap, networking, pop3. - [freeradius-server](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/freeradius-server/) - Local metadata places this package in an adjacent workflow. Shared terms: authentication, cli, networking, openssl, openssl-3. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/dovecot.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/dovecot.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - curated configuration and credential file locations - curated package history - package version freshness - av.db category and tag curation - package relationship graph - external package-manager database matches - cross-ecosystem install command graph