CONFIGURING AN EPA DOMAIN

Please see the "Introduction to EPA" Chapter of the EPAmail Service User Manual if you have not already done so. The following discussions are presented in the context of the environment and using the terminology set forth therein.

You control EPA domain operations through your selection of EPA domain structuring choices, your delegation of EPA Preferences Set definition authority and your definition of System Administrator ('SysAdmin') Preferences Sets.

Before discussing your choices, here's concise summary of EPA Preferences Sets usage and hierarchy to keep in mind:

1. An EPA Preferences Set can be associated with any actual OR virtual domain mailbox (assuming your e-mail server software and your licensees' EPA implementation both permit it). EPA assumes that virtual mailboxes can only receive e-mail for delivery - not originate and send e-mail.
2. All EPA-managed mailboxes must be associated - explicitly or implicitly - with a Preferences Set. Conversely, a domain mailbox for which no associated Preferences Set is on file will be ignored (and not managed) by EPA. However, the EPA Mail Traffic Log of a domain reflects all traffic - EPA-managed or not.
3. Implicit EPA Preferences Set association with a mailbox occurs when either a Shared Preferences Set is associated by an Administrator or the Default Preferences Set becomes associated by the EPA Mail Clerk.
4. If a Preferences Set is associated with a domain mailbox, the presence or absence of a Default Preferences Set is irrelevant. If no Preferences Set is associated with a domain mailbox and a Default Preferences Set is present, the Default Preferences Set applied to the e-mail.
5. An Empty Preferences Category has no effect on EPA classification.
6. If a Preferences Set contains only Empty Categories, all associated e-mail is classified 'unwanted'.
7. System Administrator Preferences Sets take classification precedence over all other domain mailbox Preferences Sets.
8. Group Administrator Preferences Sets take classification precedence over all other group mailbox Preferences Sets.

CHOICE #1__ Will the domain will be operated as a Multi-Owner Domain(MOD) or a One-Owner domain(OOD)?

This decision defines whether the mailbox users or the domain owner will have total management control of domain mailboxes. Typically, ISPs operate as MODs and organizations operate as OODs.

An ISP domain owner that leases mailboxes to clients MUST - under EPA licensing terms and conditions - 1) Delegate autonomous EPA mailbox Preferences Set control to the client; and 2) Define NEITHER SysAdmin preferences NOR a Default Preferences Set for use by the domain's EPA Mail Clerk. At the client's option, MOD mailboxes may or may not be subject to EPA management. Due to the foregoing, MODs require significantly less domain administration than OODs.

OOD SysAdmins, using the domain owner's delegated authority, can exercise total control of every Internet and LAN e-mail that flows through the mail server. SysAdmin Preferences Category criteria are applied by the Mail Clerk before all others. These criteria permit SysAdmins to broadcast messages to domain mailboxes and to inspect the text and address fields of all domain e-mails.

CHOICE #2__ Will creation of EPA Groups be permitted in the domain?

Creation of an EPA Group permits some number of domain Group Member mailboxes to be controlled by a Group Administrator. Group Administrator Preferences provide the same control functionality for Group e-mails that the SysAdmin Preferences provide for domain e-mail traffic. In this context, creation of a Group establishes an OOD internal to the MOD or OOD in which the Group is defined.

MOD Group Preferences are not pre-empted by SysAdmin Preferences - there aren't any. A MOD Group might be employed by families or organizations which do not operate their own mail server.

Creation of an OOD Group is a delegation of authority by the SysAdmin to the Group Administrator while retaining the ability to manage Group e-mails as required or desired. OOD Groups typically are defined to distribute workloads directly to organizational departments or other sub-units.

CHOICE #3__ Will a Default Preferences Set be defined for the domain? (OODs)

A Default Preferences Set sharply reduces the domain or Group administrative workload. Every domain or Group mailbox need not have an explicitly-defined Preferences Set. Consequently, mailbox/personnel turnover doesn't always need to be reflected by modifications to EPA Preferences Sets.

For some OODs and Groups, a Default Preferences Set may be the only Preferences Set required for e-mail control.

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