Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

hMail Server VS iRedMail

Compare hMail Server VS iRedMail and see what are their differences

hMail Server logo hMail Server

hMailServer is a free e-mail server for Microsoft Windows.

iRedMail logo iRedMail

A fully fledged, free email server solution, an open source project (GPL v2).
  • hMail Server Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-22
  • iRedMail Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-10-18

hMail Server features and specs

  • Free and Open Source
    hMailServer is completely free to use, which makes it an attractive option for small businesses and organizations with limited budgets. It also has a source code available for customization.
  • Cross-Platform Compatibility
    It is compatible with Windows operating systems, making it suitable for a variety of deployment environments, especially those already running on Windows.
  • Wide Protocol Support
    hMailServer supports various protocols like SMTP, POP3, and IMAP, which cover most of the functionalities required for email servers.
  • Built-in Anti-Spam and Anti-Virus
    The server includes robust anti-spam and anti-virus features that help in reducing unwanted emails and protecting against malicious attacks.
  • Administrator-Friendly
    It has an intuitive web-based administration interface that simplifies server management tasks, from user settings to email rules and more.

Possible disadvantages of hMail Server

  • Platform Limitation
    hMailServer is designed specifically for Windows, which limits its usability for organizations that prefer or exclusively use Unix/Linux-based systems.
  • Limited Scalability
    While adequate for small to medium-sized deployments, hMailServer may not be as scalable as some enterprise-level mail servers, potentially limiting its use for very large organizations.
  • Community Support
    Support primarily comes from the community via forums. There is no dedicated customer support team, which could be a constraint in urgent or complex troubleshooting scenarios.
  • Dependency on External Tools
    Though feature-rich, some advanced functionalities like detailed logging and backup may require additional external tools or scripts, complicating the setup.
  • Periodic Updates
    The frequency of updates and patches may not be as regular as those for commercial products, potentially leading to security vulnerabilities if the software is not monitored closely.

iRedMail features and specs

  • Open Source
    iRedMail is open source, which means it is free to use and its source code is available for anyone to inspect, modify, and enhance.
  • Comprehensive Features
    Includes a wide range of features such as anti-spam, anti-virus, webmail, and support for multiple domains and mailboxes, providing a complete email server solution.
  • Easy Installation
    Offers a straightforward installation process with a well-documented guide, making it accessible even for users with limited server management experience.
  • Excellent Documentation
    Comes with thorough and clear documentation that helps users set up, configure, and troubleshoot the mail server.
  • Strong Community Support
    An active community and forum that can provide support and assist with common issues and best practices.
  • Security Features
    Integrates robust security features, including SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and SSL/TLS, helping to protect against email spoofing and ensuring email privacy.

Possible disadvantages of iRedMail

  • Resource Intensive
    Can be resource-intensive, requiring significant server resources, which might not be ideal for small-scale deployments or low-power servers.
  • Learning Curve
    The complexity of the mail server can present a steep learning curve for new users, especially those unfamiliar with email server configurations.
  • Limited GUI Options
    While it includes a basic web interface, advanced configuration and management typically require command-line proficiency, which can be challenging for non-technical users.
  • Manual Upgrades
    Requires manual interventions for upgrades and updates, which can be time-consuming and risk potential downtimes if not handled correctly.
  • Support Costs
    While the software itself is free, businesses might need to invest in professional support for complex configurations or troubleshooting, which can incur additional costs.
  • Potential Compatibility Issues
    Compatibility with certain third-party software or custom configurations might require additional tweaks, posing potential challenges during integration.

hMail Server videos

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iRedMail videos

Part 1: iRedMail

More videos:

  • Tutorial - Complete Email Server iRedMail Installation Tutorial

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to hMail Server and iRedMail)
Email
29 29%
71% 71
SMTP Server
34 34%
66% 66
Self-hosted Email
35 35%
65% 65
Calendar
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare hMail Server and iRedMail

hMail Server Reviews

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iRedMail Reviews

10 Microsoft Exchange Server Alternatives
iRedMail is a free email server solution that is a fully-fledged and open source project. This platform can use the official binary package from the distributions of Linux/BSD, having the support of both i386 and x86/64. It is easy to use with a fast deployment process in almost less than one minute. iRedMail allows the user to work on both virtualized and non-virtualized...
15 Best iRedMail Alternatives 2021
You might want a service that offers better security and protections, more features, or faster processes than what iRedMail provides. Hence, it’s important to consider other options out there that can competently replace iRedMail.
The BEST Email Hosting Providers for Small Business in 2021
There are three products offered by iRedmail. The first one is the iRedMail downloadable installer. To start with iRedMail you need to download the installer package, and after installation, you need to set up DNS records for your iRedMail server. After you have done these two steps, you will need to upgrade with additional installations. The second one is iRedMail Easy....
15 Best Email Hosting for Small Business (2019)
iRedMail is an open source mail server since 2007. It works on most Linux/BSD distributions. It offer paid version ($499/year) with professional support.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, iRedMail seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 3 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

hMail Server mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of hMail Server yet. Tracking of hMail Server recommendations started around Mar 2021.

iRedMail mentions (3)

  • Ask HN: Custom domain for personal email – yay or nay?
    Yay! I use the free version of iRedMail [0] under OpenBSD since 2017 and every email I send gets through with any issues (except the first days when I screwed up my SPF/DKIM configuration). [0] https://iredmail.org/. - Source: Hacker News / 8 months ago
  • Selfhosted backup solution for iCloud Backup
    For photo I use Immich. For contact and calendar I use my own mail server (iRedMail). For Cloud I have my own nextcloud server. With nextcloud you can sync contact and calendar of uou don't have a mail server likes iRedMail. Source: over 1 year ago
  • I am highly excited and overjoyed to share this post.
    I used to spend all my time maintaining e-mail quirks for my server. Adjust this, updated that, fix this breakage, yada yada. But then I decided to setup iRedMail which uses postfix, dovecot, certbot, roundcube, spamassasin, mariadb, ldap and all the bells and whistles. All I have to do now is make sure I don’t break it doing any software upgrades on freebsd. 10/10 scores after configuring and blacklist free. Source: over 2 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing hMail Server and iRedMail, you can also consider the following products

mailcow - An open source mailserver suite.

Zimbra - Zimbra is trusted by over 500 million users to increase productivity with a complete set of collaboration tools while maintaining total control over security and privacy.

Microsoft Exchange Server - Microsoft Exchange Server is a messaging and collaborative software product developed by Microsoft.

Roundcube - Web-based IMAP email client

Postfix - Postfix is a mail transfer agent (MTA) that routes and delivers electronic mail.

Mail-in-a-box - Mail-in-a-Box provides webmail and an IMAP/SMTP server for use with mobile devices and desktop mail software and also includes contacts and calendar synchronization.