Deployment of a Ruby on Rails project on VPS + Inbound Email Routing

I understand the task: to set up Alaveteli on a clean Hostinger VPS, and the key point is to establish a two-way mail gateway to generate addresses for each request and send emails to the authorities, while correctly receiving responses back into the pipe to the engine script for publication on the site.

I see the stages as follows. Basic server preparation — users, SSH access, UFW or iptables, fail2ban. I will set up Alaveteli according to the official manual; for isolating dependencies with Xapian and Rails, it's more convenient through a Docker container, but if you prefer to maintain a bare-metal installation directly on the host — I will do it in the way that is more comfortable for you to manage later.

The mail part is the most important. I will configure the MTA for sending, and for incoming routing, I will set up a transport that passes the body of the email through a pipe to the Alaveteli mail-handler script, with the correct permissions and logging, so that no email gets lost. I have experience with the SMTP and IMAP stack and processing incoming mail with scripts, I understand the inbound-pipe concept and have done similar mail flows.

I will run deliverability checks separately: DNS records A, MX, PTR, SPF, DKIM with signing through the MTA, DMARC, verification through mail-tester, and actual sending to a test mailbox, because government institutions are strict about spam policies and without correct DKIM, emails are filtered out.

The final step — a joint test: sending a request, receiving a response back, and publishing on the site.
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To give an accurate estimate on timelines, please clarify two points: are we installing Alaveteli in Docker or directly on the host, and is there already a purchased domain with access to the DNS zone? After your response, I will provide a clear time estimate.

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Good day!

I have experience with Postfix + pipe to scripts, and I understand Alaveteli — this is the standard stack for it. I have configured inbound routing, SPF/DKIM/DMARC for different hosts.

I am ready to start after discussing the details.

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Good day!

I have experience with Ruby on Rails and the stack of PostgreSQL, Nginx, Postfix. I have also worked with SPF, DKIM, DMARC. I can deploy the project.

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Good day! I am ready to take on this task and complete it within the specified deadlines. I am an experienced system administrator and SRE/DevOps specialist with over 15 years of experience. I have extensive experience working with various systems and tools, which allows me to effectively solve any tasks. I look forward to collaborating!

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Good day. I am ready to discuss the details of your task. I have experience working with postfix/exim. Write to me. Thank you.

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Hello,

I can help with deploying Alaveteli on a clean Hostinger VPS and configuring the required Linux, web, database and mail infrastructure.

My relevant experience:
- Linux VPS setup on Ubuntu/Debian
- Nginx reverse proxy configuration
- PostgreSQL basic setup and connection troubleshooting
- SSL/DNS configuration
… - Docker / Docker Compose deployments
- Linux service troubleshooting
- Git-based deployment workflows
- Basic mail/DNS deliverability configuration: MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC

Regarding Postfix/Exim:
I have experience with Linux server and email DNS configuration, and I understand the concept of inbound mail routing via aliases / transport / piping messages into a processing script. I have not deployed Alaveteli specifically before, but I can follow the official documentation and carefully test the full mail flow: outgoing request email → incoming agency response → pipe into Alaveteli → publication on the website.

My suggested work plan:
1. Prepare the VPS: users, SSH, firewall, updates.
2. Install required dependencies and deploy Alaveteli.
3. Configure PostgreSQL and application settings.
4. Configure Nginx and HTTPS.
5. Configure Postfix or Exim for outbound and inbound mail.
6. Configure DNS records: A, MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC.
7. Test sending and receiving emails together.
8. Document the final configuration.

Estimated timeline:
5–8 working days, depending on domain/DNS access, Hostinger limitations, and whether Alaveteli is deployed directly or via Docker.

Estimated cost:
$300–500 for the full setup.

If the mail gateway configuration turns out to require additional non-standard routing, custom scripting, or debugging with the hosting provider, I would discuss that separately before doing extra work.

I can start by reviewing the VPS, domain/DNS access, and the preferred deployment method.