Quick Start

This first draft does not invent a startup command or deployment recipe that is not documented yet.

Instead, it defines the operator intent for zsmtp: get the service running with a clear understanding of trust boundaries, runtime dependencies, and the points where mail enters and leaves the system.

First-run goals

An initial zsmtp deployment should make the following explicit:

• where SMTP traffic is accepted
• where mail is forwarded next
• which secrets or keys are required to start
• which parts of message handling zsmtp should not retain or inspect
• how operators observe health, queue state, and failures

Deployment checklist

Before the concrete quick-start commands are published, the implementation docs should cover:

1. host and network prerequisites
2. certificate and key material
3. queue or spool storage requirements
4. upstream relay or delivery targets
5. logging, metrics, and failure handling

Current scope

The current site should be read as a product draft, not a finished operations manual.

• the positioning is real: zsmtp is being framed as a zero-knowledge SMTP mail transfer agent
• the implementation-specific startup path still needs to be documented
• the docs will expand once the install and config surface are stable enough to publish