= James Basic Server &mdash; Objectives
:navtitle: Objectives

The objective of the Basic Server is to be as simple and minimalistic as possible,
while still being useful. Many people wish to have a basic self-hosted mail server that they
can use without having to become a deep technical expert.
The Basic Server is intended to be an entry-level server that is accessible to
those who want a self-hosted mail server, but who don't want to have to learn about all the
complexities of email communications.

This server is therefore intended to be the simplest to set up and use in 
production.
Of all the James Servers, it has the least amount of dependencies and configurations.
If you are not sure which of the James servers is best for you, you should
probably choose this one.

The default configuration of the Basic Server includes the following features:

 * Secure SMTP (SSL/TLS) over port 465
 * Secure IMAP4 (SSL/TLS) over port 993
 * Local Mailbox support
  ** Files are stored locally on the filesystem
  ** Optionally use a volume if you are a Docker or Kubernetes user
 * Multi-domain (virtual domain) support
 * Administration of users either via a command-line tool or the admin api

We have disabled all of the insecure communications and require SSL. If you have
a specific requirement to use an insecure protocol, or if the above list does not
satisfy your needs, then after having successfully set up this server you may want
to move on to the xref:extendable.adoc[Extendable Server].
