Docker Mailserver Upgrade to v16: 4 Steps and 3 Mistakes
A docker mailserver upgrade from 15.x to 16.x is not just a new image tag. Version 16.0.0 moves the image from Debian 12 to Debian 13 and from Dovecot 2.3 to Dovecot 2.4. Your mail and accounts survive the switch, but an old dovecot.cf with 2.3 setting names stops Dovecot completely, SA_SPAM_SUBJECT is rejected, and DHE ciphers disappear from ports 587 and 993. The container still reports "up and running". Below is the full upgrade on a test server, what broke and the exact fixes. Lab: docker-mailserver 15.1.0 upgraded to 16.0.1 on the same volumes, rootless podman 5.8 (the docker commands are identical), a Debian 13 client container with swaks, curl and openssl, October 2026. Every output below comes from that lab. Sources: the docker-mailserver v16.0.0 release , its CHANGELOG and the Dovecot 2.3 to 2.4 upgrade guide . Docker mailserver upgrade to v16, in short: Back up docker-data/dms/ and stop the container. Rename 2.3 settings in config/dovecot.cf (for exampl...