# Re: git-send-email: smtpserver in $HOME

- From: Junio C Hamano \<hidden\>
- Date: 2021-02-16 19:17:04 
- List: git
- Page: https://ratatoskr.run/git/2021/02/7876655
- Thread: https://ratatoskr.run/git/2021/02/7876655/t.md

```text
Jeff King [ref] writes:

> Sure, but you cannot say "does it refer to a local file" for a
> non-absolute path.

Hmph, why not?  I would expect that this would work as a valid way

	$ git send-email --smtp-server=./my-phoney-smtp

to test a server substitute (perhaps for testing).  The only reason
why it does not is because file_name_is_absolute() check would not
like it.

> And that is the source of the problem, IMHO: there is
> no way to signal "this is a command I expect to be executed" except by
> using an absolute path.

Yes.

> Or do you mean that we should see if $smtp_server exists in the PATH,
> and if so prefer it over a network hostname?

We can certainly go in that direction, too.  A new --smtp-program option
would be a cleaner way to solve it, though, as you said elsewhere.
```