Each ePOST user is expected to run a daemon program on his desktop computer that implements the Pastry, PAST, Scribe and POST protocols, and contributes some CPU, network bandwidth and disk storage to the system. The daemon acts as a SMTP and IMAP server, thus allowing the user to utilize conventional email client programs. The daemon is assumed to be trusted by the user and holds the user's private key. No other nodes in the system are assumed to be trusted by the user (other than the authority that signs the users' certificates).