diff --git a/default.nix b/default.nix
index 575cc6c..554f07d 100644
--- a/default.nix
+++ b/default.nix
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ let
   inherit (lib)
     literalExpression
     literalMD
+    mkChangedOptionModule
     mkEnableOption
     mkOption
     mkOptionType
@@ -783,53 +784,80 @@ in
       default = [ ];
     };
 
-    vmailUID = mkOption {
-      type = types.int;
-      default = 5000;
-      description = ''
-        The unix UID of the virtual mail user.  Be mindful that if this is
-        changed, you will need to manually adjust the permissions of
-        `mailDirectory`.
-      '';
-    };
+    storage = {
+      path = mkOption {
+        type = types.path;
+        default = "/var/vmail";
+        description = ''
+          Path on disk where mail home directories are stored.
+        '';
+      };
 
-    vmailUserName = mkOption {
-      type = types.str;
-      default = "virtualMail";
-      description = ''
-        The user name and group name of the user that owns the directory where all
-        the mail is stored.
-      '';
-    };
+      directoryLayout = mkOption {
+        type = types.enum [
+          "fs"
+          "maildir++"
+        ];
+        default = "maildir++";
+        description = ''
+          Sets whether dovecot should organize mail in subdirectories:
 
-    vmailGroupName = mkOption {
-      type = types.str;
-      default = "virtualMail";
-      description = ''
-        The user name and group name of the user that owns the directory where all
-        the mail is stored.
-      '';
-    };
+          - /var/vmail/example.com/user/.folder.subfolder/ (Maildir++ layout)
+          - /var/vmail/example.com/user/folder/subfolder/  (FS layout)
 
-    mailDirectory = mkOption {
-      type = types.path;
-      default = "/var/vmail";
-      description = ''
-        Where to store the mail.
-      '';
-    };
+          See <https://doc.dovecot.org/main/core/config/mailbox_formats/maildir.html#directory-layout>
+          See https://doc.dovecot.org/main/core/config/mailbox_formats/maildir.html#maildir-mailbox-format for details.
+        '';
+      };
 
-    useFsLayout = mkOption {
-      type = types.bool;
-      default = false;
-      description = ''
-        Sets whether dovecot should organize mail in subdirectories:
+      uid = mkOption {
+        type = types.ints.positive;
+        default = 5000;
+        description = ''
+          The user id assigned to the vmail user.
 
-        - /var/vmail/example.com/user/.folder.subfolder/ (default layout)
-        - /var/vmail/example.com/user/folder/subfolder/  (FS layout)
+          This user owns the mail storage files and directories and is used by
+          services accessing the mail store.
 
-        See https://doc.dovecot.org/main/core/config/mailbox_formats/maildir.html#maildir-mailbox-format for details.
-      '';
+          :::{warning}
+          If you change this value you also need to manually adjust the
+          permissions of your :option:`mailserver.storage.path`.
+          :::
+        '';
+      };
+
+      owner = mkOption {
+        type = types.str;
+        default = "virtualMail";
+        description = ''
+          The name of the user that owns the :option:`mailserver.storage.path`.
+        '';
+      };
+
+      gid = mkOption {
+        type = types.ints.positive;
+        default = 5000;
+        description = ''
+          The group id of the primary group of the vmail user.
+
+          This group owns the mail storage directories. Access can be delegated
+          to other users via group membership.
+
+          :::{warning}
+          If you change this value you also need to manually adjust the
+          permissions of your :option:`mailserver.storage.path`.
+          :::
+        '';
+      };
+
+      group = mkOption {
+        type = types.str;
+        default = "virtualMail";
+        description = ''
+          The primary group name of the user that owns the
+          :option:`mailserver.storage.path`.
+        '';
+      };
     };
 
     useUTF8FolderNames = mkOption {
@@ -1513,8 +1541,8 @@ in
 
       locations = mkOption {
         type = types.listOf types.path;
-        default = [ cfg.mailDirectory ];
-        defaultText = literalExpression "[ config.mailserver.mailDirectory ]";
+        default = [ cfg.storage.path ];
+        defaultText = literalExpression "[ config.mailserver.storage.path ]";
         description = "The locations that are to be backed up by borg.";
       };
 
@@ -1715,5 +1743,12 @@ in
     )
     (mkRenamedOptionModule [ "mailserver" "extraVirtualAliases" ] [ "mailserver" "aliases" ])
     (mkRenamedOptionModule [ "mailserver" "loginAccounts" ] [ "mailserver" "accounts" ])
+    (mkRenamedOptionModule [ "mailserver" "vmailUID" ] [ "mailserver" "storage" "uid" ])
+    (mkRenamedOptionModule [ "mailserver" "vmailUserName" ] [ "mailserver" "storage" "owner" ])
+    (mkRenamedOptionModule [ "mailserver" "vmailGroupName" ] [ "mailserver" "storage" "group" ])
+    (mkRenamedOptionModule [ "mailserver" "mailDirectory" ] [ "mailserver" "storage" "path" ])
+    (mkChangedOptionModule [ "mailserver" "useFSLayout" ] [ "mailserver" "storage" "directoryLayout" ] (
+      config: if config.mailserver.useFSLayout then "fs" else "maildir++"
+    ))
   ];
 }
diff --git a/docs/backup-guide.rst b/docs/backup-guide.rst
index caff6bf..3a7306a 100644
--- a/docs/backup-guide.rst
+++ b/docs/backup-guide.rst
@@ -5,14 +5,13 @@ First off you should have a backup of your ``configuration.nix`` file
 where you have the server config (but that is already in a git
 repository right?)
 
-Next you need to backup ``/var/vmail`` or whatever you have specified
-for the option ``mailDirectory``. This is where all the mails reside.
-Good options are a cron job with ``rsync`` or ``scp``. But really
-anything works, as it is simply a folder with plenty of files in it. If
-your backup solution does not preserve the owner of the files don’t
-forget to ``chown`` them to ``virtualMail:virtualMail`` if you copy them
-back (or whatever you specified as ``vmailUserName``, and
-``vmailGroupName``).
+Next you need to backup ``/var/vmail`` or whatever you have specified for the
+option :option:`mailserver.storage.path`. This is where all the mails reside.
+Good options are a cron job with ``rsync`` or ``scp``. But really anything
+works, as it is simply a folder with plenty of files in it. If your backup
+solution does not preserve the owner of the files don’t forget to ``chown`` them
+to ``virtualMail:virtualMail`` if you copy them back (or whatever you specified
+as :option:`mailserver.storage.owner`, and :option:`mailserver.storage.group`).
 
 If you enabled ``enableManageSieve`` then you also may want to backup
 ``/var/sieve`` or whatever you have specified as ``sieveDirectory``.
diff --git a/docs/migrations.rst b/docs/migrations.rst
index 7807f95..1b03e9e 100644
--- a/docs/migrations.rst
+++ b/docs/migrations.rst
@@ -40,18 +40,18 @@ best practices to mailserver management.
 
       systemctl stop dovecot.service
 
-3. Create a backup or snapshot of your :option:`mailserver.mailDirectory`, so
+3. Create a backup or snapshot of your :option:`mailserver.storage.path`, so
    you can restore should anything go wrong.
 
 4. Run the migration script and pass the required arguments to enable LDAP lookups:
 
-   The script should be run under the user who owns the :option:`mailserver.mailDirectory`.
+   The script should be run under the user who owns the :option:`mailserver.storage.path`.
    If run as root it will automatically switch into the appropriate user by itself.
 
    The script will not modify your data unless called with ``--execute``.
 
    The migration script finds all Dovecot home directories in
-   ``/var/vmail/ldap/`` (or any other :option:`mailserver.mailDirectory`),
+   ``/var/vmail/ldap/`` (or any other :option:`mailserver.storage.path`),
    for example that of bob at ``/var/vmail/ldap/bob@example.com``.
    It then takes ``bob@example.com`` and queries the LDAP server for
    ``mail=bob@example.com`` to retrieve the UUID attribute. Finally
diff --git a/mail-server/assertions.nix b/mail-server/assertions.nix
index a3c2428..d3f002b 100644
--- a/mail-server/assertions.nix
+++ b/mail-server/assertions.nix
@@ -98,22 +98,20 @@ in
         ) config.mailserver.dkim.domains
       )
     )
-    ++
-      lib.optionals (config.mailserver.ldap.enable && config.mailserver.mailDirectory != "/var/vmail")
-        [
-          {
-            assertion = config.mailserver.stateVersion != null -> config.mailserver.stateVersion >= 2;
-            message = ''
-              Issue: The dovecot homedir for LDAP users was previously not respecting `mailserver.mailDirectory`.
-              Remediation:
-                - Stop the `dovecot.service`
-                - Move `/var/vmail/ldap` below your `mailserver.mailDirectory`
-                - Increase the `stateVersion` to 2.
+    ++ lib.optionals (config.mailserver.ldap.enable && config.mailserver.storage.path != "/var/vmail") [
+      {
+        assertion = config.mailserver.stateVersion != null -> config.mailserver.stateVersion >= 2;
+        message = ''
+          Issue: The dovecot homedir for LDAP users was previously not respecting `mailserver.storage.path`.
+          Remediation:
+            - Stop the `dovecot.service`
+            - Move `/var/vmail/ldap` below your `mailserver.storage.path`
+            - Increase the `stateVersion` to 2.
 
-              Check https://nixos-mailserver.readthedocs.io/en/latest/migrations.html#dovecot-ldap-home-directory-migration for more information.
-            '';
-          }
-        ]
+          Check https://nixos-mailserver.readthedocs.io/en/latest/migrations.html#dovecot-ldap-home-directory-migration for more information.
+        '';
+      }
+    ]
     ++ [
       {
         assertion = config.mailserver.stateVersion != null -> config.mailserver.stateVersion >= 3;
diff --git a/mail-server/dovecot.nix b/mail-server/dovecot.nix
index 83c4859..ab08b6e 100644
--- a/mail-server/dovecot.nix
+++ b/mail-server/dovecot.nix
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ let
       }) attrs
     );
 
-  maildirLayoutAppendix = lib.optionalString cfg.useFsLayout ":LAYOUT=fs";
+  maildirLayoutAppendix = lib.optionalString (cfg.storage.directoryLayout == "fs") ":LAYOUT=fs";
   maildirUTF8FolderNames = lib.optionalString cfg.useUTF8FolderNames ":UTF-8";
 
   # https://doc.dovecot.org/2.3/configuration_manual/home_directories_for_virtual_users/#ways-to-set-up-home-directory
@@ -79,7 +79,7 @@ let
       scope = ${mkLdapSearchScope cfg.ldap.scope}
       user_attrs = \
         ${ldapUuidAttribute}=${ldapUuidAttribute}, \
-        =home=${cfg.mailDirectory}/ldap/%{ldap:${ldapUuidAttribute}}, \
+        =home=${cfg.storage.path}/ldap/%{ldap:${ldapUuidAttribute}}, \
         =mail=maildir:~/mail${maildirLayoutAppendix}${maildirUTF8FolderNames}${
           lib.optionalString (cfg.indexDir != null) ":INDEX=${cfg.indexDir}/ldap/%{ldap:${ldapUuidAttribute}}"
         }
@@ -228,8 +228,8 @@ in
       enablePop3 = cfg.enablePop3 || cfg.enablePop3Ssl;
       enablePAM = false;
       enableQuota = true;
-      mailGroup = cfg.vmailGroupName;
-      mailUser = cfg.vmailUserName;
+      mailGroup = cfg.storage.group;
+      mailUser = cfg.storage.owner;
       mailLocation = dovecotMaildir;
       sslServerCert = x509CertificateFile;
       sslServerKey = x509PrivateKeyFile;
@@ -371,7 +371,7 @@ in
           mail_max_userip_connections = ${toString cfg.maxConnectionsPerUser}
         }
 
-        mail_access_groups = ${cfg.vmailGroupName}
+        mail_access_groups = ${cfg.storage.group}
 
         # https://ssl-config.mozilla.org/#server=dovecot&version=2.3.21&config=intermediate&openssl=3.4.1&guideline=5.7
         ssl = required
@@ -431,9 +431,9 @@ in
           driver = passwd-file
           args = ${userdbFile}
           default_fields = \
-            home=${cfg.mailDirectory}/%{domain}/%{username} \
-            uid=${builtins.toString cfg.vmailUID} \
-            gid=${builtins.toString cfg.vmailUID}
+            home=${cfg.storage.path}/%{domain}/%{username} \
+            uid=${builtins.toString cfg.storage.uid} \
+            gid=${builtins.toString cfg.storage.uid}
         }
 
         ${lib.optionalString cfg.ldap.enable ''
@@ -446,8 +446,8 @@ in
             driver = ldap
             args = ${ldapConfFile}
             override_fields = \
-              uid=${toString cfg.vmailUID} \
-              gid=${toString cfg.vmailUID}
+              uid=${toString cfg.storage.uid} \
+              gid=${toString cfg.storage.uid}
           }
         ''}
 
diff --git a/mail-server/rsnapshot.nix b/mail-server/rsnapshot.nix
index f01ff8d..e898802 100644
--- a/mail-server/rsnapshot.nix
+++ b/mail-server/rsnapshot.nix
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ in
         retain	hourly	${toString cfg.backup.retain.hourly}
         retain	daily	${toString cfg.backup.retain.daily}
         retain	weekly	${toString cfg.backup.retain.weekly}
-        backup	${cfg.mailDirectory}/	localhost/
+        backup	${cfg.storage.path}/	localhost/
       '';
     };
   };
diff --git a/mail-server/systemd.nix b/mail-server/systemd.nix
index b401d6b..21b0c94 100644
--- a/mail-server/systemd.nix
+++ b/mail-server/systemd.nix
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ in
       preStart =
         let
           directories = lib.strings.escapeShellArgs (
-            [ cfg.mailDirectory ] ++ lib.optional (cfg.indexDir != null) cfg.indexDir
+            [ cfg.storage.path ] ++ lib.optional (cfg.indexDir != null) cfg.indexDir
           );
         in
         ''
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ in
           # Prevent world-readable paths, even temporarily.
           umask 007
           mkdir -p ${directories}
-          chgrp "${cfg.vmailGroupName}" ${directories}
+          chgrp "${cfg.storage.group}" ${directories}
           chmod 02770 ${directories}
         '';
     };
diff --git a/mail-server/users.nix b/mail-server/users.nix
index b660da3..39fa055 100644
--- a/mail-server/users.nix
+++ b/mail-server/users.nix
@@ -34,15 +34,6 @@ with (import ./common.nix {
 let
   cfg = config.mailserver;
 
-  vmail_user = {
-    name = cfg.vmailUserName;
-    isSystemUser = true;
-    uid = cfg.vmailUID;
-    home = cfg.mailDirectory;
-    createHome = true;
-    group = cfg.vmailGroupName;
-  };
-
   virtualMailUsersActivationScript =
     pkgs.writeScript "activate-virtual-mail-users"
       # bash
@@ -57,7 +48,7 @@ let
         # Create directory to store user sieve scripts if it doesn't exist
         if (! test -d "${cfg.sieveDirectory}"); then
           mkdir "${cfg.sieveDirectory}"
-          chown "${cfg.vmailUserName}:${cfg.vmailGroupName}" "${cfg.sieveDirectory}"
+          chown "${cfg.storage.owner}:${cfg.storage.group}" "${cfg.sieveDirectory}"
           chmod 770 "${cfg.sieveDirectory}"
         fi
 
@@ -69,13 +60,13 @@ let
             ''
               if (! test -d "${cfg.sieveDirectory}/${name}"); then
                 mkdir -p "${cfg.sieveDirectory}/${name}"
-                chown "${cfg.vmailUserName}:${cfg.vmailGroupName}" "${cfg.sieveDirectory}/${name}"
+                chown "${cfg.storage.owner}:${cfg.storage.group}" "${cfg.sieveDirectory}/${name}"
                 chmod 770 "${cfg.sieveDirectory}/${name}"
               fi
               cat << 'EOF' > "${cfg.sieveDirectory}/${name}/default.sieve"
               ${sieveScript}
               EOF
-              chown "${cfg.vmailUserName}:${cfg.vmailGroupName}" "${cfg.sieveDirectory}/${name}/default.sieve"
+              chown "${cfg.storage.owner}:${cfg.storage.group}" "${cfg.sieveDirectory}/${name}/default.sieve"
             ''
           else
             ''
@@ -113,16 +104,18 @@ in
           )
         );
 
-    # set the vmail gid to a specific value
-    users.groups = {
-      "${cfg.vmailGroupName}" = {
-        gid = cfg.vmailUID;
-      };
+    users.groups.${cfg.storage.group} = {
+      inherit (cfg.storage) gid;
     };
-
-    # define all users
-    users.users = {
-      "${vmail_user.name}" = lib.mkForce vmail_user;
+    users.users.${cfg.storage.owner} = lib.mkForce {
+      inherit (cfg.storage)
+        group
+        uid
+        ;
+      name = cfg.storage.owner;
+      isSystemUser = true;
+      home = cfg.storage.path;
+      createHome = true;
     };
 
     systemd.services.activate-virtual-mail-users = {
diff --git a/scripts/generate-options.py b/scripts/generate-options.py
index f6ea83c..dfba41d 100644
--- a/scripts/generate-options.py
+++ b/scripts/generate-options.py
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ options = json.load(f)
 groups = [
     "mailserver.accounts",
     "mailserver.x509",
+    "mailserver.storage",
     "mailserver.dkim",
     "mailserver.srs",
     "mailserver.dmarcReporting",
diff --git a/tests/internal.nix b/tests/internal.nix
index 15ada06..e6c1b17 100644
--- a/tests/internal.nix
+++ b/tests/internal.nix
@@ -109,8 +109,11 @@ in
             "user2@example.com" = "user1@example.com";
           };
 
-          vmailGroupName = "vmail";
-          vmailUID = 5000;
+          storage = {
+            gid = 5000;
+            group = "vmail";
+          };
+
           indexDir = "/var/lib/dovecot/indices";
 
           enableImap = false;
@@ -218,7 +221,7 @@ in
 
       with subtest("Check dovecot maildir and index locations"):
           # If these paths change we need a migration
-          machine.succeed("doveadm user -f home user1@example.com | grep ${nodes.machine.mailserver.mailDirectory}/example.com/user1")
+          machine.succeed("doveadm user -f home user1@example.com | grep ${nodes.machine.mailserver.storage.path}/example.com/user1")
           machine.succeed("doveadm user -f mail user1@example.com | grep 'maildir:~/mail:INDEX=${nodes.machine.mailserver.indexDir}/example.com/user1'")
 
       with subtest("mail to send only accounts is rejected"):
diff --git a/tests/ldap.nix b/tests/ldap.nix
index fd9711f..57e90aa 100644
--- a/tests/ldap.nix
+++ b/tests/ldap.nix
@@ -125,7 +125,7 @@ in
           fqdn = "mail.example.com";
           domains = [ "example.com" ];
           localDnsResolver = false;
-          mailDirectory = "/var/lib/dovecot/vmail";
+          storage.path = "/var/lib/dovecot/vmail";
           indexDir = "/var/lib/dovecot/indices";
 
           aliases = {
@@ -214,10 +214,10 @@ in
         machine.succeed("doveadm user -u alice")
         machine.log(machine.succeed("doveadm user -u bob"))
 
-        machine.succeed("doveadm user -f uid bob@example.com | grep ${toString nodes.machine.mailserver.vmailUID}")
-        machine.succeed("doveadm user -f gid bob@example.com | grep ${toString nodes.machine.mailserver.vmailUID}")
+        machine.succeed("doveadm user -f uid bob@example.com | grep ${toString nodes.machine.mailserver.storage.uid}")
+        machine.succeed("doveadm user -f gid bob@example.com | grep ${toString nodes.machine.mailserver.storage.uid}")
 
-        machine.succeed("doveadm user -f home bob@example.com | grep ${nodes.machine.mailserver.mailDirectory}/ldap/f3b4e8ea-087f-42cc-95f0-cbfd99386092")
+        machine.succeed("doveadm user -f home bob@example.com | grep ${nodes.machine.mailserver.storage.path}/ldap/f3b4e8ea-087f-42cc-95f0-cbfd99386092")
         machine.succeed("doveadm user -f mail bob@example.com | grep 'maildir:~/mail:INDEX=${nodes.machine.mailserver.indexDir}/ldap/f3b4e8ea-087f-42cc-95f0-cbfd99386092'")
 
       with subtest("Files containing secrets are only readable by root"):