1926337 - mozmsgs directories not being populated with wdsmsg files since v128

Status: RESOLVED WORKSFORME

(Thunderbird :: OS Integration, defect)

Description

[David Taber]

User Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64; rv:131.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/131.0

Steps to reproduce:

Enable "Allow Windows Search to search Messages" check box and "mail.winsearch.enable" config editor Boolean. (Actually, these have been set for years).
Use Tbird as normally, doing occasional quick searches and full searches.

Actual results:

Look in all the mozmsgs subdirectories -- nothing new has been added since 7/24. Many of the subdirectories are empty

Expected results:

Expected to see continued population of the subdirectories with mozmsgs files.
(Is there a way to trigger the creation of those files?)

Comment 1

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

Can you also reproduce?

(Is there a way to trigger the creation of those files?)

Not that I know of.

Comment 2

[Magnus Melin [:mkmelin]]

(Should be from bug 1888655)

Comment 3

[David Taber]

Wayne -- I'm not sure how to reproduce a negative event.
The lack of new files continues, FWIW.
What system/TB behavior or action would cause new ones to be created?

Comment 4

[EarlgreyTea]

(In reply to Wayne Mery (:wsmwk) from comment #1)

Can you also reproduce?

I haven't used the "Allow Windows Search to search Messages" option in years but I gave it a try.
I've found that in current Thunderbird, turning the option on or off in the settings UI doesn't change the value of "mail.winsearch.enable" in the Config Editor.
When I tried setting "mail.winsearch.enable" to true in the configuration editor, I confirmed that folders such as Inbox.mozmsgs were generated in Thunderbird 128.
The interaction between the "Allow Windows Search to search Messages" option and the "mail.winsearch.enable" pref has been broken since Thunderbird 68.

Comment 5

[David Taber]

I agree that the mozmsg subdirectories are being created.
But they do not appear to be populating with wdseml files.
@earlgreytea: are you getting files in those subdirectories?

Comment 6

[EarlgreyTea]

After opening mails in the Inbox, wdseml files were generated with a delay.

Comment 7

[David Taber]

Well, after clicking around and changing settings back and forth, files are getting populated again.
So, closing this one out.

Comment 8

[Matt]

What is the purpose of these files in the current Windows 11 context? I know they were originally something to do with allowing windows search to index mail, but I simply do not understand why we create hundreds of thousands of files, which most folk on small SSD's complain about, when searching mail is a Thunderbird function. That is the purpose of GLODA. We don't create these shadow copies on other operating systems, only Windows. So can someone explain why they exist at all.

Comment 9

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

Even though David got this working, it seems to me there is still a bug here, no?

FWIW Other open bug reports https://mzl.la/48uQAEz

(In reply to Matt from comment #8)

What is the purpose of these files in the current Windows 11 context? I know they were originally something to do with allowing windows search to index mail

It is for users who want to search using Windows Search tools, implemented in Bug 430614 - Thunderbird integration into Windows Vista/Windows Search indexer. A corresponding capability exists for Mac.

Comment 10

[EarlgreyTea]

Why was I called here again? Is the following not enough?
bug 1926337 comment 4
bug 553048 comment 18
bug 553048 comment 19

I haven't created a mozmsgs folder for years because I never thought to search Thunderbird emails in Windows, so I didn't even realize that the "Allow Windows Search to search Messages" option was broken.

Comment 11

[Magnus Melin [:mkmelin]]

Martin, as it's from bug 1888655, please check.

Comment 12

[Martin Giger [:freaktechnik]]

I'm not sure what bug there would be with the fix described in comment #7. So not sure what there is to check? We also have a report of it working just fine when re-enabling it, so there was probably something in addition leading to the indexing getting stuck. But what it is is really hard to know now. This could easily also be related to the corruption problems we had - though those wouldn't just solve themselves like that at that time I'd think.

Comment 13

[Magnus Melin [:mkmelin]]

Hmm, seems the OP had the problem resolved and nobody here to to confirm so -> WFM

Comment 14

[David Taber]

Hi Magnus,

I looked around in a bunch of my mozmsgs directories, and they're all being populated, but quite unevenly over time. With actively-used inboxes, there will be some days where dozens of wdsml files are there, and then no new ones for a week or more. Since these inboxes receive dozens of messages every day, it seems that the population of these directories is done in some sort of batch mode that is not being triggered very often...or is making some sort of decision to exclude some messages. (An alternate hypothesis: the mechanism is moving some wdsml files when a message is moved out of an inbox and into another folder.)

I don't think this bug should be reopened, but I fear that the intermittent operation of the underlying mechanism defeats the underlying purpose of "enabling windows indexing"

Comment 15

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

There is no batch mode for creating the files - creation should be immediate. If that isn't happening then this should be reopened.

Indexing however subject to an algorithm.

Comment 16

[Magnus Melin [:mkmelin]]

The indexing is not necessarily immediate. https://searchfox.org/comm-central/rev/9300037a76850ea56175b9ccc40142619a4f0b3c/mail/components/search/SearchSupport.sys.mjs#511-516