288977 - News Reader uses more connections than server allows - repreatedly tries to authenticate

Status: RESOLVED DUPLICATE of bug 66150

(MailNews Core :: Networking: NNTP, defect)

Description

[jracda]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.7.6) Gecko/20050225 Firefox/1.0.1
Build Identifier: TB version 1.0 (20041206)

A news server I use permits only 2 connections.  After browsing newsgroups for a
while, TB apparently attempts to open a third (and more?), and when it fails
puts up a "username for news server access" prompt - even though the news server
does not support authentication.  Some operations (e.g. mark all as read)
trigger an unending sequence of prompts - from which the only escape is to
forcibly close the program using Task Manager.

Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1.Subscribe to half a dozen busy newsgroups on a server that permits only 2
connections
2.Do lots of stuff quickly - switch between groups, mark as read etc.
3.

Actual Results:  
Repeated "username for news server access" prompts

Expected Results:  
Use fewer connections.  Give a single message instead of endless repeats.

Comment 1

[Nuncus]

Attachment: Illustrates and confirms "too many news server connections" bug.

Illustrates the bug in the Thunderbird news reader
pursuant to which the news reader apparently tries
to open a seperate connection on the ISP's news server
for every single message file download a user attempts
to effect through double-clicking a message header
in the news reader's message header list.

This JPEG illustrates the situation pursuant to which
the User has simply double-clicked a number of headers
in sequence to effect message file/message file+file
attachments downloads.

This test involved NO use of the file extractor
extension; however, this bug also causes the file
extractor extension to fail when the ISP's news
server connection/per user maximum has been exceeded.

In "comparison" testing, this problem occured in
neither forte Agent nor in the Microsoft news
reader that accompanies Outlook Express.  (Note,
this problem has not been present in the Micrososft
news reader from the date it was first made available
in 1995).


So, please address this problem. My impression
is that the presence of this malfunction is 
impairing both Firefox and Thunderbird acceptance
among potential users:	if the news reader "doesn't
work," then, I think, the natural human inclination
is to say "to heck with it; too much hassle."

Comment 2

[Nuncus]

Attachment: Illustrates the "too Many Connections" Bug, using file extractor extension -01

Attachment (JPEG) for Bug 288977.

This is an illustrative screen shot of the "Too Many Connections"
malfunction/bug in the Thunderbird news reader when the user attempts
to use the file extractor extension to attempt to download mulatiple
message files (w/ or w/o file attachments in the message files).

This is the first JPEG screenshot graphic in a series of two
such graphics.

The names of the two graphics, respectively, are as follows:

	  Connections_TooMany-01.JPG


	  Connections-Too Many-02.JPG

"My" system:

-----------------------
O/S = XP, Svc Pk 2.
Version 5.1 (Build 2600.xpsp_sp2_gdr.050301-1519:Service Pack 2)

T-Bird = version 1.0.2 (20050317)

Skin = Default.

Extensions in use = Attachment Extractor 0.4.1.

ISP = news.east.earthlink.net; ELNK server appears to
be Tornado v1.0.5.360.
-----------------------


Symptoms:     The user marks multiple, contiguously located, message
headers in a list of message headers displayed in the news reader
message header list that is displayed in the Thunderbird news reader's
message heder list pane.

The user then right-clicks and chooses from the resulting context
pop-up menu, or chooses from the "Tools">>"Extract Attachments" menu
item from the main menus on the menu bar of the news reader viewing
pane, the option to download the message files associated with the
marked message headers.

The message files will usually (not always) begin to download.

Howevber, when the number of messages attempted to be downloaded
exceeds the "connection limit" of news server connections on the
User's ISP's news server, the ISP news server then displays a
message window informing the User that the User has exceeded his
or her allowable news server connections (apparantly, every news
server has its own limitations on the number of open connections).

The ISP's news server then cuts off the User's download completely.

REPRODUCABLE?:	   YES; EVERY TIME and regardless of whether the
User has configured his or her news reader to save the file attachments
to a particular file folder automatically in all instances or whether
the User has selected a particular file folder in which to save the
file attachments for this sequential download only.

     This bug/malfunction/defect is a seperate issue from file
attachment extraction (spotty file extraction performance is also
a major defect in the news reader; but that is a seperate issue from
the "Too Many Connections" bug/defect).

EFFECTS:     This bug effectively kills the Open Source Thunderbird
news reader and discourages potential new users from adopting the
Firefox and Thunderbird as their day to day browser/emailer/news
reader set of apps.

PLEASE correct this malfunction.  I am not a programmer who is
familiar with web application programming; but, from among some
of the things that should be considered here are the following:

1.     TEST the news server to see "how many" connections the news
       server allows per user per session;

2.    Open each of the allowable news server connections, one at a
      time, and run a que of single downloads through the one, open,
      connection;

3.    Set some sort of limit per que;

4.    Open no more connections, nor attempt to open more
      connections than the news server allows.

     I suggest you examine how the Forte Agent Pro handles its
ques -- which seem to be endless; apparantly, the programmers at
forte Agent have some kind of que management altgorithm in the
Forte Agent app's code that allows the news reader app to handles
multiple ques of multiple downloads each.

     Again, this is only a suggestion; you have to do it your
own way; and I would certainly not be so presumptuous as to
press a paticular programming methodology to accomplish a solution
to this problem.

 I do. hope, however, that you are in fact able to address what
appears to be a fundamental impediment in the Thunderbird's core
technology vis a vie its news reader app.

  Among other things, "one" way or "a" way to gain acceptance
of the apps as to potential users is to "get'em hooked when they
are youg; let 'em grow up with the app, and that's the app
they are going to use and recommend as adults when they
become employees and managers in companies."

     for the what it's worth department, we all know that
teen-aged boys are heavy users of Usenet (paticularly the
age group between 18, or so, and 25); and, yes, that is
partly because of the alt.binaries picture groups on Usenet;
but who cares?	If you get them hooked on the browser and
give them a decent and reliable news reader, you've got them
locked in like stones in concrete.  :-)

     Incidentally, I am NOT suggesting that you go toe to toe
with Forte Agent; if someone needs to use the Usenet to do all
the fifty-thousand things that Forte Agent lets a user do with
Usenet, the user can probably come up with the forty bucks or
so it takes to buy a copy of Forte Agent Pro.

   But most people, and I include myself among these users, tend
to use the Usenet to participate in academic and professional
Usenet groups and are not using all the hundreds of features in
forte Agent.  It IS in fact useful, however, for a fellow like me
to be able to mark up an entire thread of discussion or
discussion and attachments and download the entirety of the lot
all in one fell swoop.	clearly, when I am busy, I cannot
take the time to "nurse" through the downloads at the rate of
two or four or five or whatever at a time.

Here's luck to you.

Best regards,

LScott ("Nuncus" in the support group and in the bugzilla)

Comment 3

[Nuncus]

Attachment: Illustrates the "too Many Connections" Bug, using file extractor extension -02

Attachment (JPEG) for Bug 288977.

This is an illustrative screen shot of the "Too Many Connections"
malfunction/bug in the Thunderbird news reader when the user attempts
to use the file extractor extension to attempt to download mulatiple
message files (w/ or w/o file attachments in the message files).

This is the first JPEG screenshot graphic in a series of two
such graphics.

The names of the two graphics, respectively, are as follows:

	  Connections_TooMany-01.JPG


	  Connections-Too Many-02.JPG

"My" system:

-----------------------
O/S = XP, Svc Pk 2.
Version 5.1 (Build 2600.xpsp_sp2_gdr.050301-1519:Service Pack 2)

T-Bird = version 1.0.2 (20050317)

Skin = Default.

Extensions in use = Attachment Extractor 0.4.1.

ISP = news.east.earthlink.net; ELNK server appears to
be Tornado v1.0.5.360.
-----------------------

Submitted by LScott ("Nuncus") - see other attachments and
comments by LScott/Nuncus for this bug.

Comment 4

[Nuncus]

Addendum:     from Nuncus.

     The problem here appears to be that the program
is forking to effect downloads and not using managed ques.

     Further, there does not appear to be a mechanism to
terminate the various forks.

     Although using the "fork" appears to have worked in getting
a news reader up and running, quick and dirty, so a news
reader could be truthfully represented as being part of the
internet apps suite, the forking problem in fact prevents
Usenet users from really using the news reader in any
practical sense.

Nuncus

Comment 5

[Nuncus]

Why is this bug still in "unconfirmed" status?

What more does it take to get someone working on it?

It's a major bug and/or bad app behavior and needs to be fixed.

Nuncus

Comment 6

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

please attach a log file to the bug using http://www.mozilla.org/quality/mailnews/mail-troubleshoot.html#nntp

Comment 7

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

David, will a log be helpful?
possibly a dup of bug 67957, bug confirming

related?
bug 301222 
bug 225463

Comment 8

[David :Bienvenu]

We simply don't have a connection queuing mechanism for nntp. We have one for IMAP. We should do something similar for NNTP. That being said, the file extractor extension could serialize its requests.

Comment 9

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

(In reply to comment #8)
> That being said, the file extractor extension could serialize its requests.

where is that used?

Comment 10

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

Joshua, comment 8

Comment 11

[Joshua Cranmer [:jcranmer]]

Tentatively accepting, but not assigning because I have enough on my plate as it is.