305500 - General setting 'Thunderbird is Default Mail Application' (client) can't be changed.

Status: RESOLVED INCOMPLETE

(Thunderbird :: Mail Window Front End, defect)

Description

[Torsten]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; de-DE; rv:1.7.10) Gecko/20050717 Firefox/1.0.6
Build Identifier: Mozilla Thunderbird 1.0.6 (20050716)

I installed three users (all with admin rights) on my PC under 'Windows XP SP2'.
Since the update to Mozilla Thunderbird 1.0.6 the basic adjustment 'Thunderbird
is used as standard Mail application' can NOT be changed. With two users this
option is unfortunately not set, so that with each start of Thunderbird an
inquiry window opens to set Thunderbird as standard Mail program. With older
versions (0,9 - 1.0.2) of Thunderbird this problem did not arise. All updates
were installed in each case over the previous version.

Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1. Launch the Thunderbird.
2.
3.



Expected Results:  
Accept the check box to set Thunderbird as standard mail programm.
(BTW: Check box for standard news application is processed correctly)

Comment 1

[Mike Cowperthwaite]

xref bug 294863.

All users are running with Admin rights?

If you're willing to spend the effort to help debug this: install a copy of 
RegMon   <http://www.sysinternals.com/Utilities/Regmon.html>   and create a log 
of what happens when you start TB and instruct it to be the default.  
Attach that log to this bug (use the Create New Attachment link above).

Comment 2

[Torsten]

Attachment: Create a Regmon log of what happens when TB starts.

TB events: open, close, open again and close.

Comment 3

[Torsten]

Attachment: Create a Regmon log of what happens when TB starts.

TB events: open, set as default mail prog. and close TB.

Comment 4

[Mike Cowperthwaite]

(In reply to comment #3)
> Created an attachment (id=193544) [edit]
> Create a Regmon log of what happens when TB starts.
> 
> TB events: open, set as default mail prog. and close TB.

The portion of the log of interest begins at line 1076.

At 1077, TB successfully sets itself as the systemwide default mail client 
(HKLM).  At 1087, TB successfully sets itsef as the user default mail client 
(HKCU).

Starting at line 1079, there are repeated ACCESS DENIED request to CreateKey() 
calls for
  HKLM\Software\Classes\mailto
This implies that the user running the program does *not* have Admin privileges.

Not all applications use MAPI to process a mailto URL, instead they go directly 
to the 'mailto' registry.  To check whether MAPI is correctly configured, go to 
the Windows Start Menu, select Run, and enter a mailto: URL.  Which program pops 
up?  That's the MAPI client.


Note that the HKLM 'Default' setting is often used instead of the HKCU 'Default' 
setting -- in my testing, only Internet Explorer abides by the HKCU key if it 
differs from the HKLM key.  Windows itself (e.g, via Start|Run) will use the
 HKLM\Software\Clients\Mail   setting to process mailto.

However, I've never encountered a program which ignores the
 HKCU\Software\Classes\mailto   setting in favor of the HKLM setting.  
I'm pretty sure there's a bug somewhere discussing whether Moz/TB should 
set the   HKCU...mailto   key (it currently doesn't).




As an aside: the HKCU block accesses starting at 1127 do not look correct to me. 
The code appears to be assuming that the HKCU substructure is identical to that 
of HKCR; however, HKCR is a mapping that includes HKCU\Software\Classes, so the 
path should be (e.g.)  HKCU\Software\Classes\MozillaMapi.  That's why all the 
HKCU queries (here and at 1174) are returning NOT FOUND -- because they're 
looking in the wrong place.

Since TB is not *creating* keys there, the problem is only one of making 
unnecessary queries.

Comment 5

[Mike Cowperthwaite]

(In reply to comment #4)
> I'm pretty sure there's a bug somewhere discussing whether Moz/TB should 
> set the   HKCU...mailto   key (it currently doesn't).

There is also a bug somewhere (maybe the same bug) where I recommended that 
instead of a checkbox, the 'default' setting be set using just a button, exactly 
because UNSETTING the checkbox doesn't specify which client *should* be made the 
default.

This might be the best course of action, actually: rather than asking the users 
to uncheck the box, have them run the mail program they want and let it set 
itself as the default.

But as noted: due to a bug in Windows, it is not possible to reliably set 
different default MAPI clients for different users.  Even those few program that 
abide by   HKCU\Software\Clients\Mail   will sometimes fail, because most mail 
clients (e.g. Outlook Express) don't set that key.

Comment 6

[Torsten]

(In reply to comment #4)
> 
> Not all applications use MAPI to process a mailto URL, instead they go directly 
> to the 'mailto' registry.  To check whether MAPI is correctly configured, go to 
> the Windows Start Menu, select Run, and enter a mailto: URL.  Which program pops 
> up?  That's the MAPI client.
> 

With the user where TB is set as standard mail program and TB was installed
from, all works fine. The TB starts with the URL added to the 'to' line.

But with the two other users (all have administrator rights) it fails.
A small message window opens:
 [Microsoft internet Explorer]
 The procedure cannot be implemented,
 because the standard mail client is not correctly installed.
 <OK>
Next 60 internet explorer windows are going to be opened after pressing OK.

I tried to reset Outlook Express as standard mail program with the same result:
"... not correctly installed".
For this, I think that when installing TB 1.0.6 something bad happens to the
registry of this two users.

Comment 7

[eznie0ba]

I have recently encountered this problem. A user in forum I monitor was posting a problem regarding the message box to make TB the default mail client always appearing. I was doing some testing and now find myself in the same situation.

I am running TB 1.5 under Windows 2000 Pro SP4 and have been running TB since 0.9.x as a power, always installing/upgrading TB from an administrator account.

As part of my test, I made OE the default mail client when logged on as a limited user. Then I launched TB and when prompted, made it the default mail client. Every time I launch TB, I am asked to make it the default mail client. If I add myself to the administrators group, everything is fine, no continuous prompts. But, when I removed myself from the administators groups, I get the prompts.

I have tried logging on as administrator and running TB, making it the default mail client, but when logged on as a power user, TB still prompts each time I launch it, even if I check the "Do not display this dialog again" check box.

I tried logging in as administrator and setting the "Set Program Access and Defaults" from the control panel's "Add/Remove Programs".

I have un-installed TB, rebooted and re-installed TB after removing the "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Thunderbird" directory, but that did not help.

I also tested by opening a command prompt and entering the command "start mailto:" only to have numerous Internet Explorer windows appear with an error refering to "Action canceled" "Internet Explorer" was unable to link to the Web page you requested" and the location bar has the string "mailto:".

Comment 8

[Gary Kwong [:gkw] [:nth10sd] (NOT official MoCo now)]

Reporter, does the issue still occur in the latest supported 2.0.0.x / Shredder trunk nightlies?

(1.5.0.x is now end-of-life and the latest supported 2.0.0.x is 2.0.0.16)

Comment 9

[Gary Kwong [:gkw] [:nth10sd] (NOT official MoCo now)]

Reporter, does the issue still occur in the latest supported 2.0.0.x / Shredder trunk nightlies?

(1.5.0.x is now end-of-life and the latest supported 2.0.0.x is 2.0.0.16)

Comment 10

[Joshua Cranmer [:jcranmer]]

RESO INCO per lack of response to the last question(s). If you feel this change was made in error, please respond to this bug with your reasons why.

Comment 11

[:aceman]

See also bug 476426 and bug 360809.