506711 - Cannot 'forward' some messages with attachments ("message delivery failure" is returned when sent with forward, due to ".eml" in filename)

Status: RESOLVED DUPLICATE of bug 380354

(Thunderbird :: General, defect)

Description

[jsherk]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.9.1.1) Gecko/20090715 Firefox/3.5.1
Build Identifier: 2.0.0.22 (20090605)

I have noticed this problem with certain messages with attachments, that they cannot be Forwarded... you try to forward them, hit send, and then they come back to your inbox as "message delivery failure".

But the interesting thing is, if you hit Reply (instead of Forward) and then just erase the reply-to email and replace it with the email of the person you want to send it too, it will send just fine!

This problem happens on more than one computer in our office (both Win XP and Win Vista), and the workaround is to send it as a Reply instead of a Forward.


Reproducible: Sometimes

Comment 1

[WADA:World Anti-bad-Duping Agency]

> and then they come back to your inbox as "message delivery failure".

It's mail for error notification from SMTP server or SMTP server who relays the mail.
1) Tb passed mail data to your SMTP server, and it completed normally.
2) Your SMTP tries to pass mail to destination server, and detected something wrong.
Once 1) ended normally, mail client can do nothing.

What is your base / evidence that above 2) was caused by flaw in code of Tb?
(Here is B.M.O. Not support forum.)
Have you read and understood description in the mail for delivery failure from SMTP server?

Comment 2

[jsherk]

My only evidence it that if you use Reply (instead of Forward), the message is delivered as it should be, but if you try to Forward the message it comes back undeliverable, so there must be something to do with formatting of the message that causes it to be delivered when you hit Reply, and to NOT be delivered when you hit Forward.

Comment 3

[Luiz]

Hello! I am using THUNDERBIRD 2.0.0.23 on WinXp, and am seeing the following problem, which is similar to the one above and may be part of the same problem: I have 2 accounts, each one with a different incoming server and different outgoing server. 
With the default account, I can both REPLY and FORWARD html emails with the correct content being included in the body of the message. 
With the second account, though, only when REPLYING to a message the html content is correctly displayed in the body, while when FORWARDING the same message I get just a single line with a few funny characters. 

Can this be corrected?
Why can't FORWARD be just an instance of REPLY, since Reply is working fine? (I am not a programmer, so please forgive me if that last suggestion is not doable).

Thanks for the help,
Luiz

Comment 4

[WADA:World Anti-bad-Duping Agency]

(In reply to comment #2)
> My only evidence it that if you use Reply (instead of Forward), the message is
> delivered as it should be, but if you try to Forward the message it comes back
> undeliverable,

Can you attach mails saved in your Sent folder(reply version and forward version) and mail of "message delivery failure" for forwarded mail to this bug?
(file saved by "Save As" to .eml file. via "Add an attachment" link of this bug)

Comment 5

[jsherk]

Okay, I have attached an .eml of an email that you can succesfully REPLY TO but you cannot FORWARD it.

The email is one that was returned as a Mail Delivery Failure. You then can succesfully REPLY TO with it, but if you try to FORWARD it, it will come back again as Mail Delivery Failure again.

When I look at it a little closer though, it may have something to do with an .eml as an attachment... does a REPLY TO not include attachments and a FORWARD does include attachments?

Anyways, maybe somebody that can dechiper the headers better can determine what is going on.

Comment 6

[jsherk]

Attachment: eml of email that will not FORWARD

Comment 7

[WADA:World Anti-bad-Duping Agency]

Mail to yourself.
> From: Jeff Sherk Forerunner Ministries <[e-mail]>
> To: fmi-Jeff Sherk <[e-mail]>
"mail delivery failure" notofication is sent by your server.
> Received: from mailnull by server3.mediaserve.com (snip)
> From: Mail Delivery System <[e-mail]>
And the notification says;
> The following address(es) failed:
>  [e-mail]
>    This message has been rejected because it has
>    a potentially executable attachment "testing.eml"

Your server probably checks ".eml" part of name and/or filename only and rejects it. Your case is probably same as Bug 380354 and the problem can be bypassed by new option for no file extension of ".eml"(new option from Tb 3).

Check next. Will your server accept forwarded mail?
(1) Forward to yourself, "Send Later"
(2) At "Local Folders", Compact "Unsent" folder, Terminate Tb
(3) Copy file named "Unsent Messages" under "Local Folders" to "XXX"(backup).
(4) Edit file named "Unsent Messages", and remove ".eml".
> Content-Type: message/rfc822;
>  name="testing.eml"              ==> name="testing" 
> Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
> Content-Disposition: inline;
>  filename="testing.eml"          ==> filename="testing" 
(5) Delete file of "Unsent Messages.msf", and restart Tb
(6) Send the mail (By OK reply upon startup, or "Send Unsent Messages")

Comment 8

[WADA:World Anti-bad-Duping Agency]

If Drag&Drop of mail to composing mail, Tb2 generates next header.
> Content-Type: message/rfc822;
>  name="Attached Message"
> Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
> Content-Disposition: inline;
>  filename="Attached Message"
(If multiple mails are attached, all mail has same name...)
I think this is simplest workaround with Tb 2, although name of attached mail becomes "Attached Message" always.

Comment 9

[jsherk]

Okay WADA, yes my server will accept forwarded mail with the .eml removed... followed your instructions above (remove .eml from unsent message), and the message is succesfully forwarded.

So it is partially a server issue, but just out of curiosity, how come the server does not reject a message with .eml when it is a REPLY, and only rejects the FORWARD?

It looks like issue is dealt with in TB3 though, so you can close this bug if necessary.

Thanks

Comment 10

[WADA:World Anti-bad-Duping Agency]

(In reply to comment #9)
> how come the server does not reject a message with .eml when it is a REPLY,
> and only rejects the FORWARD?

Because "forward as attachment" option is set by you, original mail is automatically attached as message/rfc822 part by Tb, with filename of "....eml".
When reply, message/rfc822 part is not attached automatically by Tb. And, if you drag&drop original mail while replying, Tb generates file name of "Attached Message"(no file extension of .eml).
And, your server checks ".eml" in filename only.
Therefore, your problem occurs only when forward(forward as attachment).

Closing as DUP of Bug 380354.