559252 - Duplicate email repeatedly downloaded from Yahoo via Freepops, The Bat doesn't do this.

Status: RESOLVED INCOMPLETE

(Thunderbird :: General, defect)

Description

[Eric]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.9.2.3) Gecko/20100401 Firefox/3.6.3
Build Identifier: V2.xx and 3.xx

I used to use Thunderbird versions 2.xx, but I repeatedly had problems with email, previously downloaded and read or deleted, being downloaded again and again, sometimes hundreds of them.

I use Freepops to access the Yahoo pop accounts. I also have Gmail IMAP accounts, which give no trouble with Thunderbird.

I have researched this problem in depth, but found no real concrete solution. The various "corrupt file deletion" suggestions don't do anything.

You might want to say this is a problem with Freepops.... but the fact of the matter is, after all the trouble with Thunderbird 2.xx, I (regretfully) switched to The Bat, using all the same accounts and Freepops.

The Bat NEVER ONCE downloaded messages twice from Yahoo in the 2 years I have been using it.

When Thnderbird 3 came along, I thought I would try again. I like the new Thunderbird, but THE SAME PROBLEM STILL EXISTS! It downloads hundreds of emails already downloaded and marked as read or deleted! I can delete an email from one Yahoo account and the next time Thunderbird checks email, it's back! I can do this ad infinitum. I have tried all the "delete corrupt file" suggestions, but nothing changes it.

I am running The Bat and Thunderbird in parallel now and the problem is all too repeatable. I would prefer to use Thunderbird, but I need to use an email program for email, not to spend time repeatedly cleaning up the inbox.

This problem has been around for quite a while, but nothing is being done about it.

To reinforce the issue, I repeat that this DOES NOT HAPPEN WITH THE BAT so this is a REAL ISSUE with Thunderbird.

In the meantime, I will have to continue using The Bat, though I sincerely hope Thunderbird will be fixed and I can dump The Bat.

Feel free to contact me if you need more info or want me to try to help resolve this problem, I really do want to use Thunderbird.

As mentioned above, Thunderbird handles IMAP accounts perfectly, I am slowly trying to get rid of the old Yahoo accounts, but it's not so easy! Also, as mentioned above, this problem has persisted since I first started trying to use Thunderbird, probably 3 years or more ago, and is still here in the latest version.

The fact that this doesn't happen with The Bat (and probably other clients, I don't have time to try) really indicates that there is undeniably something amiss in Thunderbird.

Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1. Start Thunderbird.
2.Nothing else needed, auto mail downloads start and there you are.
3.
Actual Results:  
As above, starting Thunderbird, which has automatic email download on startup enabled, is all that's needed.

Expected Results:  
Duplicate emails are downloaded, sometimes a lot, sometimes not all every time, some of them always.

downloaded only what has not already been downloaded....

Comment 1

[Ludovic Hirlimann [:Usul]]

Did you try without using Freepops ?

What size or your folders do they exceed our size limit (2 or 4 gib depending on the OS) ?

Was your popstate.dat file ever corrupted ?

Comment 2

[Eric]

> Did you try without using Freepops ?


I  can't  access  the Yahoo free web email accounts (I have 3 of them)
without  Freepops  using  Thunderbird.  The  Bat  works  with Freepops
without problem. The IMAP gmail accounts work fine with Thunderbird.



> What size or your folders do they exceed our size limit (2 or 4 gib depending
> on the OS) ?


The  total  size  of the application data/thunderbird folder is 15.9MB
(win XP pro)

> Was your popstate.dat file ever corrupted ?

Not  to  my  knowledge, but I deleted it for one of the accounts as an
experiment  and  it  made  no  difference.  It  would  be  a  bit of a
coincidence  if  popstate.dat managed to get corrupted for all 3 yahoo
accounts though wouldn't it?

Eric

Comment 3

[Ludovic Hirlimann [:Usul]]

(In reply to comment #2)
> > Did you try without using Freepops ?
> 
> 
> I  can't  access  the Yahoo free web email accounts (I have 3 of them)
> without  Freepops  using  Thunderbird.  The  Bat  works  with Freepops
> without problem. The IMAP gmail accounts work fine with Thunderbird.
> 

Why can't you ?

Comment 4

[Eric]

Because with free Yahoo accounts there is no access to POP3, IMAP or SMTP servers, access is only via the web interface, unless you can tell me Thunderbird has the functionality of Freepops built in?

I have tried setting up test accounts with Thunderbird to access my existing Yahoo accounts and it is unable to connect, no matter what configuration it tried. It attempts to set up POP and SMTP servers for Yahoo, and as explained above, that will not work, that's why Freepops and other similar programs exist.

If you can tell me a way to get Thunderbird to access Yahoo web mail without POP3 or IMAP server access (I use my ISP's SMTP server to send), I would be very pleased to learn how.

Comment 5

[Eric]

PS.

If there was some way to send you a file attachment, I could send you some screenshots of inboxes showing the duplications....

The account I mentioned earlier from which I can delete a message and it comes back within minutes, currently has 14 copies of the same email which refuses to stay deleted!

Comment 6

[Joshua Cranmer [:jcranmer]]

(In reply to comment #4)
> Because with free Yahoo accounts there is no access to POP3, IMAP or SMTP
> servers, access is only via the web interface, unless you can tell me
> Thunderbird has the functionality of Freepops built in?

<http://webmail.mozdev.org/> ?

(In reply to comment #5)
> If there was some way to send you a file attachment, I could send you some
> screenshots of inboxes showing the duplications....

Upload attachment feature on bugzilla?

Comment 7

[Eric]

Attachment: Screenshot of duplication of email downloads Thunderbird/Freepops

To accompany the previous discussion on this error.

Comment 8

[Eric]

(In reply to comment #6)
> (In reply to comment #4)
> > Because with free Yahoo accounts there is no access to POP3, IMAP or SMTP
> > servers, access is only via the web interface, unless you can tell me
> > Thunderbird has the functionality of Freepops built in?
> 
> <http://webmail.mozdev.org/> ?
> 
> (In reply to comment #5)
> > If there was some way to send you a file attachment, I could send you some
> > screenshots of inboxes showing the duplications....
> 
> Upload attachment feature on bugzilla?

Another bug with Bugzilla? I just typed in a reply to the above, went to the attachment feature, attached a file and returned to find the reply was cleared!!!

What I tried to say was that I had previously searched addons for "web email" and it produced no results, perhaps there need to be some more tags....

That aside, I have sent an attachment of a screenshot of the typical email duplications with Thunderbird/Freepops. You may or may not be interested in pursuing this error (The Bat doesn't do this, suggesting there is some problem with Thunderbird). I have now installed and tested webmail and it seems OK and no duplication problem (other than the initial download of all messages again, which was to be expected), so I am looking forward to being able to switch back to Thunderbird.

Thanks for all the help, keep up the good work, it's much appreciated.

Eric.

Comment 9

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

Eric, please consider the following (per developer) ...

"that's probably a problem with the uidl, or if leave on server not set, a problem deleting the pop3 message from the server, or whatever is pretending to be the server." or a program (firewall, etc) "getting in between us and the real pop server"

Comment 10

[Eric]

I use webmail now with Thunderbird and don't leave messages on the server, and I don't have a problem, though I haven't tried leaving messages on the serer.... I might try it just to see, but if you still want to investigate, this was the situation:

1. I was leaving mail on the server (web email accounts at Yahoo)

2. I was using Freepops with Thunderbird and The Bat to access my Yahoo webmail accounts

3. Thunderbird would repeatedly download messages it had previously downloaded BUT The Bat didn't. It made no difference whether the message was still in Thunderbird and The Bat or had been deleted

4. It appeared Thunderbird was not keeping track of message IDs or whatever would be used to keep track of whether a message had already been downloaded, even if it was still on the server and had been deleted from Thunderbird already

5. If I deleted a message in Thunderbird or The Bat, it would re-appear in Thunderbird the next time mail was checked, but not in The Bat

I think the different behavior of the 2 clients suggests there is some problem with Thunderbird, but as I mentioned, I now use webmail and delete messages from the server and don't get duplicates, but not tried leaving messages on the server (yet).

Eric.

Comment 11

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

developer thinks this may be a server.
if you should revisit using thunderbird, please obtain a pop3 log and attach it to the bug. https://wiki.mozilla.org/MailNews:Logging

Comment 12

[Roland Tanglao needinfo please :rolandtanglao, :mohnkuchen, :adobo, :sinigang, :roland]

perhaps this thread might help:
http://freepops.diludovico.it/showthread.php?t=7821
QUOTE
"I am not going to fix the current version of yahoo.lua. I am close to releasing a complete rewrite of the yahoo plugin."
END QUOTE

also this thread:
http://freepops.diludovico.it/showthread.php?t=8520
QUOTE:
Apparently the Freepops updater doesn't update the LUA_UPDATES folder.
END QUOTE

Eric aka "original poster" perhaps you are using an outdated version of the ypops Yahoo plugin? Perhaps there is a bug in the ypops Yahoo plugin? I would file a support request on the freepops if the above doesn't help. 

Mozilla doesn't support 3rd party plug-ins and 3rd party standalone programs like freepops so always best to file a support request at the 3rd party site first.