695629 - old update files exist even when there is newer update already performed by another user

Status: RESOLVED DUPLICATE of bug 353804

(Toolkit :: Application Update, defect)

Description

[hannu.nyman]

Thunderbird 6.0.2 in a Windows Vista PC. Release channel.

I was logged in with an admin account. I used the Help/About to get the update check done. Thunderbird properly updated to 7.0.1. 

I logged out, and then back in with a normal user account without admin rights. UAC is enabled for both users, and the normal user is able to install programs after entering admin credentials, if prompted.

To my surprise, I noticed that going to Help/About showed me with 7.0.1 but also showed me the "Apply Update" button. Pressing it caused Tb to restart, but no visible update progress action happened. Instead, Tb restarted quickly.

Help/About again showed me to be in 7.0.1, but still the "Apply update" button there. I went through the cycle a few times, but no change in the situation.

When looking into the matter, I found about 100 patch files from October 2010 in the updates (or updates/0) directory. I deleted the whole updates directory from the normal users Windows profile, and the "Apply update" disappeared. (I didn't save the log files, which is bad from debugging perspective.)

Probably the normal user has loaded the update files earlier, but they have never been applied before logging off. After the other user (admin) had already applied the same/newer updates, the files there could not be applied.

This is possibly related to bug 535514, as the steps to reproduce scenario matches my experience: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=535514

Also bug 353804 seems to be about somewhat similar stuff: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=353804

My guess is that for some reason the update system is not properly checking the version of the existing files in the update directory before showing the "apply update" button. It should probably first examine the updates directory and delete unrecognized files & update files to an older version, before showing the "apply update" button or doing the check for newer updates.  

(Main logic: If you are already running 7.0.1 and AUS is not offering anything newer, the possible old patch files should be determined to be unnecessary and deleted.)

This happened with Thunderbird, but as the update system is same in Firefox, I guess that this could happen also in Firefox.

Comment 1

[Robert Strong (they/them - no direct email)]

changed summary to represent the problem