792409 - Changing IMAP server name loses folder subscriptions

Status: NEW

(Thunderbird :: Account Manager, defect)

Description

[Boris Zbarsky [:bzbarsky]]

Steps to reproduce:

1)  Get your IMAP mail migrated to a different hostname (in this case, from a Cyrus IMAP server to an Exchange server).

2)  Go into account settings and change the hostname for the IMAP server to imap.exchange.whatever

3)  Observe all the subfolders of Inbox disappear, panic.

ACTUAL RESULTS: Have to spend a few hours figuring out that I have to resubscribe to all the folders.

EXPECTED RESULTS: Preserve existing folder subscriptions.

Comment 1

[:aceman]

It is probably because TB thinks a change in hostname means a different server so there is no need to preserve old stuff.
Similar stuff happens if a POP3 hostname changes and TB resets the list of already downloaded messages, so if the server is actually the same, the messages on the server are redownloaded again.

This would probably need to ask the user if the new hostname really is a different server.

But there is no code in the Account manager UI that causes the resetting of folder subscriptions. This must be deeper in the backend.