873082 - Thunderbird doesn't check for new mail on startup for new account

Status: RESOLVED WORKSFORME

(Thunderbird :: Account Manager, defect)

Description

[Sebastian Hengst [:aryx] (needinfo me if it's about an intermittent or backout)]

Thunderbird 17.0.5 and 17.0.6 on Windows XP SP3 32 bit

I added a new existing account via the account wizard, but failed to succeed to add an account before (forgot the password). Now this need account doesn't get checked on startup despite the settings for this. Manually checking the account works (and it continues to check in intervals, it seems)

Differences between accounts being checked on startup and not (equal settings removed):

Checked on startup:
user_pref("mail.server.server13.ageLimit", 30);
user_pref("mail.server.server13.daysToKeepBodies", 30);
user_pref("mail.server.server13.daysToKeepHdrs", 30);
user_pref("mail.server.server13.defer_get_new_mail", true);
user_pref("mail.server.server13.directory", "Path_To_profile\\Mail\\email1 at gmx.net");
user_pref("mail.server.server13.directory-rel", "[ProfD]Mail/email1 at gmx.net");
user_pref("mail.server.server13.isSecure", true);
user_pref("mail.server.server13.manualMark", true);
user_pref("mail.server.server13.moveOnSpam", true);
user_pref("mail.server.server13.name", "[e-mail]");
user_pref("mail.server.server13.numHdrsToKeep", 30);
user_pref("mail.server.server13.serverFilterName", "SpamAssassin");
user_pref("mail.server.server13.spamActionTargetFolder", "mailbox://nobody@Local%20Folders/Abfall");
user_pref("mail.server.server13.userName", "[e-mail]");

This doesn't get checked on startup:
user_pref("mail.server.server15.ageLimit", 1);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.applyToFlaggedMessages", false);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.cleanupBodies", false);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.daysToKeepBodies", 1);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.daysToKeepHdrs", 1);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.directory", "Path_To_Profile\\Mail\\pop.gmx-1.net");
user_pref("mail.server.server15.directory-rel", "[ProfD]Mail/pop.gmx-1.net");
user_pref("mail.server.server15.downloadByDate", false);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.downloadUnreadOnly", false);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.keepUnreadOnly", false);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.name", "[e-mail]");
user_pref("mail.server.server15.numHdrsToKeep", 2000);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.num_days_to_leave_on_server", 14);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.spamActionTargetFolder", "mailbox://nobody@Local%20Folders/Junk");
user_pref("mail.server.server15.useWhiteList", false);
user_pref("mail.server.server15.userName", "[e-mail]");

While checking the prefs.js for strange settings, I found this:

user_pref("mail.account.account28.identities", "id9");
user_pref("mail.account.account28.server", "server15");
user_pref("mail.account.account29.identities", "id16");
user_pref("mail.account.account29.server", "server15");
user_pref("mail.account.account30.identities", "id16");
user_pref("mail.account.account30.server", "server15");

Oddity 1: id9 belongs to a totally different account.
Oddity 2: 3 accounts map to server15

Removing the accounts 29 and 30 and changing the id for account28 to id16 doesn't fix the issue.

Comment 1

[Sebastian Hengst [:aryx] (needinfo me if it's about an intermittent or backout)]

Calling MsgGetMessagesForAllServers throws this:

[Exception... "Component returned failure code: 0x804b0010 (NS_ERROR_OFFLINE) [n
sIPop3IncomingServer.downloadMailFromServers]"  nsresult: "0x804b0010 (NS_ERROR_
OFFLINE)"  location: "JS frame :: chrome://messenger/content/mailWindowOverlay.j
s :: MsgGetMessagesForAllServers :: line 1432"  data: no]

But Thunderbird is online and checks the other accounts.

accountManager.allServers seems to be empty.

Comment 2

[WADA:World Anti-bad-Duping Agency]

> (snip) account doesn't get checked on startup (snip)
> Manually checking the account works (and it continues to check in intervals, it seems)

Newly account only issue?
For other accounts, does "check for new messages upon startup" work as expected?

First, please rule out problem of bug 780124 comment #1 and bug 780124 comment #2. (because equal settings removed, I don't think this case.)
Second, please rule out problem of bug 881114 which is relevant to default account setting.

> Oddity 2: 3 accounts map to server15

How did you define accounts in Tb? Bug 303542? Did you manually modify account related prefs.js entries by Text Editor or Config Editor of Tb?

Anyway, check following prefs.js entries.
- mail.accountmanager.accounts
  mail.accountmanager.defaultaccount
  mail.accountmanager.localfoldersserver
- mail.account.accountN.server
- mail.server.serverX.??? where ??? is:
   type, hostname, realhostname, userName, realuserName, directory-rel
Same directory-rel is used by multiple serverX entries?
Same type+hostname+userName exists?

Comment 3

[Sebastian Hengst [:aryx] (needinfo me if it's about an intermittent or backout)]

(In reply to WADA from comment #2)
> First, please rule out problem of bug 780124 comment #1 and bug 780124
> comment #2.
SMTP errors? Unrelated to this bug.

> Second, please rule out problem of bug 881114 which is relevant to default
> account setting.
(a) defaultaccount = Local Folders,
(b) Local Folders doesn't have folder of "SpecialUse flag=Inbox",
None of these conditions is true for this setup

> > Oddity 2: 3 accounts map to server15
> 
> How did you define accounts in Tb? Bug 303542?
New [existing] account wizard. Hadn't the account in TB before, so not bug 303542.

> Did you manually modify
> account related prefs.js entries by Text Editor or Config Editor of Tb?
I did that after filing the bug in the hope to fix that issue (but didn't succeed).

> Same directory-rel is used by multiple serverX entries?
No.
> Same type+hostname+userName exists?
No. (Found an account where userName was different than realUserName, but that account has worked flawlessly for ages.)

I dug into the code which initializes the fetching of new mail in MsgGetMessagesForAllServers in mailWindowOverlay.js and dumped and diffed the elements of pop3DownloadServersArray. The problem existed because in the account manager's server settings pane in the dialog of the 'Advanced' button at the bottom, the messages got deferred to the Local Folders, but including the account into checking for new mails at startup had been unchecked.

So the question is now:
Shouldn't the checkbox in the server settings have a higher importance than the one in the Advanced tab? That sound logically to me and prevents broken UI like in this bug.

Comment 4

[WADA:World Anti-bad-Duping Agency]

(In reply to Archaeopteryx [:aryx] from comment #3)

You did following?
  At Server Settings, Advanced,
    you checked other than "Inbox for this servers account",
    and you didn't check "Include this server when getting new mail".

> (In reply to WADA from comment #2)
> > First, please rule out problem of bug 780124 comment #1 and bug 780124
> > comment #2.
> SMTP errors? Unrelated to this bug.

Sorry, wrong bug. 
bug 854098 comment #1 and 854098 comment #2, which is question about "automatically download messages".
If this is not checked, RETR is not issued when POP3 and new mail alert is not shown. So, external phenomenon for user is "new mail check is never execued" by both "check for new messages at start up" and "check new essages every NN miutes". 
Note: "Check for new messages ..." is for login and "STAT"(if supported) or LIST/UIDL for existence check of new mail when POP3 account.

> (a) defaultaccount = Local Folders,
> (b) Local Folders doesn't have folder of "SpecialUse flag=Inbox",
> None of these conditions is true for this setup

Please understand that bug well.
Problem of that bug can occur too if RSS account or News account is set as default account and RSS or News doen't have Inbox.
("List up all conditions in bug" make bug messy and bug reading hard, so typical case only is explained.)
So, to surely rule out that bug, answer like "default account is actually POP3 account or IMAP which has Inbox" like one is needed, but your answer is always "default account is not Local Folders"... :-)

Comment 5

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

What do you think of comment 3 regarding checkboxes?

Comment 6

[Joe Sabash [:JoeS1]]

(In reply to Wayne Mery (:wsmwk, use Needinfo for questions) from comment #5)
> What do you think of comment 3 regarding checkboxes?

So the question is now:
Shouldn't the checkbox in the server settings have a higher importance than the one in the Advanced tab? That sound logically to me and prevents broken UI like in this bug.

Well, advanced really does presume the used really knows what he is doing.But Yes, I think the checkbox should take precedence.

Comment 7

[:aceman]

So to summarize, you had "check for new messages at startup" checked for this new account.
Then in Advanced server options you had this Inbox deferred to other account (Local folders), but the "include this server when getting new mail" is unchecked? And this second option takes precedence so no mail is fetched for the account? Is that the bug? Did that get unchecked automatically?

Comment 8

[Sebastian Hengst [:aryx] (needinfo me if it's about an intermittent or backout)]

I don't remember anymore the details

(In reply to :aceman from comment #7)
> So to summarize, you had "check for new messages at startup" checked for
> this new account.
Yes (didn't touch the option).

> Then in Advanced server options you had this Inbox deferred to other account
> (Local folders), but the "include this server when getting new mail" is
> unchecked?
According to the comments in this bug: yes.

> And this second option takes precedence so no mail is fetched for
> the account? Is that the bug? Did that get unchecked automatically?
Yes and yes (as far as I remember).

Comment 9

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

Surely this and bug 906326 no longer happen?

Comment 10

[Dan Pernokis]

I've added several new accounts over the years and never had any not work.

Comment 11

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

Thanks Dan