nnimap: Checking mailbox %s vs. Updating info for %s

nnimap: Checking mailbox %s vs. Updating info for %s

[Chris Brierley]

Is anyone else noticing problems with nnimap in Gnus v5.8.3 with
regard to speed in getting mail?  I've seen people post about
speed problems when Gnus gets into a state where it displays
"Updating info for %s" when getting mail rather than "Checking
mailbox %s" which is much faster.  I remember a discussion about
select methods and this being fixed in v5.8.3.

However, I've got a reproducable instance where it is still
happening.  I get mail over IMAP from three different servers, two
in gnus-secondary-select-methods and one foreign group (included
at bottom).  I find that if I move or copy mail from one server to
another, from then on that other server displays "Updating info
for %s" when retrieving mail, and is much slower than the others
which still display "Checking mailbox %s".  I wind up having to
quit and restart Gnus in order to speed things back up.  This does
not happen when moving or copying mail to a different group on the
same server.

Does anyone know what causes this and/or how to avoid it?

Thanks much!

,-----[ From gnus-secondary-select-methods
|         (nnimap "personal"
|                 (nnimap-address "localhost")
|                 (nnimap-server-port 10143)
|                 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*"))
|                 )
|         (nnimap "ct"
|                 (nnimap-address "localhost")
|                 (nnimap-server-port 8143)
|                 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*"))
|                 )
`-----

,-----[ Foreign group
| (nnimap "lbri"
|         (nnimap-address "localhost"))
`-----

Re: nnimap: Checking mailbox %s vs. Updating info for %s

[Kai Großjohann]

Chris Brierley <brierley@pobox.com> writes:

> [...]  I find that if I move or copy mail from one server to
> another, from then on that other server displays "Updating info for
> %s" when retrieving mail, and is much slower than the others which
> still display "Checking mailbox %s". [...]

Just a stab in the dark: do you use TAB completion to enter your group
names, or do you just enter what you think is right?

kai
-- 
~/.signature: No such file or directory

Re: nnimap: Checking mailbox %s vs. Updating info for %s

[Chris Brierley]

On 2000-02-04, Kai.Grossjohann@CS.Uni-Dortmund.DE (Kai Großjohann) wrote:
> Chris Brierley <brierley@pobox.com> writes:
> 
> Just a stab in the dark: do you use TAB completion to enter your
> group names, or do you just enter what you think is right?

Both, I guess.  Usually TAB completion.  Why do you think it
matters?

Oh!  I forgot something important!  Whenever this happens, after
the fact, I notice that there is an additional server in my
*Server* buffer, a copy of the server I'm having problems with.
I.e. I'll suddenly have two:

  {nnimap:personal} (opened)

... entries instead of just one (the normal).

Re: nnimap: Checking mailbox %s vs. Updating info for %s

[Kai Großjohann]

Chris Brierley <brierley@pobox.com> writes:

> On 2000-02-04, Kai.Grossjohann@CS.Uni-Dortmund.DE (Kai Großjohann) wrote:
> > Chris Brierley <brierley@pobox.com> writes:
> > 
> > Just a stab in the dark: do you use TAB completion to enter your
> > group names, or do you just enter what you think is right?
> 
> Both, I guess.  Usually TAB completion.  Why do you think it
> matters?

nnimap is wont to create servers for groups where it doesn't recognize
any known servers, and it's got to do `updating info for...' rather
than `checking mailbox...' in this case.  So maybe you were typing
something slightly different, and nnimap created a new server.

But as it turned out, you were typing something not different at all,
yet nnimap created the new server anyway!  I think that this is a
bug.  But I don't have two IMAP server, so I can't reproduce it.

Could you create a new account and try to set up nnimap for that
account and find the minimal config which will cause problems?  This
could help Simon to find the problem.  Also, be sure to use the newest
Gnus (5.8.3?) for this, but I think you're already using that.

kai
-- 
~/.signature: No such file or directory

Re: nnimap: Checking mailbox %s vs. Updating info for %s

[Chris Brierley]

So, I finally got some time to find the least configuration that
will cause this problem (bug?) to appear.  To re-cap, when I move
a mail message from one IMAP server to another, from then on the
IMAP server I moved the mail to shows "Updating info for %s" when
I get mail rather than the much faster "Checking mailbox %s"
(which my other IMAP servers still show).  Here's how to reproduce
it (obviously you need access to two IMAP servers):

* Remove your .newsrc.eld, .gnus.el, and .emacs files.

* Make this your .emacs, changing as appropriate for your servers:

,-----
| ;; This is where I keep Gnus 5.8.3.  
| (add-to-list 'load-path (expand-file-name "~/lib/lisp/gnus/lisp"))
| ;; Set up primary select method even though we won't use it in our example.  
| ;; Change this for your news server
| (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.domain.com"))
| ;; I apparently need this for my news server since it requires
| ;; authentication.  You may be able to take it out.
| (add-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-authinfo)
| (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
|       '(
|         (nnimap "personal"
|                 ;; Change this for an IMAP server  
|                 (nnimap-address "personal.com")
|                 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*"))
|                 )
|         (nnimap "work"
|                 ;; Change this for another IMAP server
|                 (nnimap-address "work.com")
|                 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*"))
|                 )
|         ))
`-----

Follow these steps:
-------------------  
* Fire up gnus.

* Go to the *Server* buffer, take note of what servers are listed.

* List the folders in each of the two IMAP servers and subscribe a
  bunch (you need a number subscribed so that you have enough time
  to see the status messages, I subscribe to all of mine).

* Go back to the *Group* buffer and enter a folder on one server,
  gnus-summary-move-article a message (B m) to a folder on the
  other server.  * Note here that gnus-dup gets loaded!  Perhaps
  that's where the problem lies?

* Go to the *Server* buffer again and see that there is an extra
  entry for the server to which you moved the mail message.

* Go back to the *Group* buffer and do a gnus-group-get-new-news.
  Here is the problem: all the updates for one server show
  "Checking mailbox %s", all the updates for the other server (the
  one to which you moved the mail) show "Updating info for %s".

Re: nnimap: Checking mailbox %s vs. Updating info for %s

[Simon Josefsson]

Chris Brierley <brierley@pobox.com> writes:

> So, I finally got some time to find the least configuration that
> will cause this problem (bug?) to appear.

Thank you for you detailed bug report. Could you try this patch? It
does solve your problem for me, but you never know what other problems
it might generate.

2000-03-01  Simon Josefsson  <jas@pdc.kth.se>

	* gnus-sum.el (gnus-read-move-group-name): 
	(gnus-summary-move-article): Use `gnus-group-method' to find out
	what method the manually entered group belong to.
	`gnus-group-name-to-method' doesn't return any method parameters
	and `gnus-find-method-for-group' uses `gnus-group-name-to-method'
	for new groups so they wouldn't work.

Index: lisp/gnus-sum.el
===================================================================
RCS file: /usr/local/cvsroot/gnus/lisp/gnus-sum.el,v
retrieving revision 5.97
diff -w -u -r5.97 gnus-sum.el
--- lisp/gnus-sum.el	2000/02/03 16:28:49	5.97
+++ lisp/gnus-sum.el	2000/03/01 19:45:52
@@ -7322,7 +7322,7 @@
 	     articles prefix))
       (set (intern (format "gnus-current-%s-group" action)) to-newsgroup))
     (setq to-method (or select-method
-			(gnus-group-name-to-method to-newsgroup)))
+			(gnus-group-method to-newsgroup)))
     ;; Check the method we are to move this article to...
     (unless (gnus-check-backend-function
 	     'request-accept-article (car to-method))
@@ -9027,14 +9027,15 @@
       (unless to-newsgroup
 	(error "No group name entered"))
       (or (gnus-active to-newsgroup)
-	  (gnus-activate-group to-newsgroup)
+	  (gnus-activate-group to-newsgroup nil nil
+			       (gnus-group-method to-newsgroup))
 	  (if (gnus-y-or-n-p (format "No such group: %s.  Create it? "
 				     to-newsgroup))
 	      (or (and (gnus-request-create-group
-			to-newsgroup (gnus-group-name-to-method to-newsgroup))
+			to-newsgroup (gnus-group-method to-newsgroup))
 		       (gnus-activate-group
 			to-newsgroup nil nil
-			(gnus-group-name-to-method to-newsgroup))
+			(gnus-group-method to-newsgroup))
 		       (gnus-subscribe-group to-newsgroup))
 		  (error "Couldn't create group %s" to-newsgroup)))
 	  (error "No such group: %s" to-newsgroup)))

Re: nnimap: Checking mailbox %s vs. Updating info for %s

[Chris Brierley]

This patch appears to have solved the problem!  I've happily
moved a couple of messages back and forth between three servers
several times with no problem.

Thanks very much!  I'll keep you updated if I see anything new
that could be a result of the patch.