[ale] Issue with Maildir

[Michael B. Trausch]

On 01/18/2013 03:03 PM, Chuck Payne wrote:
> I having issue with my mail server, I am having issues where I can't
> access my folder, I am using courier with Maildir, I have looked and I
> am getting messages, but I when I use Thunderbird or K-9 I get time
> out. I have jacked the time out to 5 mins and still no luck, I have
> notice that the new directory has 3500 messages in it.
> 
> Is there a program to fix the Maildir?

Hrm.

A maildir is just a certain layout for messages within folders.  What it
sounds to me like you have is perhaps a problem with the Courier indexes
on that maildir.

Without the indexes, or if the indexes are present but corrupt, the mail
dæmon will have to open each of the 3,500 messages in the folder in
order to read the headers and subsequently close them.  Depending on how
much seeking is involved and how large the headers of any given message
are, and how efficient the server software is, this shouldn't take more
than 10 minutes.  However, add load and it can easily take 1 second to
open, read and close a message, meaning that it could take as long as
just under an hour.

I would try to rebuild the indexes.  (Backup the maildir first, delete
the indexes, and command the mail system to rebuild them for you.)  You
may lose certain metadata, such as tags or flags, meaning also that if
there were 3,500 messages in the folder, but 2,000 of them were marked
deleted but never expunged, that those previously-deleted messages will
appear to have been resurrected.

If that doesn't help, we can go from there.

	--- Mike