2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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2002-07-16 01:50:52 +02:00
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.TH OFFLINEIMAP 1 "July 12, 2002" "John Goerzen" "OfflineIMAP manual"
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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.\" Please adjust this date whenever revising the manpage.
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.\" for manpage-specific macros, see man(7)
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.SH NAME
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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OfflineIMAP \- Powerful IMAP/Maildir synchronization and reader support
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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.SH SYNOPSIS
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.B offlineimap
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[
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.BI \-1
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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]
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[
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2002-07-23 03:48:15 +02:00
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.BI \-P \ profiledir
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]
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[
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.BI \-a \ accountlist
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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]
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[
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.BI \-c \ configfile
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]
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2002-07-23 03:48:15 +02:00
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.\".br
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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[
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2002-08-08 22:03:36 +02:00
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.BI \-d \ debugtype[,debugtype...]
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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]
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[
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2002-07-16 01:50:52 +02:00
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.BI \-o
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]
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[
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.BI \-u " interface"
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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]
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.\".RI [ -c \ foo ]
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.\".RI [ options ] " files" ...
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.br
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.B offlineimap
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.B \-h
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.B \-\-help
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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.\".RI [ options ] " files" ...
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.SH DESCRIPTION
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.B OfflineIMAP
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is a tool to simplify your e-mail reading. With
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.B OfflineIMAP,
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you can read the same mailbox from multiple computers. You get a
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current copy of your messages on each computer, and changes you make
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one place will be visible on all other systems. For instance, you can
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delete a message on your home computer, and it will appear deleted on
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your work computer as well.
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.B OfflineIMAP
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is also useful if you want to use a mail reader that does not have
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IMAP support, has poor IMAP support, or does not provide disconnected
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operation.
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.PP
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.B OfflineIMAP
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is
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.I FAST;
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it synchronizes my two accounts with over 50 folders in 3 seconds.
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Other similar tools might take over a minute, and achieve a
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less-reliable result. Some mail readers can take over 10 minutes to
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do the same thing, and some don't even support it at all. Unlike
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other mail tools,
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.B OfflineIMAP
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features a multi-threaded synchronization algorithm that can
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dramatically speed up performance in many situations by synchronizing
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several different things simultaneously.
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.PP
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.B OfflineIMAP
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is
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.I FLEXIBLE;
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you can customize which folders are synced via regular expressions, lists, or
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Python expressions; a versatile and comprehensive configuration file
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is used to control behavior; two user interfaces are built-in;
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fine-tuning of synchronization performance is possible; internal or
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external automation is supported; SSL and PREAUTH tunnels are both
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supported; offline (or "unplugged") reading is supported; and
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esoteric IMAP features are supported to ensure compatibility with the
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widest variety of IMAP servers.
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.PP
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.B OfflineIMAP
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is
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.I SAFE;
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it uses an algorithm designed to prevent mail loss at all costs.
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Because of the design of this algorithm, even programming errors
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should not result in loss of mail. I am so confident in the algorithm
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that I use my own personal and work accounts for testing of
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.B OfflineIMAP
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pre-release, development, and beta releases.
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.SS "METHOD OF OPERATION"
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.B OfflineIMAP
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operates by maintaining a hierarchy of mail folders in Maildir format
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locally. Your own mail reader will read mail from this tree, and need
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never know that the mail comes from IMAP.
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.B OfflineIMAP
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will detect changes to the mail folders on your IMAP server and your
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own computer and bi-directionally synchronize them, copying, marking,
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and deleting messages as necessary.
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.SH INSTALLATION
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If you are reading this document via the "man" command, it is likely
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that you have no installation tasks to perform; your system
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administrator has already installed it. If you need to install it
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yourself, you have three options: a system-wide installation with
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Debian, system-wide installation with other systems, and a single-user
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installation. You can download the latest version of OfflineIMAP from
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.UR http://quux.org/devel/offlineimap/
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http://quux.org/devel/offlineimap/.
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.UE
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.SS PREREQUISITES
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In order to use OfflineIMAP, you need to have these conditions
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satisfied:
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.IP \(bu
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Your mail server must support IMAP. Most Internet Service Providers
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and corporate networks do, and most operating systems have an IMAP
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implementation readily available.
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.IP \(bu
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You must have Python version 2.2.1 or above installed. If you are
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running on Debian GNU/Linux, this requirement will automatically be
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taken care of for you. If you do not have Python already, check with
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your system administrator or operating system vendor; or, download it
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from
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.UR http://www.python.org/
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http://www.python.org/.
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.UE
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If you intend to use the Tk interface, you must have Tkiner
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(python-tk) installed. If you intend to use the SSL interface, your
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Python must have been built with SSL support.
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.IP \(bu
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Have a mail reader that supports the Maildir mailbox format. Most
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modern mail readers have this support built-in, so you can choose from
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a wide variety of mail servers. This format is also known as the
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"qmail" format, so any mail reader compatible with it will work with
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OfflineIMAP.
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.SS DEBIAN SYSTEM-WIDE INSTALLATION
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If you are tracking Debian unstable, you may install
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.B OfflineIMAP
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by simply running the following command as root:
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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.PP
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.B apt-get install offlineimap
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.PP
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If you are not tracking Debian unstable, download the Debian .deb
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package from the OfflineIMAP website
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and then run
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.B dpkg -i
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to install the downloaded package. Then, go to CONFIGURATION below.
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You will type
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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.B offlineimap
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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to invoke the program.
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.SS OTHER SYSTEM-WIDE INSTALLATION
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Download the tar.gz version of the package from the website. Then run
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these commands:
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.PP
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.B tar -zxvf offlineimap-x.y.z.tar.gz
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.br
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.B cd offlineimap-x.y.z
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.br
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.B python2.2 setup.py
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.PP
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Some systems will need to use
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.B python
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instead of
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.B python2.2.
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Next, proceed to configuration. You will type
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.B offlineimap
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to invoke the program.
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.SS SINGLE-ACCOUNT INSTALLATION
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Download the tar.gz version of the package from the website. Then run
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these commands:
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.PP
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.B tar -zxvf offlineimap-x.y.z.tar.gz
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.br
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.B cd offlineimap-x.y.z
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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.PP
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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When you want to run
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.B OfflineIMAP,
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you will issue the
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.B cd
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command as above and then type
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.B ./offlineimap;
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there is no installation step necessary.
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.\"##################################################
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.SH CONFIGURATION
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.B OfflineIMAP
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is regulated by a configuration file that is normally stored in
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.I ~/.offlineimaprc.
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.B OfflineIMAP
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ships with a file named
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.I offlineimap.conf
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that you should copy to that location and then edit. This file is
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vital to proper operation of the system; it sets everything you need
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to run
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.B OfflineIMAP.
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Full documentation for the configuration file is included within the
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sample file.
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.\"##################################################
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.\" TeX users may be more comfortable with the \fB<whatever>\fP and
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.\" \fI<whatever>\fP escape sequences to invode bold face and italics,
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.\" respectively.
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.\"\fBofflineimap\fP is a program that...
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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.SH OPTIONS
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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Most configuration is done via the configuration file. Nevertheless,
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there are a few options that you may set for
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.B OfflineIMAP.
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.TP
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.B \-1
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Disable all multithreading operations and use solely a single-thread
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sync. This effectively sets the
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.B maxsyncaccounts
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and all
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.B maxconnections
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configuration file variables to 1.
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2002-07-23 03:48:15 +02:00
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.TP
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.BI \-P \ profiledir
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Sets
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.B OfflineIMAP
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into profile mode. The program will create
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.B profiledir
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(it must not already exist). As it runs, Python profiling information
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about each thread is logged into profiledir. Please note: This option
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is present for debugging and optimization only, and should NOT be used
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unless you have a specific reason to do so. It will significantly
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slow program performance, may reduce reliability, and can generate
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huge amounts of data. You must use the
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.B \-1
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option when you use
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.B -P.
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.TP
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.BI \-a \ accountlist
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Overrides the
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.B accounts
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section in the config file. Lets you specify a particular account or
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set of accounts to sync without having to edit the config file. You
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might use this to exclude certain accounts, or to sync some accounts
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that you normally prefer not to.
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.TP
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.BI \-c \ configfile
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Specifies a configuration file to use in lieu of the default,
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.I ~/.offlineimaprc.
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.TP
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2002-08-08 22:03:36 +02:00
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.BI \-d \ debugtype[,debugtype...]
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Enables debugging for OfflineIMAP. This is useful if
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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you are trying to track down a malfunction or figure out what is going
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on under the hood. I suggest that you use this with
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.BI \-1
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2002-08-08 22:03:36 +02:00
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in order to make the results more sensible.
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.IP
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-d now requires one or more debugtypes, separated by commas. These
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define what exactly will be debugged, and so far include two options:
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.B imap
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and
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.B maildir.
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The
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.B imap
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option will enable IMAP protocol stream and parsing debugging. Note
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that the output may contain passwords, so take care to remove that
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from the debugging output before sending it to anyone else. The
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.B maildir
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option will enable debugging for certain Maildir operations.
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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.TP
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2002-07-16 01:50:52 +02:00
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.B \-o
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Run only once, ignoring any autorefresh setting in the config file.
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.TP
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2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
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.B \-h, \-\-help
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Show summary of options.
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.TP
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2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.BI \-u \ interface
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Specifies an alternative user interface module to use. This overrides
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the default specified in the configuration file. The UI specified
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with
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.B -u
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will be forced to be used, even if its
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.B isuable()
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method states that it cannot be. Use this option with care.
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2002-07-25 01:13:09 +02:00
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The pre-defined options are listed in the USER INTERFACES section.
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.SH USER INTERFACES
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.B OfflineIMAP
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has a pluggable user interface system that lets you choose how the
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program communicates information to you. There are two graphical
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interfaces, one terminal interface, and two noninteractive interfaces
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suitable for scripting or logging purposes. The
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.I ui
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option in the configuration file specifies the user interface
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preferences. The
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.I \-u
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command-line option can override the configuration file. The
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available values for the configuration file or command-line are
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describef in this section.
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.SS Tk.Blinkenlights
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This is an interface designed to be sleek, fun to watch, and
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informative of the overall picture of what
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.B OfflineIMAP
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is doing. I consider it to be the best general-purpose interface in
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.B OfflineIMAP.
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Tk.Blinkenlights contains, by default, a small window with a row of
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LEDs and a row of command buttons. The total size of the window is
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very small, so it uses little desktop space, yet it is quite
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functional. There is also an optional, toggable, log that shows more
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detail about what is happening and is color-coded to match the color
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of the lights.
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.PP
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Tk.Blinkenlights is the only user interface that has configurable
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parameters; see the example
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.I offlineimap.conf
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for more details.
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.PP
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Each light in the Tk.Blinkenlights interface represents a thread of
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execution -- that is, a particular task that
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.B OfflineIMAP
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is performing right now. The color indicates what task the particular
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thread is performing, and are as follows:
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.TP
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.B Black
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indicates that this light's thread has terminated; it will light up
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again later when new threads start up. So, black indicates no
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activity.
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.TP
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.B Red (Meaning 1)
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is the color of the main program's thread, which basically does
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nothing but monitor the others. It might remind you of HAL 9000 in
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.I 2001.
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.TP
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2002-07-25 20:22:41 +02:00
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.B Gray
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indicates that the thread is establishing a new connection to the IMAP
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server.
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.TP
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2002-07-25 01:13:09 +02:00
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.B Purple
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is the color of an account synchronization thread that is monitoring
|
|
|
|
the progress of the folders in that account (not generating any I/O).
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Cyan
|
|
|
|
indicates that the thread is syncing a folder.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Green
|
|
|
|
means that a folder's message list is being loaded.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Blue
|
|
|
|
is the color of a message synchronization controller thread.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Orange
|
|
|
|
indicates that an actual message is being copied.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Red (Meaning 2)
|
|
|
|
indicates that a message is being deleted.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Yellow
|
|
|
|
(bright orange) indicates that message flags are being added.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Pink
|
|
|
|
(bright red) indicates that message flags are being removed.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Red / Black Flashing
|
|
|
|
corresponds to the countdown timer that runs between synchronizations.
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
The name of this interface derives from a bit of computer science
|
|
|
|
history. Eric Raymond's
|
|
|
|
.I Jargon File
|
|
|
|
defines blinkenlights, in part, as:
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
.RS
|
|
|
|
Front-panel diagnostic
|
|
|
|
lights on a computer, esp. a dinosaur. Now that dinosaurs are rare,
|
|
|
|
this term usually refers to status lights on a modem, network hub, or
|
|
|
|
the like.
|
|
|
|
.P
|
|
|
|
This term derives from the last word of the famous blackletter-Gothic
|
|
|
|
sign in mangled pseudo-German that once graced about half the computer
|
|
|
|
rooms in the English-speaking world. One version ran in its entirety as
|
|
|
|
follows:
|
|
|
|
.P
|
|
|
|
.B ACHTUNG! ALLES LOOKENSPEEPERS!
|
|
|
|
.P
|
|
|
|
Das computermachine ist nicht fuer gefingerpoken und mittengrabben.
|
|
|
|
Ist easy schnappen der springenwerk, blowenfusen und poppencorken
|
|
|
|
mit spitzensparken. Ist nicht fuer gewerken bei das dumpkopfen.
|
|
|
|
Das rubbernecken sichtseeren keepen das cotten-pickenen hans in das
|
|
|
|
pockets muss; relaxen und watchen das blinkenlichten.
|
|
|
|
.SS Tk.VerboseUI
|
|
|
|
This interface (formerly known as Tk.TkUI) is a graphical interface
|
|
|
|
that presents a variable-sized window. In the window, each
|
|
|
|
currently-executing thread has a section where its name and current
|
|
|
|
status are displayed. This interface is best suited to people running
|
|
|
|
on slower connections, as you get a lot of detail, but for fast
|
|
|
|
connections, the detail may go by too quickly to be useful. People
|
|
|
|
with fast connections may wish to use Tk.Blinkenlights instead.
|
|
|
|
.SS TTY.TTYUI
|
|
|
|
This interface is the default for people running in terminals. It
|
|
|
|
prints out basic status messages, has an interruptible timer like the
|
|
|
|
graphical interfaces do, and is generally friendly to use on a console
|
|
|
|
or xterm.
|
|
|
|
.SS Noninteractive.Basic
|
|
|
|
This interface is designed for situations where
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
will be run non-attended and the status of its execution will be
|
|
|
|
logged. You might use it, for instance, to have the system run
|
|
|
|
automatically and
|
|
|
|
e-mail you the results of the synchronization. This user interface
|
|
|
|
is not capable of reading a password from the keyboard; account
|
|
|
|
passwords must be specified using one of the configuration file options.
|
|
|
|
.SS Noninteractive.Quiet
|
|
|
|
This interface is designed for non-attended running in situations
|
|
|
|
where normal status messages are not desired. It will output nothing
|
|
|
|
except errors and serious warnings. Like Noninteractive.Basic,
|
|
|
|
this user interface
|
|
|
|
is not capable of reading a password from the keyboard; account
|
|
|
|
passwords must be specified using one of the configuration file options.
|
2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
|
|
|
.\".TP
|
|
|
|
.\".B \-v, \-\-version
|
|
|
|
.\"Show version of program.
|
|
|
|
.SH EXAMPLES
|
|
|
|
Here is an example configuration for a particularly complex situation;
|
|
|
|
more examples will be added later.
|
|
|
|
.SS MULTIPLE ACCOUNTS WITH MUTT
|
|
|
|
This example shows you how to set up
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
to synchronize multiple accounts with the mutt mail reader.
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
Start by creating a directory to hold your folders:
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B mkdir ~/Mail
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
In your
|
|
|
|
.I ~/.offlineimaprc,
|
|
|
|
specify this:
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B accounts = Personal, Work
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
Make sure that you have both a
|
|
|
|
.B [Personal]
|
|
|
|
and a
|
|
|
|
.B [Work]
|
|
|
|
section, with different localfolder pathnames and enable
|
|
|
|
.B [mbnames].
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
In each account section, do something like this:
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B localfolders = ~/Mail/Personal
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
Add these lines to your
|
|
|
|
.I ~/.muttrc:
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B source ~/path-to-mbnames-muttrc-mailboxes
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B folder-hook Personal set from="youremail@personal.com"
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B folder-hook Work set from="youremail@work.com"
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B set mbox_type=Maildir
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B set folder=$HOME/Mail
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B set spoolfile=+Personal/INBOX
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
That's it!
|
2002-07-22 07:56:21 +02:00
|
|
|
.SS UW-IMAPD AND REFERENCES
|
|
|
|
Some users with a UW-IMAPD server need to use
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP's
|
|
|
|
"reference" feature to get at their mailboxes, specifying a reference
|
|
|
|
of "~/Mail" or "#mh/" depending on the configuration. The below
|
|
|
|
configuration from docwhat@gerf.org
|
|
|
|
shows using a reference of Mail, a nametrans that strips
|
|
|
|
the leading Mail/ off incoming folder names, and a folderfilter that
|
|
|
|
limits the folders synced to just three.
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
.B [Gerf]
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B localfolders = ~/Mail
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B remotehost = gerf.org
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B ssl = yes
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B remoteuser = docwhat
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B reference = Mail
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B # Trims off the preceeding Mail on all the folder names.
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B nametrans = lambda foldername: \\\\
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B " re.sub('^Mail/', '', foldername)"
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B # Yeah, you have to mention the Mail dir, even though it
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B # would seem intuitive that reference would trim it.
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B folderfilter = lambda foldername: foldername in [
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B " 'Mail/INBOX',"
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B " 'Mail/list/zaurus-general',"
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B " 'Mail/list/zaurus-dev',"
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B " ]"
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B maxconnections = 1
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B holdconnectionopen = no
|
2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
|
|
|
.SH ERRORS
|
|
|
|
If you get one of some frequently-encountered or confusing errors,
|
|
|
|
please check this section.
|
|
|
|
.SS UID validity problem for folder
|
|
|
|
IMAP servers use a unique ID (UID) to refer to a specific message.
|
|
|
|
This number is guaranteed to be unique to a particular message
|
|
|
|
FOREVER. No other message in the same folder will ever get the same
|
|
|
|
UID. UIDs are an integral part of OfflineIMAP's synchronization
|
|
|
|
scheme; they are used to match up messages on your computer to
|
|
|
|
messages on the server.
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
Sometimes, the UIDs on the server might get reset. Usually this will
|
|
|
|
happen if you delete and then recreate a folder. When you create a
|
|
|
|
folder, the server will often start the UID back from 1. But
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
might still have the UIDs from the previous folder by the
|
|
|
|
same name stored.
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
will detect this condition and skip the
|
|
|
|
folder. This is GOOD, because it prevents data loss.
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
You can fix it by removing your local folder and cache data. For
|
|
|
|
instance, if your folders are under
|
|
|
|
.I ~/Folders
|
|
|
|
and the folder with the
|
|
|
|
problem is INBOX, you'd type this:
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
.B rm -r ~/Folders/INBOX
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.B rm ~/.offlineimap/AccountName/INBOX
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
(replacing AccountName with the account name as specified in
|
|
|
|
.I ~/.offlineimaprc)
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
Next time you run
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP,
|
|
|
|
it will re-download the folder with the
|
|
|
|
new UIDs. Note that the procedure specified above will lose any local
|
|
|
|
changes made to the folder.
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
Some IMAP servers are broken and do not support UIDs properly. If you
|
|
|
|
continue to get this error for all your folders even after performing
|
|
|
|
the above procedure, it is likely that your IMAP server falls into
|
|
|
|
this category.
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
is incompatible with such servers. Using
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
with them will not destroy any mail, but at the same time,
|
|
|
|
it will not actually synchronize it either. (OfflineIMAP will detect
|
|
|
|
this condition and abort prior to synchronization)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
.SH OTHER FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
|
|
|
|
There are some other FAQs that might not fit into another section of
|
|
|
|
this document, and they are enumerated here.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B What platforms does OfflineIMAP run on?
|
|
|
|
It should run on most platforms supported by Python, which are quite a
|
|
|
|
few.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B I'm using Mutt. Other IMAP sync programs require me to use "set maildir_trash=yes". Do I need to do that with OfflineIMAP?
|
|
|
|
No.
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
is smart enough to figure out message deletion without this extra
|
|
|
|
crutch. You'll get the best results if you don't use this setting, in
|
|
|
|
fact.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B How do I specify the names of my folders?
|
|
|
|
You do not need to.
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
is smart enough to automatically figure out what folders are present
|
|
|
|
on the IMAP server and synchronize them. You can use the
|
|
|
|
.B folderfilter
|
|
|
|
and
|
|
|
|
.B foldertrans
|
|
|
|
configuration file options to request certain folders and rename them
|
|
|
|
as they come in if you like.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B How can I prevent certain folders from being synced?
|
|
|
|
Use the
|
|
|
|
.B folderfilter
|
|
|
|
option in the configuration file.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B How can I add or delete a folder?
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
does not currently provide this feature, but if you create a new
|
|
|
|
folder on the IMAP server, it will be created locally automatically.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Are there any other warnings that I should be aware of?
|
|
|
|
Yes; see the NOTES section below.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B What is the mailbox name recorder (mbnames) for?
|
|
|
|
The Mutt mail reader is not capable of automatically determining
|
|
|
|
the names of your mailboxes. OfflineIMAP can help it (or many other)
|
|
|
|
programs out be writing these names out in a format you specify. See
|
|
|
|
the example offlineimap.conf file for details.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Can I synchronize multiple accounts with OfflineIMAP?
|
|
|
|
Sure. Just name them all in the accounts line in the general
|
|
|
|
section of the config file, and add a per-account section for each one.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Does OfflineIMAP support POP?
|
|
|
|
No. POP is not robust enough to do a completely reliable
|
|
|
|
multi-machine synchronization like OfflineIMAP can do. OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
will not support it.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B Do you support mailbox formats other than Maildir?
|
|
|
|
Not at present. There is no technical reason not to; just no
|
|
|
|
demand yet. Maildir is a superior format anyway.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B [technical] Why are your Maildir message filenames so huge?
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
has two relevant principles: 1) never modifying your
|
|
|
|
messages in any way and 2) ensuring 100% reliable synchronizations.
|
|
|
|
In order to do a reliable sync,
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
must have a way to
|
|
|
|
uniquely identify each e-mail. Three pieces of information are
|
|
|
|
required to do this: your account name, the folder name, and the
|
|
|
|
message UID. The account name can be calculated from the path in
|
|
|
|
which your messages are. The folder name can usually be as well, BUT
|
|
|
|
some mail clients move messages between folders by simply moving the
|
|
|
|
file, leaving the name intact.
|
|
|
|
.IP
|
|
|
|
So,
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
must store both a UID folder ID. The folder ID is
|
|
|
|
necessary so
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
can detect a message moved to a different
|
|
|
|
folder.
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
stores the UID (U= number) and an md5sum of the
|
|
|
|
foldername (FMD5= number) to facilitate this.
|
|
|
|
.TP
|
|
|
|
.B What is the speed of OfflineIMAP's sync?
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
versions 2.0 and above contain a multithreaded system. A good way to
|
|
|
|
experiment is by setting maxsyncaccounts to 3 and maxconnections to 3
|
|
|
|
in each account clause.
|
|
|
|
.IP
|
|
|
|
This lets OfflineIMAP open up multiple connections simultaneously.
|
|
|
|
That will let it process multiple folders and messages at once. In
|
|
|
|
most cases, this will increase performance of the sync.
|
|
|
|
.IP
|
|
|
|
Don't set the number too high. If you do that, things might actually
|
|
|
|
slow down as your link gets saturated. Also, too many connections can
|
|
|
|
cause mail servers to have excessive load. Administrators might take
|
|
|
|
unkindly to this, and the server might bog down. There are many
|
|
|
|
variables in the optimal setting; experimentation may help.
|
|
|
|
.IP
|
|
|
|
An informal benchmark yields these results for my setup:
|
|
|
|
.IP
|
|
|
|
10 minutes with MacOS X Mail.app "manual cache"
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
5 minutes with GNUS agent sync
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
20 seconds with OfflineIMAP 1.x
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
9 seconds with OfflineIMAP 2.x
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
3 seconds with OfflineIMAP 3.x "cold start"
|
2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
|
|
|
.br
|
2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
|
|
|
2 seconds with OfflineIMAP 3.x "held connection"
|
|
|
|
.SH CONFORMING TO
|
|
|
|
.IP \(bu
|
|
|
|
Internet Message Access Protocol version 4rev1 (IMAP 4rev1) as
|
|
|
|
specified in RFC2060
|
|
|
|
.IP \(bu
|
|
|
|
Maildir as specified in
|
|
|
|
.UR http://www.qmail.org/qmail-manual-html/man5/maildir.html
|
|
|
|
http://www.qmail.org/qmail-manual-html/man5/maildir.html
|
|
|
|
.UE
|
|
|
|
and
|
|
|
|
.UR http://cr.yp.to/proto/maildir.html
|
|
|
|
http://cr.yp.to/proto/maildir.html.
|
|
|
|
.UE
|
|
|
|
.IP \(bu
|
|
|
|
Standard Python 2.2.1 as implemented on POSIX-compliant systems.
|
|
|
|
.SH NOTES
|
|
|
|
.SS DELETING LOCAL FOLDERS
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
does a two-way synchronization. That is, if you
|
|
|
|
make a change to the mail on the server, it will be propogated to your
|
|
|
|
local copy, and vise-versa. Some people might think that it would be
|
|
|
|
wise to just delete all their local mail folders periodically. If you
|
|
|
|
do this with OfflineIMAP, remember to also remove your local status
|
|
|
|
cache (~/.offlineimap by default). Otherwise, OfflineIMAP will take
|
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this as an intentional deletion of many messages and will interpret
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your action as requesting them to be deleted from the server as well.
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(If you don't understand this, don't worry; you probably won't
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encounter this situation)
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2002-07-18 02:51:03 +02:00
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.SS COPYING MESSAGES BETWEEN FOLDERS
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|
Normally, when you copy a message between folders or add a new message
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to a folder locally,
|
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|
.B OfflineIMAP
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|
will just do the right thing. However, sometimes this can be tricky
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-- if your IMAP server does not provide the SEARCH command, or does
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|
not return something useful,
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|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
cannot determine the new UID of the message. So, in these rare
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|
instances, OfflineIMAP will upload the message to the IMAP server and
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|
delete it from your local folder. Then, on your next sync, the
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|
message will be re-downloaded with the proper UID.
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.B OfflineIMAP
|
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|
makes sure that the message was properly uploaded before deleting it,
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|
so there should be no risk of data loss.
|
2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
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.SS MAILING LIST
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|
There is an OfflineIMAP mailing list available.
|
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.PP
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|
To subscribe, send the text "Subscribe" in the subject of a mail to
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|
offlineimap-request@complete.org. To post, send the message to
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offlineimap@complete.org.
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|
.SH BUGS
|
2002-07-20 10:35:48 +02:00
|
|
|
Reports of bugs should be sent via e-mail to the
|
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP
|
|
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|
bug-tracking system (BTS) at
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|
.UR mailto:offlineimap@bugs.complete.org
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|
offlineimap@bugs.complete.org
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|
.UE
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|
or submitted on-line using the Web interface at
|
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|
.UR http://bugs.complete.org/
|
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|
http://bugs.complete.org/.
|
|
|
|
.UE
|
2002-07-22 07:56:21 +02:00
|
|
|
The Web site also lists all current bugs, where you can check their
|
|
|
|
status or contribute to fixing them.
|
2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
|
|
|
.SH COPYRIGHT
|
|
|
|
OfflineIMAP is Copyright (C) 2002 John Goerzen.
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|
.PP
|
|
|
|
This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
|
|
|
|
it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
|
|
|
|
the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or
|
|
|
|
(at your option) any later version.
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
|
|
|
|
but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
|
|
|
|
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
|
|
|
|
GNU General Public License for more details.
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
|
|
|
|
along with this program; if not, write to:
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
Free Software Foundation, Inc.
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
59 Temple Place
|
|
|
|
.br
|
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|
Suite 330
|
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|
|
.br
|
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|
|
Boston, MA 02111-1307
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
USA
|
2002-07-12 06:08:27 +02:00
|
|
|
.SH AUTHOR
|
2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
|
|
|
.B OfflineIMAP,
|
|
|
|
its libraries, documentation, and all included files, except where
|
|
|
|
noted, was written by John Goerzen <jgoerzen@complete.org> and
|
|
|
|
copyright is held as stated in the COPYRIGHT section.
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
OfflineIMAP may be downloaded, and information found, from its
|
|
|
|
homepage via either Gopher or HTTP:
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
.UR gopher://quux.org/1/devel/offlineimap
|
|
|
|
gopher://quux.org/1/devel/offlineimap
|
|
|
|
.UE
|
|
|
|
.br
|
|
|
|
.UR http://quux.org/devel/offlineimap
|
|
|
|
http://quux.org/devel/offlineimap
|
|
|
|
.UE
|
2002-07-18 03:00:59 +02:00
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
OfflineIMAP may also be downloaded using Subversion. Additionally,
|
|
|
|
the distributed tar.gz may be updated with a simple "svn update"
|
|
|
|
command; it is ready to go. For information on getting OfflineIMAP
|
|
|
|
with Subversion, please visit:
|
|
|
|
.PP
|
|
|
|
.UR http://svn.complete.org/
|
|
|
|
http://svn.complete.org/
|
|
|
|
.UE
|
2002-07-12 08:43:07 +02:00
|
|
|
.SH SEE ALSO
|
|
|
|
.BR mutt (1),
|
|
|
|
.BR python (1).
|
|
|
|
.\".BR bar (1),
|
|
|
|
.\".BR baz (1).
|
|
|
|
.\".br
|
|
|
|
.\"The programs are documented fully by
|
|
|
|
.\".IR "The Rise and Fall of a Fooish Bar" ,
|
|
|
|
.\"available via the Info system.
|
|
|
|
.\".SH AUTHOR
|
|
|
|
.\"This manual page was written by John Goerzen <jgoerzen@complete.org>,
|
|
|
|
.\"for the Debian GNU/Linux system (but may be used by others).
|