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Deleted Emails keep coming back

spraxyt
Resting Legend
Posts: 10,063
Thanks: 674
Fixes: 75
Registered: ‎06-04-2007

Re: Deleted Emails keep coming back

IMAP works with flags which reflect the state of a message, one of which is \Deleted. It has always been the case that a "deleted" message has that flag set but doesn't get physically deleted until the mailbox is expunged (compacted). Even one moved to the Trash/Deleted folder is actually copied, then its \Deleted flag should be set on the Inbox original..

It is up to client programs (which includes webmail) whether "deleted" messages are listed, or not. Some appear not to list them, particularly if they have managed the deletion themselves, but list with strike-through if deletion was by an independent client. This client-specific behaviour can give a confusing view of what is actually happening.

For deleted emails to come back requires that the \Deleted flag is set, then unset again. That is physically possible - I've done it myself using basic IMAP commands in telnet. However changes I made using telnet stayed changed. Client email programs shouldn't be doing that sort of thing, but it looks like they are. But how and why is presently unknown.

Plusnet continue to look into this and are working on possible remedies, though little of this appears in public. For a while the billing engine release has restricted changes but I hope progress can now be made again. But please don't expect an "overnight" fix. Huh

David
Townman
Superuser
Superuser
Posts: 22,921
Thanks: 9,538
Fixes: 158
Registered: ‎22-08-2007

Re: Deleted Emails keep coming back

@bigtench

This is not likely to a Plusnet email server issue, but rather one of how YOUR email client decides to handle the deletions of emails.  Different programs do it differently...

  • Some just mark the email as deleted and leave them where they are greyed out, possibly with strike through (such changes might need to be synch'd with the server)
  • Some do what seems sensible and AUTOMATICALLY move deleted items to the IMAP deleted folder
  • Others mark them and later move them to the deleted folder UPON some other event happening
  • Some programs will empty the deleted items folder on exit, others leave it to the user to explicitly empty the folder

In respect of MS Office Outlook check out the account settings (advanced) for these two settings...

Capture OL Purge.JPG

Superusers are not staff, but they do have a direct line of communication into the business in order to raise issues, concerns and feedback from the community.

bigtench
Grafter
Posts: 29
Thanks: 13
Registered: ‎06-08-2007

Re: Deleted Emails keep coming back

Hmmm. I can no longer access the settings for accounts in Outlook. I think somehow the Windows 10 email client account settings have intertwined with Outlook making it so nothing happens when you click settings within Outlook (2010). Maybe this explains why the settings have changed!?