OfflineIMAP/offlineimap

offlineimap cannot acquire lock after system suspend

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#516 opened on Jan 14, 2018

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 (3 comments) (2 reactions) (0 assignees)Python (1,765 stars) (373 forks)batch import
enhancementgood first issueneed contributor!

Description

  • system/distribution: Arch Linux

  • offlineimap version (offlineimap -V): offlineimap v7.1.4, imaplib2 v2.57 (bundled), Python v2.7.14, OpenSSL 1.1.0g 2 Nov 2017

  • Python version: Python 3.6.4

#### Configuration file offlineimaprc
[general]
accounts = aishpant

[Account aishpant]
localrepository = local-aishpant
remoterepository = remote-aishpant
maxage = 2017-12-25

[Repository local-aishpant]
type = Maildir
localfolders = /home/a/mail/aishpant

[Repository remote-aishpant]
type = Gmail
remoteuser = xxx@gmail.com
remotepass = xxxpass
sslcacertfile = /etc/ssl/certs/ca-certificates.crt
folderfilter = lambda folder: folder in ['INBOX', 'LKML', 'attrDoc']

I am using systemd user timer to sync my emails.

#### offlineimap.service
[Unit]
Description=Offlineimap Service (oneshot)
Documentation=man:offlineimap(1)

[Service]
Type=oneshot
ExecStart=/usr/bin/offlineimap -o -u basic
# Give 120 seconds for offlineimap 
# to gracefully stop before hard killing it
TimeoutStopSec=120

[Install]
WantedBy=mail.target

#### offlineimap.timer
[Unit]
Description=Offlineimap Query Timer

[Timer]
OnBootSec=2m
OnUnitInactiveSec=5m

[Install]
WantedBy=default.target

Steps to reproduce the error

  • Close the lid during a sync
  • Open again, once in a while offlineimap fails to launch with the following error :
OfflineIMAP 7.1.4
  Licensed under the GNU GPL v2 or any later version (with an OpenSSL exception)
imaplib2 v2.57 (bundled), Python v2.7.14, OpenSSL 1.1.0g  2 Nov 2017
Account sync aishpant:
 *** Processing account aishpant
 ERROR: Could not lock account aishpant. Is another instance using this account?
 *** Finished account 'aishpant' in 0:00
ERROR: Exceptions occurred during the run!
ERROR: Could not lock account aishpant. Is another instance using this account?

Traceback:
  File "/usr/lib/python2.7/site-packages/offlineimap/accounts.py", line 282, in syncrunner
    self.__lock()
  File "/usr/lib/python2.7/site-packages/offlineimap/accounts.py", line 246, in __lock
    exc_info()[2])
  File "/usr/lib/python2.7/site-packages/offlineimap/accounts.py", line 235, in __lock
    fcntl.lockf(self._lockfd, fcntl.LOCK_EX|fcntl.LOCK_NB)

I can delete the lock file under ~/.offlineimap/ and start it up again. But I was wondering if there was cleaner solution to this.

Contributor guide

Tech stack
python
Domain
backendcli
Issue type
bug
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
3
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
1-3 hours
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
stale
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
clear
Prerequisites
Understanding of file locking (fcntl)Knowledge of Unix signal handling
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
40
Research direction
Investigate the lock file mechanism in accounts.py, specifically the lock method. The issue occurs when the system suspends during a sync, leaving a stale lock file. The proposed solution could involve adding a signal handler to clean up the lock on suspend or using a timeout to detect stale locks. Review comments in the issue for suggested approaches.