Re: backup and synchronize to fastmail

[Vincent Beffara <vbeffara+ml@xxxxxxxxx>]

>> Right - but you could have one on another machine. Better safe than
>> sorry ... and it's always nice to test things with no important data,
>> even if offlineimap goes to great lengths never to lose e-mail ...
>
> I am sure that offlineimap has been developed and tested to avoid loosi=
ng
> email as far as possible. But, if any particular problem occurs, it wil=
l be
> most likely particular to this specific setting, this particular imap s=
erver,
> this particular version of offlineimap, etc. That is why I do not see o=
f much
> purpose for me to make tests in another system. I just need to have a l=
og that
> tells me whether things went right or wrong, specially at the "critical=
" first
> backup stage.

Agreed. If you want to be reassured though, look at the archives of this=20
mailing-list - bug reports saying "on this specific configuration I get=20
a crash" are not completely unheard of, but in all the cases (that I=20
know of) the worst that happens is precisely a crash before anything=20
wrong is performed.

>> Easy (but bad !) answer to that : run it with a non-existing
>> command-line option that does not exist, and look in the trace.
>>
>> A little bit better : 'tail $(which offlineimap)', the version number =
is
>> the argument given to init.startup.
>
> Thank you very much for this advice. Both methods say version 4.0.16.

That's indeed pretty old.

>> Even better : you are better off with the most recent version anyway
>> (the '-q' option if really cool, for instance), and version 6 is leavi=
ng
>
> Really, I need offlineimap to do very simple and specific things. If th=
is
> version 4.0.16 can do them, and is stable, I do not want anything more =
and it
> would be the best option for me just to use it. My problem is of docume=
ntation
> as the command line options that I get from 'offlineimap -h' do not mat=
ch
> those of the manual or the man page.

Chances are that you would actually find version 5.99.x more stable than=20
version 4.0.x ... (unless you are using mac os x, that is, but from what=20
you say I would guess that it isn't the case).

> In particular, the option '-l filename' (for a logfile) is stated in th=
e man
> page but not in the output of 'offlineimap -h'. So, I want to know to w=
hich
> one I should beleive.

Just to repeat myself : run it on a test system and see what happens,=20
nothing beats that ...=20

Just running the command with the option (and no config file so that no=20
harm is possible) you will be able to tell if the error is "no config=20
file" or "no such option". It parses the command line before looking for=20
a config file, so the first error would indicate that the option is=20
indeed valid.

> Anyway, what is this option '-q'?

Means "quick". And it really means it, for huge mailboxes it can mean=20
going from minutes to seconds on a given sync, plus it's nicer on the=20
network and the server. The archives of this list contain the result of=20
a performance test if you are interested.

  /v

--=20
Vincent Beffara
UMPA - ENS Lyon
46 All=E9e d'Italie
69364 LYON cedex 07
Tel: 04 72 72 85 25
Fax: 04 72 72 84 80