trusty (3) Mail::Box::Dbx.3pm.gz
NAME
Mail::Box::Dbx - read Outlook Express folders
INHERITANCE
Mail::Box::Dbx
is a Mail::Box::File
is a Mail::Box
is a Mail::Reporter
SYNOPSIS
use Mail::Box::Dbx;
my $folder = Mail::Box::Dbx->new(...);
DESCRIPTION
This documentation describes how to read from Outlook Express (dbx) folders. Even on Unix/Linux, you can
access these folders to read the data, or copy it to a different format. Modifying of xbd files is not
supported.
These dbx folders are accessed using Mail::Transport::Dbx which is distributed via CPAN as separate
package. This "MAil::Transport::Dbx" module is based on the open source library named "libpst", which
can be found at <http://alioth.debian.org/projects/libpst/>. The library does not support writing of dbx
files, and therefore limits the possibilities of this package.
See documentation in the base class.
OVERLOADED
See documentation in the base class.
overload: ""()
See "OVERLOADED" in Mail::Box
overload: @{}()
See "OVERLOADED" in Mail::Box
overload: cmp()
See "OVERLOADED" in Mail::Box
METHODS
See documentation in the base class.
Constructors
See documentation in the base class.
Mail::Box::Dbx->new(OPTIONS)
-Option --Defined in --Default
access Mail::Box always 'r'
body_delayed_type Mail::Box Mail::Message::Body::Delayed
body_type Mail::Box::File <see description>
coerce_options Mail::Box []
create Mail::Box not implemented
extract Mail::Box 10240
field_type Mail::Box undef
fix_headers Mail::Box <false>
folder Mail::Box =Folders.dbx
folderdir Mail::Box .
head_delayed_type Mail::Box Mail::Message::Head::Delayed
head_type Mail::Box Mail::Message::Head::Complete
keep_dups Mail::Box <false>
lock_extension Mail::Box::File '.lock'
lock_file Mail::Box <foldername><lock-extension>
lock_timeout Mail::Box 1 hour
lock_type Mail::Box 'NONE'
lock_wait Mail::Box 10 seconds
locker Mail::Box undef
log Mail::Reporter 'WARNINGS'
manager Mail::Box undef
message_type Mail::Box Mail::Box::Dbx::Message
multipart_type Mail::Box Mail::Message::Body::Multipart
remove_when_empty Mail::Box not implemented
save_on_exit Mail::Box not implemented
trace Mail::Reporter 'WARNINGS'
trusted Mail::Box <depends on folder location>
write_policy Mail::Box::File not implemented
access => MODE
body_delayed_type => CLASS
body_type => CLASS|CODE
coerce_options => ARRAY
create => BOOLEAN
extract => INTEGER | CODE | METHOD | 'LAZY'|'ALWAYS'
field_type => CLASS
fix_headers => BOOLEAN
folder => FOLDERNAME
folderdir => DIRECTORY
head_delayed_type => CLASS
head_type => CLASS
keep_dups => BOOLEAN
lock_extension => FILENAME|STRING
lock_file => FILENAME
lock_timeout => SECONDS
lock_type => CLASS|STRING|ARRAY
lock_wait => SECONDS
locker => OBJECT
log => LEVEL
manager => MANAGER
message_type => CLASS
multipart_type => CLASS
remove_when_empty => BOOLEAN
save_on_exit => BOOLEAN
trace => LEVEL
trusted => BOOLEAN
write_policy => 'REPLACE'|'INPLACE'|undef
The folder
See documentation in the base class.
$obj->addMessage(MESSAGE, OPTIONS)
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
$obj->addMessages(MESSAGE [, MESSAGE, ...])
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
Mail::Box::Dbx->appendMessages(OPTIONS)
See "METHODS" in Mail::Box::File
$obj->close(OPTIONS)
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
$obj->copyTo(FOLDER, OPTIONS)
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
$obj->delete(OPTIONS)
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
$obj->filename()
See "The folder" in Mail::Box::File
$obj->folderdir([DIRECTORY])
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
$obj->name()
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
$obj->organization()
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
$obj->size()
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
$obj->type()
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
$obj->update(OPTIONS)
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
$obj->url()
See "The folder" in Mail::Box
Folder flags
See documentation in the base class.
$obj->access()
See "Folder flags" in Mail::Box
$obj->isModified()
See "Folder flags" in Mail::Box
$obj->modified([BOOLEAN])
See "Folder flags" in Mail::Box
$obj->writable()
See "Folder flags" in Mail::Box
The messages
See documentation in the base class.
$obj->current([NUMBER|MESSAGE|MESSAGE-ID])
See "The messages" in Mail::Box
$obj->find(MESSAGE-ID)
See "The messages" in Mail::Box
$obj->findFirstLabeled(LABEL, [BOOLEAN, [ARRAY-OF-MSGS]])
See "The messages" in Mail::Box
$obj->message(INDEX [,MESSAGE])
See "The messages" in Mail::Box
$obj->messageId(MESSAGE-ID [,MESSAGE])
See "The messages" in Mail::Box
$obj->messageIds()
See "The messages" in Mail::Box
$obj->messages(['ALL',RANGE,'ACTIVE','DELETED',LABEL,!LABEL,FILTER])
See "The messages" in Mail::Box
$obj->nrMessages(OPTIONS)
See "The messages" in Mail::Box
$obj->scanForMessages(MESSAGE, MESSAGE-IDS, TIMESPAN, WINDOW)
See "The messages" in Mail::Box
Sub-folders
See documentation in the base class.
$obj->listSubFolders(OPTIONS)
Mail::Box::Dbx->listSubFolders(OPTIONS)
It is advised to set the "check" flag, because dbx folder often list large amounts of folder names
which do not really exist. However, checking does consume some time.
-Option --Defined in --Default
check Mail::Box <false>
folder Mail::Box <from calling object>
folderdir Mail::Box <from folder>
skip_empty Mail::Box <false>
check => BOOLEAN
folder => FOLDERNAME
folderdir => DIRECTORY
skip_empty => BOOL
$obj->nameOfSubFolder(SUBNAME, [PARENTNAME])
Mail::Box::Dbx->nameOfSubFolder(SUBNAME, [PARENTNAME])
See "Sub-folders" in Mail::Box
$obj->openRelatedFolder(OPTIONS)
See "Sub-folders" in Mail::Box
$obj->openSubFolder(SUBNAME, OPTIONS)
See "Sub-folders" in Mail::Box
$obj->topFolderWithMessages()
Mail::Box::Dbx->topFolderWithMessages()
See "Sub-folders" in Mail::Box
Internals
See documentation in the base class.
$obj->coerce(MESSAGE, OPTIONS)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box
$obj->create(FOLDERNAME, OPTIONS)
Mail::Box::Dbx->create(FOLDERNAME, OPTIONS)
Creation is not supported for dbx folders.
-Option --Defined in--Default
folderdir Mail::Box undef
folderdir => DIRECTORY
$obj->determineBodyType(MESSAGE, HEAD)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box
$obj->folderToFilename(FOLDERNAME, FOLDERDIR)
Mail::Box::Dbx->folderToFilename(FOLDERNAME, FOLDERDIR)
Translate a folder name into a filename, using the FOLDERDIR value to replace a leading "=".
Mail::Box::Dbx->foundIn([FOLDERNAME], [OPTIONS])
If no FOLDERNAME is specified, then the value of the "folder" option is taken. A dbx folder is a
file which name ends on ".dbx" (case insensitive).
-Option --Defined in --Default
folder undef
folderdir Mail::Box undef
folder => FOLDERNAME
folderdir => DIRECTORY
$obj->lineSeparator([STRING|'CR'|'LF'|'CRLF'])
See "Internals" in Mail::Box
$obj->locker()
See "Internals" in Mail::Box
$obj->messageCreateOptions([TYPE, CONFIG])
See "Internals" in Mail::Box::File
$obj->moveAwaySubFolder(DIRECTORY, EXTENSION)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box::File
$obj->parser()
The parsing of messages is a combined job for the Mail::Transport::Dbx module (to get the right data)
and read(). Asking for the parser will provide the transporter object. If asked more than once,
each time the same object will be returned.
$obj->read(OPTIONS)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box
$obj->readMessages(OPTIONS)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box
$obj->storeMessage(MESSAGE)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box
$obj->toBeThreaded(MESSAGES)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box
$obj->toBeUnthreaded(MESSAGES)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box
$obj->updateMessages(OPTIONS)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box::File
$obj->write(OPTIONS)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box::File
$obj->writeMessages(OPTIONS)
See "Internals" in Mail::Box
Other methods
See documentation in the base class.
$obj->timespan2seconds(TIME)
Mail::Box::Dbx->timespan2seconds(TIME)
See "Other methods" in Mail::Box
Error handling
See documentation in the base class.
$obj->AUTOLOAD()
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->addReport(OBJECT)
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->defaultTrace([LEVEL]|[LOGLEVEL, TRACELEVEL]|[LEVEL, CALLBACK])
Mail::Box::Dbx->defaultTrace([LEVEL]|[LOGLEVEL, TRACELEVEL]|[LEVEL, CALLBACK])
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->errors()
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->log([LEVEL [,STRINGS]])
Mail::Box::Dbx->log([LEVEL [,STRINGS]])
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->logPriority(LEVEL)
Mail::Box::Dbx->logPriority(LEVEL)
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->logSettings()
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->notImplemented()
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->report([LEVEL])
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->reportAll([LEVEL])
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->trace([LEVEL])
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
$obj->warnings()
See "Error handling" in Mail::Reporter
Cleanup
See documentation in the base class.
$obj->DESTROY()
See "Cleanup" in Mail::Box
DETAILS
See documentation in the base class.
DETAILS
See documentation in the base class.
Different kinds of folders
See documentation in the base class.
Available folder types
See documentation in the base class.
Folder class implementation
See documentation in the base class.
How DBX folders work
DBX files are create by Outlook Express. I can not tell you too much about it, because me (as author)
never use Windows or MicroSoft tools. Still, it is possible to access some Outlook created folders from
Unix.
The folder structure for dbx starts with a single "Folders.dbx" file. This folder contains names of sub-
folders. Each folder can either contain messages, or contains sub-folders. Combinations are not
possible.
This implementation
The ol2mbox project (see <http://sourceforge.net/project/ol2mbox/>) has created a "libdbx" which can read
dbx files using nearly any operating system. You can simply transport a dbx file from Windows to
Unix/Linux and the read all the messages from it.
Tassilo von Parseval wrote a Perl wrapper around this C-library, and distributes it as
Mail::Transport::Dbx. Although it named in one the MailBox namespaces, it is a separate product, because
it requires a C compiler. Besides, the module will have its own life.
Converting DBX folders to MBOX
The title of this section is to attract your attension, but is does not describe anything special related
to DBX or MBOX: you can convert any kind of mail folder into another with the following code.
DIAGNOSTICS
Error: Cannot append messages to folder file $filename: $!
Appending messages to a not-opened file-organized folder may fail when the operating system does not
allow write access to the file at hand.
Error: Cannot move away sub-folder $dir
Error: Cannot read dbx folder file $filename.
Warning: Cannot remove folder $name file $filename: $!
Writing an empty folder will usually cause that folder to be removed, which fails for the indicated
reason. new(remove_when_empty)
Warning: Cannot remove folder $name file $filename: $!
Writing an empty folder will usually cause that folder to be removed, which fails for the indicated
reason. new(remove_when_empty) controls whether the empty folder will removed; setting it to false
(0) may be needed to avoid this message.
Error: Cannot replace $filename by $tempname, to update folder $name: $!
The replace policy wrote a new folder file to update the existing, but was unable to give the final
touch: replacing the old version of the folder file for the indicated reason.
Warning: Changes not written to read-only folder $self.
You have opened the folder read-only --which is the default set by new(access)--, made modifications,
and now want to close it. Set close(force) if you want to overrule the access mode, or close the
folder with close(write) set to "NEVER".
Error: Copying failed for one message.
For some reason, for instance disc full, removed by external process, or read-protection, it is
impossible to copy one of the messages. Copying will proceed for the other messages.
Warning: Dbx folders are read-only.
Error: Destination folder $name is not writable.
The folder where the messages are copied to is not opened with write access (see new(access)). This
has no relation with write permission to the folder which is controled by your operating system.
Warning: Different messages with id $msgid
The message id is discovered more than once within the same folder, but the content of the message
seems to be different. This should not be possible: each message must be unique.
Error: File too short to get write message $nr ($size, $need)
Mail::Box is lazy: it tries to leave messages in the folders until they are used, which saves time
and memory usage. When this message appears, something is terribly wrong: some lazy message are
needed for updating the folder, but they cannot be retrieved from the original file anymore. In this
case, messages can be lost.
This message does appear regularly on Windows systems when using the 'replace' write policy. Please
help to find the cause, probably something to do with Windows incorrectly handling multiple
filehandles open in the same file.
Error: Folder $name not deleted: not writable.
The folder must be opened with write access via new(access), otherwise removing it will be refused.
So, you may have write-access according to the operating system, but that will not automatically mean
that this "delete" method permits you to. The reverse remark is valid as well.
Error: Invalid timespan '$timespan' specified.
The string does not follow the strict rules of the time span syntax which is permitted as parameter.
Warning: Message-id '$msgid' does not contain a domain.
According to the RFCs, message-ids need to contain a unique random part, then an "@", and then a
domain name. This is made to avoid the creation of two messages with the same id. The warning
emerges when the "@" is missing from the string.
Error: Package $package does not implement $method.
Fatal error: the specific package (or one of its superclasses) does not implement this method where
it should. This message means that some other related classes do implement this method however the
class at hand does not. Probably you should investigate this and probably inform the author of the
package.
Error: Unable to create subfolder $name of $folder.
The copy includes the subfolders, but for some reason it was not possible to copy one of these.
Copying will proceed for all other sub-folders.
Error: Unable to update folder $self.
When a folder is to be written, both replace and inplace write policies are tried, If both fail, the
whole update fails. You may see other, related, error messages to indicate the real problem.
SEE ALSO
This module is part of Mail-Box distribution version 2.110, built on January 05, 2014. Website:
http://perl.overmeer.net/mailbox/
LICENSE
Copyrights 2001-2014 by [Mark Overmeer]. For other contributors see ChangeLog.
This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as Perl
itself. See http://www.perl.com/perl/misc/Artistic.html