User Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64; rv:6.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/6.0 Build ID: 20110823092342 Steps to reproduce: I unsubscribe from the All Mail and Spam folders, then either Archive a message or mark it as Spam. Actual results: Thunderbird re-subscribes to the target folder. Expected results: Thunderbird should respect my preferences and keep the folders unsubscribed. (Or at least pretend they're unsubscribed so they continue to not show up in the Unread Folders sidebar)

Since I couldn't find a field for "Is there anything else we should know?", here's the rest as a separate comment: I've been experiencing this bug since at LEAST version 3.1. From an end-user standpoint, this has two effects: 1. Forcing the "spam" folder to be counted in unread messages 2. Forcing messages to be counted twice because "All Mail" is subscribed These, in turn, make make certain styles of use for Thunderbird with GMail (ones where you respond to messages as they come in, rather than once in the morning, and you need a clean "Unread Messages" sidebar to stay efficient) frustrating and irritating as each "Archive" or "Spam" click must be followed an unpredictable amount of time later with "Right-click > Subscribe... > Expand [Gmail] > Uncheck "All Mail" > OK".

I saw similar behaviour. I reassigned my Archives (menu~Tools~Account Settings~Copies and Folders~Message Archives) and that mostly resolved the issue. I still see the problem every couple of months or so, but do not know the cause. http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=1687205&p=11283911#p11283911

Empirical testing with Gimap shows that copying a message to an unsubscribed mailbox does not cause the mailbox to become subscribed. It is probably a Thunderbird bug.

I agree. I don't see how this can be a 'pure' Gimap issue, as subscription and subscription definition is handled completely by the Thunderbird client. It must be a Thunderbird bug; or an (unwanted by me) Thunderbird feature.

Tb knows special folder names via XLIST response if Gmail IMAP. Copies&Folders / Junk Setting is probably set like next after first server access: - Sent : "[Gmail]/Sent Mail" folder on the Gmail IMAP account, unless root level Sent(Gmail Label=[Imap]/Sent) already exists. - Drafts : "[Gmail]/Drafts" folder on the Gmail IMAP account, unless root level Sent(Gmail Label=[Imap]/Drats) already exists. - Archives : "[Gmail]/All Mail" folder on the Gmail IMAP account, unless root level Archives(Gmail Label=Archives) already exists. Note: Why "[Gmail]/All Mail" is defaulted if Gmail IMAP; Consistent behavior of archive of Tb with Gmail's "Archive" operation at Gmail's Web Interface. - Junk : "[Gmail]/Spam" folder on the Gmail IMAP account, unless root level Junk(Gmail Label=Junk) already exists. Because these folders are needed for "sent mail copy", "draft mail save", "archive operation", "Junk move", Tb creates and subscribes such mail folder if folder doesn't exist, according to your settings in Copies&Folders / Junk Setting and your operation. i.e. Above setting superseeds "unsubscribe of an IMAP folder by user". If you don't need above folders of Gmail IMAP, change these folder setting to other folder such as mail folder of "Local Folders". Note-1: As for trash folder selection, selection at Server Setting is currently ignored and [Gmail]/Trash is always used. See Bug 533140. Note-2: There is no option to permanently prohibit Archive button/operation, Draft save button/operation. So, folder set as "draft folder", "archives folder" is always created according to your setting and operation. On the other hand, "sent mail copy" and "junk move" can be prohibited by setting in Copies&Folders / Junk Setting+Tools/Options/Security/Junk. Note-3: Gmail has capability of "not show a Gmail Label to IMAP client"(Gmail's account or mail setting relates to IMAP). If you hide a Gmail Label, corresponding Gmail IMAP folder is not shown to IMAP clients including Tb. Note-4: If you execute unsubscribe/subscribe(both intentionally and internally by Tb), you'll see Bug 520437. I recommend you to clean up garbage files with suffix.

I'm having trouble making sense of what you wrote, given how you formatted it, but if I understand you correctly, you're saying that this is intended behaviour. In that case, I say that either intended behaviour is wrong or that there needs to be an extra layer of abstraction so I can say "If you want, subscribe, but hide it from my unread folders list." I want GMail-like "archive on the server" and I want IMAP clients to be able to see and search the All Mail folder, but I don't want every unread entry in my account to be shown twice. If that's too much to ask, then Thunderbird sort of deserves to lose out to GMail's web UI. (Which I was actually using until they broke the ability to be signed into a GMail account and a Google Apps for Domains account at the same time when using the HTML Basic interface)

(In reply to Stephan Sokolow from comment #6) > but if I understand you correctly, you're saying that this is intended behaviour. Yes. It can be called "current restriction". As for "Archive Folder"([Gmail]/All Mail if Gmail IMAP), check box before "Keep messages archives in:" in Copies&Folders was introduced from Tb 5(I wasn't aware of it till Tb 7), and Archive button/menu is disabled by unchecking the option. If "Archive" is not requested, Tb doesn't try to access "Archive Folder". So, "unsubscribed status of [Gmail]/All Mail in your case" is kept, unless other IMAP mail client subscribes it. To avoid "subscribe by other client", you can hide [Gmail]/All Mail from IMAP clients via Gmail's mail settings/Label. Note: "Advanced" button at archive setting in Copies&Folders of Tb is currently disabled when Gmail IMAP even if the option is checked. This is because "subfolders under [Gmail]/All Mail" is too inconsistent with concept/implementation of [Gmail]/All Mail in Gmail. Gmail's [Gmail]/All Mail is very special folder, but subfolders under [Gmail]/All Mail is merely a user defined Gmail Label named "[Gmail]/All Mail/SubfolderName". It's absolutely different existence from real [Gmail]/All Mail in Gmail, even if it's shown as subfolder of [Gmail]/All Mail at IMAP client who accesses via Gmail IMAP. Because "automatic Junk move" can already be disabled by Junk Settings, and "Archive" can be disabled too from Tb 5 by Copies&Folders setting, problem you cited in your comment #0 doesn't occur any more, as far as you correctly set such Tb's setting. Closing as WORKSFORME (I don't know bug who implemented "disable archive permanently" feature) However, Tb may try to access/create folder specified at Junk Setting even when Junk move is disabled, and Tb may try to create root level Junk([Imap]/Junk when Gmail IMAP) if Tb fails to access/create the folder specified at Junk Setting. This kind of difference from Archive folder may exist in Junk folder. In this case, select Junk folder of Local Folders at Junk Settings of the Gmail IMAP accout in Tb, to avoid internal access to Junk folder. "Internal access to Junk" in this case is merely existence check of Junk folder even if access happens. So there is no problem if Junk of Local Folders is pointed, unless you hide pseudo account named "Local Folders" by manual modification(sometimes called intentional corruption) of prefs.js.