Bug 4852 - Cancel messages contain Approved-header
Summary: Cancel messages contain Approved-header
Status: RESOLVED FIXED
Alias: None
Product: Claws Mail
Classification: Unclassified
Component: NNTP (show other bugs)
Version: 4.3.1
Hardware: PC Linux
: P3 minor
Assignee: users
URL:
Depends on:
Blocks:
 
Reported: 2025-03-15 09:29 UTC by Marco Moock
Modified: 2025-04-08 05:27 UTC (History)
0 users

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Description Marco Moock 2025-03-15 09:29:08 UTC
Hello!

When canceling a news message via Message --> Cancel a news message, this message contains an Approved: header. This must not be included, most NNTP servers reject such messages.

https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc5537#section-5.3


   Cancel control messages listing moderated newsgroups in their
   Newsgroups header field MUST contain an Approved header field like
   any other article in a moderated newsgroup.  This means that cancels
   posted to a moderated newsgroup will normally be sent to the
   moderator first for approval.  Outside of moderated newsgroups,
   cancel messages are not required to contain an Approved header field.


-- 
kind regards
Marco
Comment 1 Paul 2025-03-15 13:20:05 UTC
The paragraph you've quoted from RFC 5537 does not state that the Approved: header MUST NOT be included. In fact, it states the opposite, "MUST contain an Approved header field".

Further, the paragraph quoted states that "cancel messages are not required to contain an Approved header field"; this implies that the Approved header is optional, neither that it MUST be included or that it MUST NOT be included.

I've read over the section in the RFC and other paragraphs, of course RFCs are often as clear as mud, and I have not found a paragraph or sentence that backs up your statement that an Approved header MUST NOT be included.
Comment 2 Marco Moock 2025-03-15 14:15:47 UTC
As far as I understand, the approved header in a moderated group should only appear if the message is being approved by a moderator.

In the case the original author (not mod) wants to cancel a message, I don't see that it needs that - a proper configured news server will reject it, as it doesn't come from a moderator that has been approved by the admin to send articles that contain the Approved: header.

I've started a discussion here to ask how this should be processed:
https://www.novabbs.com/usenet/article-flat.php?id=16&group=news.admin.moderation#16

For non-moderated groups, it indeed doesn't say must not, but the current situation is that many servers (I tried solani.org, paganini.bofh.team) reject cancels which contain an Approved: header.

At least a configuration option would be nice to make Cancels possible on such systems.
Comment 3 Paul 2025-04-08 05:27:56 UTC
now fixed in git (the Approved header has been removed)

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