I've got reports [1] against Debian's version of c-client 2002e that when opening a stream, that is not OP_HALFOPEN (such as OP_READONLY or NIL), c-client will actually close and open the stream again (thus requiring the user to re-authenticate).
I assume that you're talking about recycling an already-open stream?
A close and open will happen if c-client determines that the new mailbox name is not compatible with the existing stream.
If you recycle a non-halfopen stream, and decide that you want the stream to be halfopen now, a close/open is required unless the server supports the UNSELECT capability. That's the only reliable way to get a halfopen session if the server does not have UNSELECT.
If you don't care if the stream is halfopen or not, then you probably should not call mail_open() with the OP_HALFOPEN flag to recycle the stream.
-- Mark --
http://staff.washington.edu/mrc Science does not emerge from voting, party politics, or public debate. Si vis pacem, para bellum.
