On 17Feb2014 19:58, Alan Mackenzie <[email protected]> wrote:
> On Mon, Feb 17, 2014 at 08:42:16PM +0100, [email protected] wrote:
> > On 17Feb14 18:50 +0000, Alan Mackenzie wrote:
> > > My inbox has now reached the grand total of 100,000 messages (_exactly_
> > > 100,000, coincidentally enough). This is partly a result of me being
> > > subscribed to too many mailing lists, and partly of me not getting
> > > around to clearing things out.
>
> > mbox or maildir?
>
> mbox. I've never used maildir, but it strikes me that it would be
> slower, not counting the initial 12s loading time.
It depends.
I'm running a mix at present, and still deciding. I moved to totally
maildir several years ago and recently was prusuaded by the SO to
use mbox for some things. Still testing.
For me with the header cache (and on an SSD), maildir is faster
than mbox on open:
- when an mobox is modified, mutt must still read the entire
thing to update the header cache; a maildir need only be consulted
for the new messages individually
- as pointed out, deletes require a whole mbox rewrite
- I fear race conditions when adding to the mail folder
(my mail filer does not lock, and even if it did there is the
thorny issue of deciding which lock mechanism other mail utilities
are using); mutt is pretty good about detecting outside mbox
mods, but then it refuses to update the mbox (fair enough too)
and tosses my deletes
Maildir is slower:
- opening a maildir which does not have a header cache
- rsyncing the folder to somewhere else, especially if that place
uses a physical disc with headers to step etc
- maildirs are more expensive in disc space terms - less efficient use of
the filesyste, per message
Currently I use mbox for:
- all my archive folders (I have 'd' mapped to archive)
- my inbox (considering switching back to maildir)
- many of my other folders
It is a trade off, but with the heder cache, maildirs tend to be
very faster indeed.
Cheers,
--
Cameron Simpson <[email protected]>
Fear the government that fears your computer. - Jon Drukman <[email protected]>
