Password-protected PDFs making mail blank view of messages?

Question

Level 1

106 points

Password-protected PDFs making mail blank view of messages?

Surreal problem that seems to have started about the same time as my 10.8.4 update (from 10.8.3):

Viewing the standard Mail view, with mailboxes on the left, message list for the selected mailbox in the middle, and message text in the largest pane on the right of the window; when moving through the list of messages, moving down and seeing the message texts to the right, all of a sudden, the preview pane to the right go BLANK. And I've narrowed it down to several suspect messages that came from a regular group of business contacts who send me reports as password-protected PDFs. I prepared a test PDF with Preview, encrypted, and used that to test the proposition that password-protected PDFs are what is 'breaking' the view of message contents in the right hand window, and it is clearly the problem.

After I view a message with the gray password-protected preview image showing in the preview pane, switching to another message in the message list, that next message shows a normal header but the text/body of the message shows blank. And then the next messages keep showing blank until I either: hide and unhide the main mail window OR quit and reopen mail. But double-clicking on any message in the list to open it properly in its own window shows it normally.

Rebuilding my mailboxes did not help. Rebooting did not help.

Any ideas about what the heck might be going on?

MacBook Pro, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.3)

Posted on Jun 14, 2013 7:16 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Donot Haveone Author

Level 1

106 points

Jun 14, 2013 9:02 PM in response to Donot Haveone

Also, safe mode boot did not help.

Creating a test user account and accessing one of my mail accounts with test messages did not help--this is the first view, where you can read the test of a test message

http://flickr.com/gp/debunix/qa9uA2

and then I view a test message with a password protected PDF and see the PDF icon

http://flickr.com/gp/debunix/9PEe10

and then I go back to the previous message and it's blank in the preview pane

http://flickr.com/gp/debunix/M56e5J

Reply

Answer 2

Donot Haveone Author

Level 1

106 points

Jun 15, 2013 1:49 PM in response to Donot Haveone

Another thing that didn't help: reinstalling OS X via Internet Recovery.

Reply

Answer 3

Donot Haveone Author

Level 1

106 points

Jun 16, 2013 1:31 PM in response to Donot Haveone

More updates: Apple senior support staff were not able to figure it out, so we've escalated it to the engineers. Their theory at present is that it has something to do with my partitioned hard drive (one partition encrypted for work reasons, with user accounts, all software/libraries/apps), one partition with just data files, mostly image, not encrypted).

I believe this started with 10.8.4, and can't understand how my partition would be an issue, since Mail should have no reason to try to access anything on the other partition.

Reply

Answer 4

Jun 17, 2013 7:53 AM in response to Donot Haveone

Hi Donot

This is not helpful but I am having the same problem as you.

I have upgraded the OS and therefore the Mail version to the latest to try and sort the problem. Re-installed Adobe Reader with no joy.

There is a way around it by typing the folowing into Terminal when mail is closed:

defaults write com.apple.mail DisableInlineAttachmentViewing -bool yes

This forces mail to show the attachments as icons. (to change back put no at the end).

Have you had a reply off apple?

This is a very frustrating problem, I have lost hours trying to sort it today. Nothing on the net other than your post.

A am assuming its a problem with the preview feature and the latest Adobe Reader Update. Our disk is not partitioned at all.

Any help appreciated.

Reply

Answer 5

Donot Haveone Author

Level 1

106 points

Jun 17, 2013 11:16 PM in response to cgreen100

So glad to see this reply--I am NOT ALONE! And on a non-partitioned drive, yay! I will cc this conversation to my Apple support. No new news from them on what might be going on. Are you also updated now to 10.8.4?

Reply

Answer 6

Donot Haveone Author

Level 1

106 points

Jun 17, 2013 11:19 PM in response to Donot Haveone

And another D'Oh question: is your drive encrypted with FileVault?

Reply

Answer 7

Jun 18, 2013 12:41 AM in response to Donot Haveone

Donot

Not encrypted with filevault. Just a standard MAC single partition.

The OS was v10.7. I was hoping that upgrading to Mountain Lion would fix it as the version of mail on the MAC was 5.4 and upgrading it has took it to 6.5 (1508). Current OS version 10.8.4.

Bit more digging, I totally ripped off the adobe reader and downgraded the adobe reader and got the same result. So I dont think it is Adobe Reader. I think it is a problem with the preview feature in mail. Maybe its got corrupt from a software update.

It must be from an update as we seem to be the only people who have gone on forums about this and it has happened at the same time.

I have a like for like machine with the same OS, Mail version etc..... next to me and I am not getting the problem on it. Only difference is one is a 17" Macbook Pro and the other is a 13.1"

Reply

Answer 8

Donot Haveone Author

Level 1

106 points

Jun 18, 2013 8:33 AM in response to cgreen100

Curiouser and curiouser.

My mail is also 6.5 (1508).

Preview is 6.0.1 (756.6)

And it's a 15 inch MBP.

Really bizarre that your two laptops are giving divergent results.

Reply

Answer 9

gomike13

Level 1

0 points

Jun 20, 2013 10:11 AM in response to Donot Haveone

You're definitely not alone with this. I've been seeing it pop up on other forums, too. Getting rid of the sandbox folder hasn't fixed my issue like it has for others (https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5085266?start=0&tstart=0). I'm also seeing this issue after opening a password-protected PDF. I don't have any separate or encrypted partitions, just the standard HD that shipped with my 15" MBP running OS X 10.8.4, Mail v 6.5 and Preview 6.0.1. I hope they release a fix very soon; it's driving me nuts!

Reply

Answer 10

Donot Haveone Author

Level 1

106 points

Jun 20, 2013 10:43 AM in response to gomike13

Thanks for the additional data. I'm copying these additional reports to my Apple advisor who's working with the engineers on this one. The more reports we get the better.

I'm going to be setting up a fresh external drive per the engineers' requests, to put a new install of 10.8.4 on a partition and use as a boot drive with a test user. I doubt it will make any difference, but they'll be capturing data during the session that might help them figure it out.

Reply

Answer 11

Jun 20, 2013 11:39 AM in response to Donot Haveone

I did have the issues described. After I deleted the sanbox folder as previously mentioned, the messages with the content missing were not fixed. At the same time, the new messages that came after the sandbox rebuilding behaved as they should. Since a bunch of these messages were me "testing," it did not matter. I then asked the previous senders to re-send emails for those I did care about, and they were OK. My mail is not stored on a drive without multiple partitions, the issue drove me crazy for days, and I also completely re-installed 10.8.4 which did not fix the issue. I could only something went haywire with the mail preferences in the 10.8.4 update (and I used the combo update - not the shorter app store one) as I have been using Mac Mail since the first days of OS X.

Reply

Answer 12

LantZie

Level 1

0 points

Jun 20, 2013 12:12 PM in response to Donot Haveone

I have the exact same bug.. double-clicking shows the content fine.. rebuilding inboxes does not help.. 😠 come on Apple this is really bad

Reply

Answer 13

surawuts

Level 1

0 points

Jun 20, 2013 4:46 PM in response to Donot Haveone

I also have this problem. Try many things, still does not work.

Reply

Answer 14

Jun 20, 2013 4:50 PM in response to Donot Haveone

I've had the same problem on 3 computers since updating them to 10.8.4

I don't think many will find this thread as most will search for threads relating to 10.8.4

It only happens to my mail after viewing a message that contains a password protected pdf. If I don't open emails that contain the pdfs mail works perfectly, but once I've clicked on a message that contains a pdf every email turns blank. Mac mail & POP accounts. I can double-click the email to have it viewable in a new window but still can't open the pdfs. I get password protected pdfs regularly for work.

They're standard drives, no partitioning.

I've tried the "sandbox" suggestion with no joy. & I've also tried removing junk filtering which is a suggestion on another thread.

I don't think I'm up to re-installing 10.8.3 so I've been using a browser for emails.

Reply

Answer 15

Donot Haveone Author

Level 1

106 points

Jun 21, 2013 1:16 PM in response to fergustilt

Additional thing that did not work--setting up fresh install of 10.8.4 on a newly wiped external drive, partitioned but not encrypted, nothing else on that or any of the other partitions, and booting from a test account on that drive.

Still password-protected PDFs are the disrupting element.

Reply