Users

Users are entities that represent people. A user has a real name and a optional encoded password. A user may also have an optional preferences and a set of addresses they control. They can even have a preferred address, i.e. one that they use by default.

See usermanager.txt for examples of how to create, delete, and find users.

>>> from mailman.interfaces.usermanager import IUserManager
>>> from zope.component import getUtility
>>> user_manager = getUtility(IUserManager)

User data

Users may have a real name and a password.

>>> user_1 = user_manager.create_user()
>>> user_1.password = 'my password'
>>> user_1.display_name = 'Zoe Person'
>>> from mailman.testing.documentation import dump_list
>>> dump_list(user.display_name for user in user_manager.users)
Zoe Person
>>> dump_list(user.password for user in user_manager.users)
my password

The password and real name can be changed at any time.

>>> user_1.display_name = 'Zoe X. Person'
>>> user_1.password = 'another password'
>>> dump_list(user.display_name for user in user_manager.users)
Zoe X. Person
>>> dump_list(user.password for user in user_manager.users)
another password

When the user’s password is changed, an event is triggered.

>>> saved_event = None
>>> def save_event(event):
...     global saved_event
...     saved_event = event
>>> from mailman.testing.helpers import event_subscribers
>>> with event_subscribers(save_event):
...     user_1.password = 'changed again'
>>> print(saved_event)
<PasswordChangeEvent Zoe X. Person>

The event holds a reference to the IUser that changed their password.

>>> print(saved_event.user.display_name)
Zoe X. Person
>>> print(saved_event.user.password)
changed again

Basic user identification

Although rarely visible to users, every user has a unique immutable ID. This ID is generated randomly at the time the user is created, and is represented by a UUID.

>>> print(user_1.user_id)
00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000001

User records also have a date on which they where created.

# The test suite uses a predictable timestamp. >>> print(user_1.created_on) 2005-08-01 07:49:23

Users addresses

One of the pieces of information that a user links to is a set of email addresses they control, in the form of IAddress objects. A user can control many addresses, but addresses may be linked to only one user.

The easiest way to link a user to an address is to just register the new address on a user object.

>>> user_1.register('zperson@example.com', 'Zoe Person')
<Address: Zoe Person <zperson@example.com> [not verified] at 0x...>
>>> user_1.register('zperson@example.org')
<Address: zperson@example.org [not verified] at 0x...>
>>> dump_list(address.email for address in user_1.addresses)
zperson@example.com
zperson@example.org
>>> dump_list(address.display_name for address in user_1.addresses)

Zoe Person

You can also create the address separately and then link it to the user.

>>> address_1 = user_manager.create_address('zperson@example.net')
>>> user_1.link(address_1)
>>> dump_list(address.email for address in user_1.addresses)
zperson@example.com
zperson@example.net
zperson@example.org
>>> dump_list(address.display_name for address in user_1.addresses)


Zoe Person

You can also ask whether a given user controls a given address.

>>> user_1.controls(address_1.email)
True
>>> user_1.controls('bperson@example.com')
False

Given a text email address, the user manager can find the user that controls that address.

>>> user_manager.get_user('zperson@example.com') is user_1
True
>>> user_manager.get_user('zperson@example.net') is user_1
True
>>> user_manager.get_user('zperson@example.org') is user_1
True
>>> print(user_manager.get_user('bperson@example.com'))
None

Addresses can also be unlinked from a user.

>>> user_1.unlink(address_1)
>>> user_1.controls('zperson@example.net')
False
>>> print(user_manager.get_user('aperson@example.net'))
None

Preferred address

Users can register a preferred address. When subscribing to a mailing list, unless some other address is explicitly specified, the user will be subscribed with their preferred address. This allows them to change their preferred address once, and have all their subscriptions automatically track this change.

By default, a user has no preferred address.

>>> user_2 = user_manager.create_user()
>>> print(user_2.preferred_address)
None

Even when a user registers an address, this address will not be set as the preferred address.

>>> anne = user_2.register('anne@example.com', 'Anne Person')
>>> print(user_2.preferred_address)
None

Once the address has been verified, it can be set as the preferred address, but only if the address is either controlled by the user or uncontrolled. In the latter case, setting it as the preferred address makes it controlled by the user.

>>> from mailman.utilities.datetime import now
>>> anne.verified_on = now()
>>> anne
<Address: Anne Person <anne@example.com> [verified] at ...>
>>> user_2.controls(anne.email)
True
>>> user_2.preferred_address = anne
>>> user_2.preferred_address
<Address: Anne Person <anne@example.com> [verified] at ...>

>>> aperson = user_manager.create_address('aperson@example.com')
>>> user_2.controls(aperson.email)
False
>>> aperson.verified_on = now()
>>> user_2.preferred_address = aperson
>>> user_2.controls(aperson.email)
True

A user can disavow their preferred address.

>>> user_2.preferred_address
<Address: aperson@example.com [verified] at ...>
>>> del user_2.preferred_address
>>> print(user_2.preferred_address)
None

The preferred address always shows up in the set of addresses controlled by this user.

>>> from operator import attrgetter
>>> for address in sorted(user_2.addresses, key=attrgetter('email')):
...     print(address.email)
anne@example.com
aperson@example.com

Users and preferences

This is a helper function for the following section.

>>> def show_prefs(prefs):
...     print('acknowledge_posts    :', prefs.acknowledge_posts)
...     print('preferred_language   :', prefs.preferred_language)
...     print('receive_list_copy    :', prefs.receive_list_copy)
...     print('receive_own_postings :', prefs.receive_own_postings)
...     print('delivery_mode        :', prefs.delivery_mode)

Users have preferences, but these preferences have no default settings.

>>> from mailman.interfaces.preferences import IPreferences
>>> show_prefs(user_1.preferences)
acknowledge_posts    : None
preferred_language   : None
receive_list_copy    : None
receive_own_postings : None
delivery_mode        : None

Some of these preferences are booleans and they can be set to True or False.

>>> from mailman.core.constants import DeliveryMode
>>> prefs = user_1.preferences
>>> prefs.acknowledge_posts = True
>>> prefs.preferred_language = 'fr'
>>> prefs.receive_list_copy = False
>>> prefs.receive_own_postings = False
>>> prefs.delivery_mode = DeliveryMode.regular
>>> show_prefs(user_1.preferences)
acknowledge_posts    : True
preferred_language   : <Language [fr] French>
receive_list_copy    : False
receive_own_postings : False
delivery_mode        : DeliveryMode.regular

Subscriptions

Users know which mailing lists they are subscribed to, regardless of membership role.

>>> user_1.link(address_1)
>>> dump_list(address.email for address in user_1.addresses)
zperson@example.com
zperson@example.net
zperson@example.org
>>> com = user_manager.get_address('zperson@example.com')
>>> org = user_manager.get_address('zperson@example.org')
>>> net = user_manager.get_address('zperson@example.net')

>>> from mailman.app.lifecycle import create_list
>>> mlist_1 = create_list('xtest_1@example.com')
>>> mlist_2 = create_list('xtest_2@example.com')
>>> mlist_3 = create_list('xtest_3@example.com')
>>> from mailman.interfaces.member import MemberRole

>>> mlist_1.subscribe(com, MemberRole.member)
<Member: Zoe Person <zperson@example.com> on xtest_1@example.com as
    MemberRole.member>
>>> mlist_2.subscribe(org, MemberRole.member)
<Member: zperson@example.org on xtest_2@example.com as MemberRole.member>
>>> mlist_2.subscribe(org, MemberRole.owner)
<Member: zperson@example.org on xtest_2@example.com as MemberRole.owner>
>>> mlist_3.subscribe(net, MemberRole.moderator)
<Member: zperson@example.net on xtest_3@example.com as
    MemberRole.moderator>

>>> memberships = user_1.memberships
>>> from mailman.interfaces.roster import IRoster
>>> from zope.interface.verify import verifyObject
>>> verifyObject(IRoster, memberships)
True
>>> def sortkey(member):
...     return member.address.email, member.mailing_list, member.role.value
>>> members = sorted(memberships.members, key=sortkey)
>>> len(members)
4
>>> for member in sorted(members, key=sortkey):
...     print(member.address.email, member.mailing_list.list_id,
...           member.role)
zperson@example.com xtest_1.example.com MemberRole.member
zperson@example.net xtest_3.example.com MemberRole.moderator
zperson@example.org xtest_2.example.com MemberRole.member
zperson@example.org xtest_2.example.com MemberRole.owner

Server owners

Some users are server owners. Zoe is not yet a server owner.

>>> user_1.is_server_owner
False

So, let’s make her one.

>>> user_1.is_server_owner = True
>>> user_1.is_server_owner
True