org-refile does not work. org-copy-subtree: Invalid function: org-preserve-local-variables

[Lchyang]

Description
org-refile does not work.

Reproduction guide 🐞
Start Emacs
Open an .org file
Go to a headline and try to refile by , R
select a target
Observed behaviour: 👀 💔
I get the following message:
Getting targets...done
Copied: Subtree(s) with 22 characters
org-copy-subtree: Invalid function: org-preserve-local-variables

Expected behaviour: ❤️ 😄
refile could be used

System Info 💻

• OS: darwin
• Emacs: 25.3.1
• Spacemacs: 0.200.13
• Spacemacs branch: master (rev. c7a103a)
• Graphic display: t
• Distribution: spacemacs
• Editing style: vim
• Completion: helm
• Layers:
  ‘‘‘elisp
  (markdown
  (ibuffer :variables ibuffer-group-buffers-by ’projects)
  (chinese :variables chinese-enable-youdao-dict t)
  auto-completion emacs-lisp
  (python :variables python-sort-imports-on-save t python-enable-yapf-format-on-save t)
  django org syntax-checking)
  ‘‘‘

my org config:

(with-eval-after-load 'org

  (setq org-agenda-files '("~/org/gtd/inbox.org"
                          "~/org/gtd/gtd.org"
                          "~/org/gtd/tickler.org"))

  (setq org-capture-templates '(("t" "Todo [inbox]" entry
                                (file+headline "~/org/gtd/inbox.org" "Tasks")
                                "* TODO %i%?")
                                ("T" "Tickler" entry
                                (file+headline "~/org/gtd/tickler.org" "Tickler")
                                "* %i%? \n %U")))


  (setq org-refile-targets
          '((nil :maxlevel . 3)
          (org-agenda-files :maxlevel . 3)))

  (setq org-refile-use-outline-path 'file)

  (setq org-outline-path-complete-in-steps nil)

  (setq org-todo-keywords '((sequence "TODO(t)" "WAITING(w)" "|" "DONE(d)" "CANCELLED(c)")))

[samspills]

This is probably the same as here: #11788

Could you try removing all org*/*.elc files from your elpa directory and recompile? I did the following:

cd ~/.emacs.d/elpa/develop
find org*/*.elc -print0 | xargs -0 rm

and then inside spacemacs I ran spacemacs/recompile-elpa.

[Lchyang]

Thank you very much, I used the master branch.
I did this:

cd ~/.emacs.d/elpa
find org*/*.elc -print0 | xargs -0 rm

and the problem is solved.

[snuffop]

Just a Note: even after installing ~/.emacs.d fresh, one needs to still follow the above after installed.

[breadncup]

I believe this is a bug in org or org-refile somewhere. Why does removing the byte compiled files resolve the issue? It's ridiculous. Shouldn't everything work fine with byte compiled one as well?

[snuffop]

Your right. I believe that it May have something to do with load order or the recompile after update reads in previously uncompiled code. Not sure.

[skrobul]

Had the same error, but with org-gcal instead. Running the commands above did not help, so I decided to nuke all *.elc files in ~/.emacs.d, then ran spacemacs/recompile-elpa and the problem is gone.

[lsyoyo]

@samspills I did what you mentioned in your comment, and I even did what @skrobul suggested, I still have issue, any suggestions?

[lsyoyo]

I moved up one directory level (~/.emacs.d/elpa) and then did the steps again, after that it worked.

[sydneyweidman]

Had the same error, but with org-gcal instead. Running the commands above did not help, so I decided to nuke all *.elc files in ~/.emacs.d, then ran spacemacs/recompile-elpa and the problem is gone.

I'm running develop on Ubuntu 18.06 and this was the only thing that worked for me.
Even removing the elc files from .emacs.d/elpa didn't work. Had to do the whole tree from .emacs.d on down.

[jscott22]

Had the same error, but with org-gcal instead. Running the commands above did not help, so I decided to nuke all *.elc files in ~/.emacs.d, then ran spacemacs/recompile-elpa and the problem is gone.

I'm running develop on Ubuntu 18.06 and this was the only thing that worked for me.
Even removing the elc files from .emacs.d/elpa didn't work. Had to do the whole tree from .emacs.d on down.

This worked for me, thanks!!

[bleggett]

This needs to be reopened, there is a workaround, but the core issue has not been resolved in Spacemacs yet, and even when fixed it recurs when packages are updated.

Looks like it was fixed in doom-emacs thusly:
doomemacs/core@574dae1