It is not straight forward to disable updates, except on Linux. There is no supported method for it outside of the use of corporate update servers to release updates. Some have gone that route and used fake servers so updates fail.

But let me be clear, the developers do not want anyone on an old version for any longer than is absolutely necessary as serious vulnerabilities are discovered almost daily.

Before you go further, have a look at the security vulnerabilities that have been fixed since V102 went out of support before you again go back in history. https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/security/known-vulnerabilities/thunderbird/ I suggest you check that list frequently as you are making a decision to place your system and your data at risk bu using old unsupported software. There may even be legal issues involved if others are affected by your decisions.

Thanks for your time, Matt.

The security considerations are of critical importance. I promptly install updates for Firefox and all my other applications. For my operating system, I have Apple install security updates automatically. For other OS updates, if I am in the middle of an important project, I often check Tidbits first, and usually then finish up my work and install the update.

The only exceptions are when I really must finish something before taking the risk of an update. I'm a software architect with forty years of experience, so I am well aware of all the different classes of security risks. (As you will expect, I am also well aware of the risks to my work of making any update. I do my best to strike the proper balance. And I do accept responsibility for my decisions.)

Of course, I want to keep my mail reader right up to date with security updates. And with Thunderbird, I used to always install updates either immediately, or before shutting down. Thus, I promptly installed SuperNova when it was offered.

I tried to live with SuperNova, but it is simply not possible for me.

One example: I work on cases for years at a time, and keep messages in a single folder. I have been doing this with Thunderbird for twenty years. But when I scroll down for a ways and select a message, SuperNova scrolls the display back up a ways, hiding the context of the the message I just selected among the other messages right before and after it in time.

(I can think of no reason for scrolling a list when someone selects an item in that list. That must be a failure in UI testing.)

I lived with this for a long time, because I thought I the Thunderbird Project gave me no other choice. Then I decided it made my work far too difficult; that I had no choice but to switch to another mail reader. While considering the choices, I discovered that the Thunderbird workers provide us users a way to switch back to an earlier version. Hurrah!

Then, in a couple of weeks of frequent interruptions and clicks to not-update, I made a mistake. Heads down in work, and having stepped away from the machine for a short time, just as I returned the update request popped up and--somehow thinking it was the application I was working in, ... ... I stupidly clicked [Update]. Then I had to take time away from work to do the downgrade again.

Please continue to help me. What are one or more non-supported methods?

Just as an example: What about adding to the profile the distribution folder with the policies.json script?

Thanks again and much.

I'm on a Windows OS.

Settings > General scroll down to 'Updates' section I have selected: 'Check for updates but let me choose whether to install them' Sometimes I've delayed updates and other times just carried on with updating.

However.....there is also another setting.

• Uncheck this checkbox: 'Use a background service to install updates'

What does that do for me...? It forces Windows OS to pop up a window asking if I'm sure I want to allow the Thunderbird Program to update files on computer. So, if you have accidently clicked on the 'Update' but then thought..no. You can say NO when you get the computer update request to allow or not. Now, I'm not on a MAC, but it's possible you have a similar set up. Worth checking this out.