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Unable to automatically update from 60.8.0

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I get frequent messages saying that a security patch is unable to update Thunderbird. I have tried updating from the website as suggested which took me through a new install wizard on the machine. I cancelled the wizard and now am unable to copy pictures from Windows Explorer to a new mail in Thunderbird without invoking the new unsetup version of Thunderbird. Can I rectify the problem without saving the profiles and starting again with a deinstall of everything and reinstall?

I get frequent messages saying that a security patch is unable to update Thunderbird. I have tried updating from the website as suggested which took me through a new install wizard on the machine. I cancelled the wizard and now am unable to copy pictures from Windows Explorer to a new mail in Thunderbird without invoking the new unsetup version of Thunderbird. Can I rectify the problem without saving the profiles and starting again with a deinstall of everything and reinstall?

Chosen solution

Download the full installer from https://www.thunderbird.net/ and run it. This will upgrade your you installation to the latest release version (68.2.0).

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All Replies (10)

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Chosen Solution

Download the full installer from https://www.thunderbird.net/ and run it. This will upgrade your you installation to the latest release version (68.2.0).

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Hi, thanks for your reply. I downloaded the installer and ran through the various prompts but unfortunately it led me into setting up everything from scratch which I cancelled. The existing install is still working but there must be two incidents of Thunderbird on the machine as the incomplete setup of the new version becomes visible when trying to do certain things.

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In TB, select Help/Troubleshooting Information, click about:profiles. Do you see other profiles besides the one that is in use? 'Launch profile in new browser' for the one that includes your working data, and then 'Set as default profile' when you determine the correct one.

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Hi, thanks for your help! All sorted. I would like to remove the old version of Thunderbird, the .exe file exists in Program Files (x86). There is a helper.exe file in the uninstall directory but I am not sure if it would remove components used by the new version which is in Program Files.

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I would like to remove the old version of Thunderbird, the .exe file exists in Program Files (x86).

Are you saying you downloaded and installed the 64-bit version? If so, it should be safe to uninstall the old 32-bit version.

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Hi, thanks again for your ongoing help. I downloaded the installer, there was only one. Then I ran the installer from the PC, again there were no options regarding the operating system version.

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I downloaded the installer, there was only one.

When downloading Thunderbird from https://www.thunderbird.net/ there are multiple options which version to download for which OS. Among those options are Windows 32-bit and Windows 64-bit.

Which version are you running now - 32-bit or 64-bit? To check: At the top right of the Thunderbird window, click the menu button > Help > About Thunderbird

Modified by christ1

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Hi, I see one issue here. I used the large Free Download key which doesn't ask you anything about your system. I see now in faint small writing underneath there is a link Systems & Languages.

Both my versions are 32 bit so I suppose uninstalling the old version may delete system files for the new version. Is there any benefit in using the 64 bit version? Thanks again for your time!

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Both my versions are 32 bit so I suppose uninstalling the old version may delete system files for the new version.

That seems pretty likely, the old installer entry is just an orphan. Presumably there are tools around to remove those orphans, Google is your friend. Since it won't hurt, you could also just leave it alone.

Is there any benefit in using the 64 bit version?

In the long term, there will only be 64-bit software. However, right now, there's no real benefit migrating to the 64-bit version. The 32-bit version is still the more thoroughly tested one.

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Ok, I'll leave the old version and keep with the latest 32 bit one. Thanks again for your help!

Case closed!