Reinstalling saved mail
I have used Tbird for a long time, but cannot solve my current problem. Long ago, I created a Saved Mail folder, and I have many subfolders and sub-subfolders under that, for clients, software licenses, etc. A couple years ago, we replaced HDDs with SSDs and I had to get all this Saved Mail to show up again on Tbird. After much effort, I succeeded, but this time I am having no luck. I use Carbonite to back up my computer, and I have app data, all the way down to the Tbird profiles. When I got my new computer a week ago, I could look in Profiles in Carbonite, and see my Saved Mail folder, with all the subfolders intact. For some odd reason, I am no longer seeing it in Carbonite, and I have not reinstalled Carbonite on the new computer, so it is not overwriting. However, I did download the Saved Mail folder to my desktop while it was available, and I still have that intact. I've uploaded a screenshot of the contents of my profiles folder, as well as a partial screenshot of the contents of the Saved Mail folder, showing I have the right types of folders and files. I've tried pasting the Saved Mail folder in various places within the Profiles folders, but to no avail. Seems like when I had to do this a couple years ago, this is how I went about it, and it was instantly evident that it worked when I found the right place. I've tried opening and closing Tbird, uninstalling and reinstalling, as well as re-downloading and reinstalling it. Don't know if it's a clue, but the title bar, or whatever you call it at the top of Tbird, is black and gray. I can sometimes get a theme to work, but then at some point it will be black again. Likewise with looking into the import wizard, the upper part had the current theme, but the lower part was black, and now it's completely black. Sure hope someone can help! I'm sunk without all these saved emails! Thanks a million!
გადაწყვეტა შერჩეულია
Dear Toad-Hall, Still flummoxed by this problem, I reread the last line of your response, "If you use an IMAP mail account, then you need to paste all those copied files into the 'Mail'/'Local Folders' folder." I had tried that before. BUT, today, noticing that Tbird seems to create a Local Folders folder on my Desktop, I tried pasting the contents of my Saved Mail folder in there, and voila! I got all my emails back! Out of curiosity, I undid that, and pasted them instead in the Mail/Local Folders within Profiles, and it doesn't work. Only works if I put them in the folder on the Desktop. Is that unusual for Tbird to create the folder on my Desktop? Bottom line, got my emails back! Thanks for your help. And now, to make a contribution.......
პასუხის ნახვა სრულად 👍 0ყველა პასუხი (4)
The second image is used to import mail from a server, not import Thunderbird files.
The third image shows a partial screenshot of the contents of the Saved Mail folder. The contents of that 'Saved Mail' folder can only go into a mail account folder - not a profile name folder.
Usually, you backup the 'Thunderbird' folder which is located in the Appdata/Roaming folder and this backup everything making it very easy to copy from one computer to another. Do you have the 'Thunderbird' folder backed up ?
- C: Users/User Name/Appdata/Roaming/Thunderbird
If yes. Copy the backed up 'Thunderbird' folder.
Exit Thunderbird if it is running. Access : * C: Users/User Name/Appdata/Roaming folder Delete the default 'Thunderbird' folder and then paste in the copied 'Thunderbird' folder from backup Start Thunderbird.
Otherwise:
You have two profile name folders.
k70k955o.default and k70k955o-1.default
This tells me you have copied the k70k955o.default into the 'Profiles' folder twice and the second time it added a number.
k70k955o-1.default.sbd and k70k955o-1.default.msf should not exist as neither are actual 'profile name' folders, so it sounds like you tried to use the 'Profiles' folder as if it were a mail account.
In the 'k70k955o.default' folder it should contain all the files and folders required by the profile to function. It should not have any mbox files nor .msf files nor .sbd folders. If your mail account is set up as a POP mail account then the pop mail account will be in the 'Mail' folder.
Exit Thunderbird Access:
- C: Users/User Name/Appdata/Roaming/Thunderbird/Profiles/k70k955o.default/Mail folder
You will see your pop account name folder(s) and also 'Local Folders' mail account. Click on the Pop mail account folder to see contents. This is where you need to paste copies of all the files and folders you see in the 'Saved Mail' folder - assuming it only contains mbox, .msf and .sbd folders as per the third image.
If you use an IMAP mail account, then you need to paste all those copied files into the 'Mail'/'Local Folders' folder.
Hi, At first, I was overjoyed that help had arrived! Alas, it's still a vexing problem. First, I'll comment on some parts of your reply - all of which I am tremendously grateful for. I wasn't trying to use the import utility to solve my problem, only showing it to illustrate a peculiar behavior in the program, in case it was diagnostic. That, and the title bar of Tbird are black with fuzzy gray letters.
I learned subsequent to running into all my troubles, that the best thing is to copy and paste the entire Tbird folder from backup. Unfortunately, I didn't do that, and for some very odd reason, the Tbird folder in Carbonite online backup is no longer complete, lacking the "Saved Mail" folder. I certainly didn't intentionally delete it, and it can't have been overwritten since I haven't reinstalled Carbonite to continue backing up, until I solve this problem
So, today, I started with your advice about the folders and .msf file with the -1 suffix, and moved them to a folder on my desktop, after closing Tbird. But upon reopening Tbird, they reappear in the profiles folder!
You gave me a lot of advice regarding POP mail, but I neglected to say I have a gmail IMAP account. Do you see any way I can utilize the contents of my Saved Mail folder I have on my desktop, which is everything I retrieved from my backup before it went missing there. It's 8GB of important emails!
Thanks
BTW, I was thinking about your comment about my having pasted the k70k955o.default folder twice, it made sense that I may have done that when I installed my SSD's about two years ago. I'd try one thing after another, and finally got my saved mail to show up. At that point, I didn't want to screw anything up, so I was reluctant to change or delete anything. But that's why I was surprised today when I'd remove them from the profile folder, but they'd reappear as soon as I opened Tbird. Unless it's because I cut and pasted them into a folder on my desktop, thinking being that Tbird seems to create a Local Folders folder that it places on the desktop, so maybe it was finding these moved files there? Thanks again.....
შერჩეული გადაწყვეტა
Dear Toad-Hall, Still flummoxed by this problem, I reread the last line of your response, "If you use an IMAP mail account, then you need to paste all those copied files into the 'Mail'/'Local Folders' folder." I had tried that before. BUT, today, noticing that Tbird seems to create a Local Folders folder on my Desktop, I tried pasting the contents of my Saved Mail folder in there, and voila! I got all my emails back! Out of curiosity, I undid that, and pasted them instead in the Mail/Local Folders within Profiles, and it doesn't work. Only works if I put them in the folder on the Desktop. Is that unusual for Tbird to create the folder on my Desktop? Bottom line, got my emails back! Thanks for your help. And now, to make a contribution.......