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Thunderbird update 78.4.0 deleted my local files and folders.

  • 7 cavab
  • 3 have this problem
  • 9 views
  • Last reply by sfhowes

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Thunderbird update 78.4.0 deleted my local files and folders. Turned on computer this morning to find Thunderbird had updated to 78.4.0. All my local file and folders are now gone. This is where I stored important emails. Desktop computer running Windows7. Please, at least, help locate missing files and folders and if possible restore Thunderbird to previous functionality.

Thunderbird update 78.4.0 deleted my local files and folders. Turned on computer this morning to find Thunderbird had updated to 78.4.0. All my local file and folders are now gone. This is where I stored important emails. Desktop computer running Windows7. Please, at least, help locate missing files and folders and if possible restore Thunderbird to previous functionality.

All Replies (7)

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Help/Troubleshooting, Profile Folder, Open Profile, close TB. Open Mail/Local Folders. Do you see mbox files - large files with no extension, named after folders - there, or in sbd subfolders? What is the name of the profile folder? Are there other profile folders when you go up one level in Explorer to the Profiles folder?

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"Open Mail/Local Folders. Do you see mbox files - large files with no extension, named after folders - there, or in sbd subfolders?"

Once I open Local Folders I find "Outlook Express Import.SBD" folder and several msf files and others. When I open the "Outlook Express Import.SBD" folder I see other SBD folders and files and msf files that I am missing. Opening the other SBD folders leads me to find more files I'm missing.

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The mbox files in Mail/Local Folders and the sbd subfolders contain the messages. Delete the .msf files, then restart TB, which will automatically rebuild the msf. Do the folders now appear under Local Folders in the Folder Pane?

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Deleted every .msf file I could find in every subfolder. restarted TB and still don't have the missing folders or files.

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I don't know yet why the local folders aren't recognized, but I suggest you try this simple test: Help/Troubleshooting, about:profiles, create a new profile, add a mail account. Then, in the new profile, open the profile folder, close TB, and copy one mbox file from Mail/Local Folders in the old profile that doesn't appear, to Mail/Local Folders in the new profile. Restart TB in the new profile (from about:profiles) and see if the folder appears under Local Folders.

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Yes, individual files (containing the saved emails) appear if I move it to the new profile, but if I try to move the files over in their parent .sbd folder, they do not show.

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It may be a hassle, but just copy the mbox files from the sbd folders to the root Mail/Local Folders in the new, and then create new subfolders in TB, and move the messages.