Let me answer my own question. I found an error in the syslog. So I backed up the prefs.js file and copied the one from Seamonkey and now I have my accounts and folders. I think, I'm back... Hopefully, this will help someone else

gsd-media-keys[8952]: /home/XXXX/.thunderbird/68hg5gdd.default-release/prefs.js:60: prefs parse error: expected '(' after pref specifier

Larry, thanks for updating your own problem report!

I had to do this again. Don't know if I ran out of space and/or the nas wasn't mounted, but again thunderbird got into a "state" where it was asking me to set up accounts from the get go, and would no longer look for my accounts and folders.

I removed everything under the Mail directory (.mozilla/seamonkey/weird_default_dir_name/Mail) to keep the directory size manageable as all the mail is also under my (.thunderbird directory on the nas). I don't know what other files have so I wouldn't go per file, but keep a backup of the directory and if you can't afford to back up emails (or don't need to), you can exclude the Mail directory or at least whats under it, I believe (no liability :P on me!).

I haven't tested myself, but symlinks have been known to cause problems:

• https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=760937
• https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=555803
• full list https://mzl.la/47w5RDJ
• mozilla core issues https://mzl.la/3sHXohT

Wayne,

First, it seems as though I'm having another issue caused by the corruption. This wasn't a problem until that folder got corrupted but maybe you can help me on which file or files might be the issue as I know the problem. I tried to send from one of my accounts and got "relaying disallowed from my_email". It took me a little bit to understand, but I'm using an online account with my own domain, and I have several email address with that domain. For example for myemail@mydomain.com, myemailjunk@mydomain.com, and say myotheremail@mydomain.com. It's all being sent to a single online email service with the same domain that you would normally use like yahoo.com or gmail.com but it requires a login with the entire email at the same SMTP address. Two of these are getting the SMTP settings conflated. I found myemailjunk@mydomain.com with the SMTP username of myemail@mydomain.com, but when I change it, it changes the other myemail@mydomain.com as well and visa versa. So two have become one in the SMTP settings. So, I'll have one of these broken all the time unless I find the file where this is corrupted at.

On the symlink: Maybe, but I need to move to a more devops ci/cd linux solution. Part of that is going to be separating data from the program. The other is having flat file configurations that can be dropped for setup rather than having to be configure. I'm learning this for work/jobs but it's needed at home to. As a non-youngster resetting up your system all the time, is just wearing. I need to get it where it's highly configured, but all automated and where my data is separate from the code/program. (encapsulation kind of thing)

Currently, the symlink is to a nas, where that data should be safer... I need to set up an automated git push on that folder, if I can get it down in size to just the config/settings. Currently, I know only I would exclude the mail directory. I wish there was better documentation on what files are what; if there is let me know.

I got it. Somehow the prefs.js had the same smtp server id.

user_pref("mail.identity.id1.smtpServer", "smtp2"); user_pref("mail.identity.id2.smtpServer", "smtp2");

just changed back and in business

user_pref("mail.identity.id1.smtpServer", "smtp1"); user_pref("mail.identity.id2.smtpServer", "smtp2");