This article describes the Troubleshoot Mode of Thunderbird, which can be used to find and fix problems, especially if they are caused by add-ons.
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What is Troubleshoot Mode and how does it work?
Troubleshoot Mode is a special mode of starting Thunderbird that can be used to find and fix problems with your installation of Thunderbird. Troubleshoot Mode will temporarily disable your add-ons and reset some custom settings in order to avoid these possible causes of problems. If you find that a certain problem with your Thunderbird installation does not happen in Troubleshoot Mode, then most likely one of your add-ons or a custom setting is causing the problem.
Starting Thunderbird in Troubleshoot Mode
If Thunderbird is not running:
- Hold down the Shift key while starting Thunderbird.Hold down the option key while starting Thunderbird.From Terminal, run this command:
thunderbird -safe-mode
You may need to specify the Thunderbird installation path (e.g. /usr/lib/thunderbird).
If Thunderbird is already running:
- At the top right of the Thunderbird window, click the button.
- Click menu .
- Click and in the Restart in Troubleshoot Mode prompt, choose . The troubleshooting mode dialog will be displayed.
- In the Thunderbird Troubleshoot Mode dialog, click button.
Confirming that Troubleshoot Mode is activated
To confirm that Thunderbird is currently running in Troubleshoot Mode:
- At the top right of the Thunderbird window, click the button.
- Click menu .
If Thunderbird is in Troubleshoot Mode, you will see the following banner near the top of the Add-ons Manager tab content: (i) All add-ons have been disabled by safe mode.
Turning Troubleshoot Mode off
- At the top right of the Thunderbird window, click the button.
- Click menu
- Click menu . This will immediately close Thunderbird and restart it in normal mode.
Or you can just exit and restart Thunderbird as you normally would.