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Migrating Thunderbird from Intel iMac to M1 iMac

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I have just upgraded from a late 2012 27" iMac running Thunderbird vsn 78.12.0 (64 bit) to my new 2021 M1 iMac and have installed Thunderbird that also shows as vsn 78.12.0

I wanted to migrate all my accounts, settings, message filters, contacts and local folders but despite following carefully all the instructions in the Thunderbird help section "Moving Thunderbird Data to a New Computer" I cannot get all my existing folders showing.

When I look for the Profile Folder as directed, show in Finder then copy to a data stick it shows not as "Thunderbird" but as "kyeo000w.default". When I then paste that file into the Thunderbird profile folder on my new iMac and then run Thunderbird it does not show all my existing settings etc.

Any suggestions?

I have just upgraded from a late 2012 27" iMac running Thunderbird vsn 78.12.0 (64 bit) to my new 2021 M1 iMac and have installed Thunderbird that also shows as vsn 78.12.0 I wanted to migrate all my accounts, settings, message filters, contacts and local folders but despite following carefully all the instructions in the Thunderbird help section "Moving Thunderbird Data to a New Computer" I cannot get all my existing folders showing. When I look for the Profile Folder as directed, show in Finder then copy to a data stick it shows not as "Thunderbird" but as "kyeo000w.default". When I then paste that file into the Thunderbird profile folder on my new iMac and then run Thunderbird it does not show all my existing settings etc. Any suggestions?

All Replies (1)

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Hi Jay, On your Intel Mac, kyeo000w.default should reside inside a folder called Thunderbird. With Thunderbird, you can set up multiple profiles, and each have their own xxxxxxx.profilename folder. There is a separate file called profiles.ini where Thunderbird keeps track of your profile list and where to find each profile. That's why it's important to copy the entire Thunderbird folder, not just 'xxxxxxx.default.

For more information about profiles, check out the following articles: