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New PC Thunderbird installation - unable to right click delete files in Bin folder

Simon

New W11 Pro pc, so new installation of Thunderbird. All profiles and folders moved over ok, but the Bin folder is an issue (main Gmail account IMAP). In my previous Tbird installation, I was able to right click the Bin folder, and be given the option of emptying said folder. Not now. The Spam folder does have the Empty option. Pics illustrate the folder list, what happens when I right click the Bin folder, and what happens when I right click the Spam folder, which does have the 'Empty Spam' option. I can highlight the messages in the Bin folder and delete them that way, but the right click option is shorter, easier... The only item I can find in the Thunderbird help pages tell me to delete the Trash and Trash msf folders in the profile - tried this twice, with no difference. It's a little frustrating... Any help would be welcomed, I guess I'm missing something really simple...

New W11 Pro pc, so new installation of Thunderbird. All profiles and folders moved over ok, but the Bin folder is an issue (main Gmail account IMAP). In my previous Tbird installation, I was able to right click the Bin folder, and be given the option of emptying said folder. Not now. The Spam folder does have the Empty option. Pics illustrate the folder list, what happens when I right click the Bin folder, and what happens when I right click the Spam folder, which does have the 'Empty Spam' option. I can highlight the messages in the Bin folder and delete them that way, but the right click option is shorter, easier... The only item I can find in the Thunderbird help pages tell me to delete the Trash and Trash msf folders in the profile - tried this twice, with no difference. It's a little frustrating... Any help would be welcomed, I guess I'm missing something really simple...
Attached screenshots

All Replies (5)

The "Bin" folder is not recognized as a trash folder. It seems to be a user-created folder. The folder for trash seems to be "Deleted". Where do messages go when you delete them?

Hi, The Bin folder is not one that I have added - this is a brand new PC, and a brand new Thunderbird installation to which I have brought over my profiles. As I can no longer access my old PC, I cannot be sure there was a Bin folder there previously..... When I delete emails now, they go into the Deleted folder, not the Bin...if I delete the emails on the Bin folder, they go into the Deleted folder... The Bin folder also seems to have emails in it during the stages of my composing them - I composed a long email last night, and there are several versions of this incomplete email in the Bin folder... If I delete the Bin folder, should this solve the issue altogether, do you think? Also - I weirdly have two Sent folders for the same account, with differing emails in them, all going back months...this was definitely the same on my old PC...no idea what to do about this...

I've tried to delete the Bin folder and got this message:

Simon said

Hi, The Bin folder is not one that I have added - this is a brand new PC, and a brand new Thunderbird installation to which I have brought over my profiles. As I can no longer access my old PC, I cannot be sure there was a Bin folder there previously..... When I delete emails now, they go into the Deleted folder, not the Bin...if I delete the emails on the Bin folder, they go into the Deleted folder... The Bin folder also seems to have emails in it during the stages of my composing them - I composed a long email last night, and there are several versions of this incomplete email in the Bin folder... If I delete the Bin folder, should this solve the issue altogether, do you think? Also - I weirdly have two Sent folders for the same account, with differing emails in them, all going back months...this was definitely the same on my old PC...no idea what to do about this...

If you brought over your old profiles, then it is not a brand new installation. Apparently, the "Bin" folder came from your previous computer. In your first message, you wrote that you used Bin as your trash folder on your previous computer. Here you wrote that you cannot be sure that there was a Bin folder on your previous computer. Because you copied your profiles on to your new computer, the folders should be exactly as they were on your previous computer.

Bin is working exactly as a user-created folder should work. It is not a trash folder. If drafts are being saved there, you should check the setting for where drafts are saved in account settings > copies & folders.

There was no apparent problem to solve until you learned that you cannot delete the Bin folder. Since gmail does not allow it, it will not be sync'd with the server. In your place, I would create a new folder, copy the messages from Bin to the new folder, close Thunderbird, delete Bin in the file system, open Thunderbird, and confirm that Bin is gone. Do you need instructions for doing that?

I don't know why you have two sent message folders. Right click on the account name in the folder pane and select "Subscribe". How many "sent" folders appear in the list? If there is only one, unsubscribe from it. If there is more than one, please stop and report your findings.

Then check the contents of the remaining sent folder. Does it have messages? If not, try to delete it. If it has no messages and you are able to delete it, re-subscribe to the other sent folder. Then check account settings > copies & folders and make sure that the remaining sent folder is selected as the place to save sent messages. If you start seeing duplicates of sent messages there, you probably don't need any folder to be selected in copies & folders for sent messages.

If it has messages or you are not able to delete it, please stop and report your findings.

Thanks for the detailed and helpful reply.

I'll work my way through it and reply once I have. Appreciate your help.

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