In what directory are my emails stored c:\ etc. ?
I want to see/find where the actual email file is located on the hard drive. The c:\ etc. path I want to look in which sub-directory contains the actual email
Chosen solution
If you like searching your file system, do a search for a file that contains some distinctive string within an email message. That will show you that it is stored in an mbox file within your profile, as you were told many posts previously.
Read this answer in context 👍 0All Replies (19)
It's in your profile.
no, the actual .eml files are not there. Is there a new file extension that replaced .eml?
Mail files are the ones not having a file extension, e.g. Inbox, Sent, etc. The format is mbox, i.e. all messages in a folder are stored in a single file.
Why are you looking for .eml files?
The actual computer file generated by each email used to have a file extension with .eml All sent, received, etc. have a stand alone filename to them. Just by erasing or deleting them does not remove them from your computer. Try it. From the Start button search box type *.eml and hit enter. There are all the emails you ever wrote, etc. stored on your hard drive.
No, your messages are stored in mailbox files such as Inbox. (Inbox.msf would be the associated index file - so if you look for *.msf , that will give the names of the corresponding mailbox files.)
Your messages are not stored as .eml files by default, but when you do a File|Save As, or if you drag-and-drop them to a standard system folder.
Modified by Zenos
Yes, they are stored in folders, but each with stand alone identity. Like paper letters in a paper folder, all in the one folder but each also stands alone within the folder.
I grew up on DOS and access to a file was simple. Windows hides files from our view. We only see what they want us to see.
Each and every email has a unique name to it. They are stored in a single folder(s) but retain their unique identity.
I only want the path to them.
As you know a deleted file is not deleted, only the first character removed to appear it's gone. That's how data recovery works to get deleted files back as long as that physical space has not yet been reused.
Please cite a website or article supporting your claim.
Thunderbird stores your messages in mailbox ("mbox") files.
You got to love people asking questions but know all the answers.
Looks like you found one Xenos.
Wikipedia? Really? Anyone can post their ideas to that. Cite a web site? or article?
Just type *.eml into your start search box and watch all your email come up except the newest version of t-bird.
I started such a search 5 minutes ago and it is still running with zero files found. There are no .eml files on this computer unless I specifically choose to make them.
What's this "except the newest version" nonsense? Are you now arguing that a recent version silently and unbidden erases all such files?
Seriously, you have some unusual ideas about how Thunderbird works. I've been using and supporting it for several years, and I KNOW that it stores in mbox files, not individual .eml files. If you have lots of .eml files then you have set up something specifically to make them happen.
Anyhow, if you have the .eml files then you have what you're looking for, don't you?
Modified by Zenos
Chosen Solution
If you like searching your file system, do a search for a file that contains some distinctive string within an email message. That will show you that it is stored in an mbox file within your profile, as you were told many posts previously.
Modified by Zenos
I guess I don't know the right way to express it but I appreciate your attempt t help. I only recently upgraded to the newest version of t-bird and had found old emails via *.eml when I changed systems to my newer pc. Maybe it is something related to that. I do not know but thank you for trying.
And no, I wanted an email from my mom that passed away a few years ago that I thought I had stored but cannot find.
be well - Charles
I am not well versed in computers. I, myself am a senior citizen. I was only repeating what I was taught in a library class. I feel Airmail wasn't very understanding. Thank you for trying.
It would have helped not to start a debate about .eml files, but simply state what you were after.
Check this article about search, and see if that helps you finding the message you're looking for.
If you have ever set up an account again, the previous instance's messages might be stored in your profile, but not necessarily visible in Thunderbird itself. It's worth doing a search for files that contain something distinctive, such as your mom's name or email address. Specifically, you are looking for files without filename extensions, but this is quite hard to specify to some search tools.:-(
It comes down to how you transferred Thunderbird from a previous computer. Many (if not most) users seem to resign themselves to having to set up Thunderbird from scratch on a new computer, not knowing that they can transfer the old profile to the new computer and continue running Thunderbird just as was on the older computer.
If you backed up and transferred all your Documents & Settings or equivalent then there's a good chance that old email messages might be in there, in an older profile, found under Application Data on a Windows system. Windows Vista and later would have preferred AppData and so may be oblivious to older file system structures.
Edit: Okay, I just went searching again (I'm avoiding actual productive work today) and found in: = C:\Users\{myname}\AppData\Roaming\Thunderbird\profiles\{gobbledegook}.default\ImapMail\imap.googlemail.com\ = messages in readable form, with the extension: ".wdseml" Obviously, the lowest 2 on this hierarchy are mail provier specific but searching for "*.wdseml" should get you there.
I'm running, regrettably, Windows 7
Modified by andylyke
I believe that wdseml files are generated for integration with Windows search, so they offer a summary. IOW, they are not the actual stored messages and are probably not complete records of the originals. It would be stupid to save messages two times over. :-(
I'm using linux here and don't have access to a windows/thunderbird setup to check. But I can tell you there are no *.wdseml files on this linux machine. Therefore, they are not an essentail part of message storage.
Have a look for "Inbox" as the filename. You will find one for each account, under your profiles folder tree. They are hidden by default so you won't happen upon them by accident in your file system, unless you have deliberately set it to display hidden folders and files.
What has been said here that is inaccurate or snide?
Read this: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profiles-tb to learn about how and where your messages and other data are stored by Thunderbird.
Recall that this thread was started by someone asking an odd question based on an unrealistic expectation. Thunderbird does not routinely store messages in the .eml format, but it will use that format for exported messages saved to discrete files. For most users, looking for .eml files will be futile.
FWIW, here are the files that store Inbox data on this system...
/Mail/mail.tamba.co.uk/Inbox /Mail/pop.mail.yahoo-1.com/Inbox /Mail/pop.itl.co.uk/Inbox /Mail/Local Folders/Inbox /Mail/smart mailboxes/Inbox /Mail/pop3.live-1.com/Inbox /Mail/pop3.o2.co-2.uk/Inbox /Mail/pop.googlemail.com/Inbox /ImapMail/mail.tamba.co.uk/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.gmx.com/INBOX /ImapMail/mail.tamba.co-2.uk/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.googlemail-5.com/INBOX /ImapMail/mail.btinternet.com/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.mail.yahoo-2.com/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.btinternet.com/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.googlemail.com/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.lineone.net/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.yahoo.com/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.mail.yahoo.com/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.googlemail-6.com/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.googlemail-1.com/INBOX /ImapMail/imap.googlemail-4.com/INBOX /ImapMail/mail.vfast.co.uk/INBOX
And yes, they really are files, not folders.