Thunderbird Support Forum

A few weeks ago. The error message of which I have attached a screenshot started appearing in Thunderbird. I do (among others) have a gmail account for use in connection with a voluntary association of which I am chairman but the error message seems to be unconnected with it. If I type in the credentials for that account, the message goes but returns within a minute. Just clicking on cancel without entering any credentials causes the message to go away for anything between ten minutes and two hours. The gmail account itself is working correctly -- I can send and receive emails using it at all times. Since I can get rid of the false error message, it is not preventing me from using Thunderbird but its continual reappearance is very irritating. Any thoughts on how I might get rid of it, please.

Hi all,

Pulling my hair out. When I delete an email on my Iphone it deletes the email on my computer also. I don't want this.

Hope someone can help Steve

I am unable to install add-ons for Thunderbird for my Chromebook that I have installed via the embedded Linux OS that's in Chromebook. Inside the app(Thunderbird), I go to addons.thunderbird.net and attempt to install an add-on and this box with this button inside it pops up and I have to click on that button to confirm installation of that add-on. Well, I try clicking on that button and nothing happens and that box doesn't go away. I enclosed a screenshot to give you an idea of what I'm talking about.

I get the what's described in the "subject" (Microsoft message is "We couldn't send the code. Please try again.") for one specific account every time I startup Thunderbird (TB) and TB (automatically) checks for messages.

Please refer to attached screen-shot example.

This is what happens when I request Microsoft (MS) to send a "code" to an alternate email account to confirm the account belongs to me that MS is requiring me to do in TB.

I can successfully login on the web to the account that needs the code to confirm it's my email account and I can login to the account that is supposed to receive the code (but can't because of this issue).

This has been going on for close to 24 hours as of this time.

I wish enterprises like MS would make sure they do not have any potential "glitches" if they are going to force users to get a "code" to confirm their accounts (that the user knows is theirs) is theirs. These kinds of issues through not fault of the user doesn't serve the user well at all. My theory - ditch anything that can possibly preclude a user access to their respective email account(s) - makes sense to me!!

Supernova just did something that previous versions of Thunderbird didn't: It downloaded all the mail in my Yahoo account. Why did it do something I didn't ask it to? I need to know a couple of things: 1) How do I get TB to stop downloading my Yahoo mail? 2) How can I delete the mail TB just downloaded from my Yahoo account without actually losing it in my Yahoo account? A number of years ago, I deleted my Yahoo messages in TB and discovered to my horror that all those messages were deleted from my Yahoo account. (In case I'm not being clear, what I mean is that when I went with my browser to my Yahoo mail page, all my messages were gone.)

As the headline says:

I have got a bunch of spam messages which I am currently investigating for certain reasons. The spammers have set the "Date:" header far in the future (e.g. 2026-01-04), and the "Date" column in the message list as expected shows these weird dates.

However, the "Received" column in the message list as well shows the same weird dates although the topmost "Received:" header in every message is correct.

Here is an excerpt from the header section of one of those messages which shows the "Date:" header and all "Received:" headers (sorry that I couldn't find out how to format the following passage as code):

Date: Thu, 14 Jan 2026 03:38:55 -0800 Received: from deliver ([unix socket]) by morn (Cyrus 3.0.8-Debian-3.0.8-6+deb10u5) with LMTPA; Fri, 05 Mar 2021 12:17:37 +0100 Received: from pop.example.com [a.b.c.d] by morn.dep01.example.com with POP3 (fetchmail-6.4.0.beta4) for <user@localhost> (single-drop); Fri, 05 Mar 2021 12:17:37 +0100 (CET) Received: from server.spammer.com ([e.f.g.h]) by odysseus.example.com (8.15.2/8.15.2/Debian-14~deb10u1) with ESMTP id 125BHDIJ001425 for <user@example.com>; Fri, 5 Mar 2021 12:17:13 +0100 Received: from imap-director-5.dovecot.xion.foo.bar (i.j.k.l) by imap-backend-28.dovecot.xion.foo.bar with LMTP id [an22] (envelope-from <bounces+XmuZjwsANPH/dOCq73______________3@mail.randomcharactershere.com>) for <to>; Thu, 14 Jan 2026 03:38:55 -0800

Please note that there are other headers between the ones shown above. I have removed these other headers. I did not change the order of the headers shown above.

Of course, I am aware that the last "Received:" header causes the problem. But this at once leads to the question how TB chooses the "Received:" header from which it extracts the date / time to display in the "Received" column.

As far as I know, SMTP servers and other software involved in the transportation of messages must put their own "Received:" header (if any) above all other "Received:" headers, so that we can reproduce how the message hopped through the net by reading all "Received:" headers from bottom to top. That is, the "Received:" header which reflects delivery to the IMAP server my MUA is connected to always must be topmost.

TB obviously does the opposite (consider the bottom-most "Received:" header the most recent one, i.e. the one whose date should be displayed in the "Received:" column), or it is trying to be overly smart (sort the "Received:" headers by their date, consider the "Received:" header with the "highest" date to reflect the last hop, and consequently display that "highest" date in the "Received:" column). Both would be wrong.

Could anybody please show me how to get around that situation? Is there an extension which does it right? Is it correct that (according to the SMTP RFCs) each software component must put its "Received:" header (if any) above all other "Received:" headers as the message flows through the net?

Thank you very much in advance!

P.S. As a bonus, could somebody please explain how to format something as code here?

I have used thunderbird for years but now cant send emails from one of my outlook accounts with error Login to server smtp.office365.com with username xxxxxxx@xxxx failed. I had activity message from microsoft the other day that included something in the US so I changed my account password. Since that I keep getting the above message and it will not accept the new password. I have deleted the account and re-installed it, changed the SMTP settings and port, closed and re-opened thunderbird and re-booted the computer but cannot send a message from the account. I can still send messages from my other microsoft accounts

In my attempt to help my wife with her email problems I have managed to totally screw up her profile. There now duplicate inboxes, duplicate local folders, duplicate Outlook Express Import files, etc.

Is it feasible to export/backup the inbox, address book, files&folders, Outlook Express Import files (but not the profile), then uninstall Thunderbird in order to start over? If so, how is the best way to do this?

She only has one email account on Thunderbird and is running Windows 10.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Hello, I am trying to add my existing account to Thunderbird. However, it starts verifying my password and never stops, the process is continuing and never stops. I have never experienced such a problem with all my other email accounts that I have added to Thunderbird. What should I do? Thank you so much in advance!

In doing some file and folder cleanup I just ran across a folder that I don't recall seeing previously. It is on my local drive and labeled EES-temp. It contains 27 files from the last month and a half and one from 2017. Most but not all of them appear to be items I have filed in other folders. Can someone tell me about this folder? Can I delete it? It looks like it was created by TBird.

I am an avid clip and paster. Historically, I have had no problem pasting images I have copied into emails that I am composing. Using a simple ctrl-V always worked fine for me. For some reason, I can no longer do this. When I ctrl-V paste into the message body, nothing happens. Similarl, if I Insert/Image and select a file, an outline box just displays with no image in it. Through test emailing from another account, I have found that the only way I can send an image is to file attach it to the message I am composing. The resulting email displays the image correctly in the body text area. What is up with this? I have tried reinstalling Thunderbird from the most current download from the Mozilla website - did not help at all. I have gone into my google account in a web browser and while composing an email message, ctrl-v inserts an image just fine. What gives? It seems like this may have been affected in the last update. My current version is 102.13.0

I had already post this problem recently, but in spite of Thunderbird already had two interim point releases 102.1.1 and today's 101.1.2, this problem remains.

This situation did not occur in older versions, and I cannot use pop3 access to AOL email account with "normal password" (encrypted). For the time being, I am accessing AOL web mail using Firefox.

I tried unsuccessfully all other authentication methods, so no authentication method is working with AOL.

This is the Thunderrbird error I get when using OAuth2 authentication method:

"The server does not support the selected authentication method. Please change the 'Authentication method' in the 'Account Settings | Server settings".

It is not true, AOL does support the OAuth2 authentication method.

I've been a Firefox fan for years. I thought I'd try Thunderbird. I'm in need of some help please as I'm going round in circles.

I am trying to link my btinternet email account to Thunderbird. Thunderbird cannot do it automatically so I have to enter the details manually.

I have all the right settings according to BT: Incoming POP 995, SSL enabled but not StartTLS. Outgoing Port 465, SSL enabled not StartTLS. mail.btinternet.com is used.

The User Name and Password are correct but Thunderbird cannot connect to the account. There are no Firewall issues.

Something is happening because BT have notified me of potential unauthorised access and I have to reset my BT password. Even when I enter the new BT Password Thunderbird cannot link to the account.

Any suggestions as to what might be causing the problem? Thanks.

I have two older, Win7 laptops running TBird Supernova. Both are failing the update check. I think it's because some internet security protocols are misconfigured. Does anyone know what protocols (TLS etc) TBird's update routine is looking for?

Since June 7th I have not been able to send or receive any gmail emails in Thunderbird (TB). I have read and tried all suggestions I could find online. I had 2 gmail accounts and one other account in my Thunderbird account. I loved it!

I’ll try to keep this as informative yet concise as possible (sorry for the length): I changed the authentication method from “normal password” to “OAuth2” on my 2 gmail accounts and on the outgoing server (SMTP). However, when I go into Preferences and passwords I don’t see the “OAuth2” which I understand should be shown beside my user names (see Attachment 1).

So my first question is, why doesn’t it, and how can I fix it? When I look under Account setting it does show that I have OAuth2 selected. I also get the following message when I try to get into TB: Authentication failure while connecting to server imap.googlemail.com

Next, I have set up a 3rd gmail account to see if it would get added properly to TB. It finds the configuration incoming and outgoing and the username but when I click on “Done” it gave me a message “incoming server already exists”. I have tried it again and it takes me to Google to find my account. When I key in my phone number I get a Message to turn cookies on. In Firefox this is how I have it set as in Attachment 2. Is this not correct?

Why can I not add this new gmail account?

I have also tried deleting one of my gmail accounts from TB with the plan to reinstall to see if the problem would get fixed. Apparently I think I may have compounded the problem. Now I can’t get it back. It seems to get locked “checking password”. (In my repeated efforts to fix this problem and in many requests for a new password I also changed the password for this gmail account. Now it appears that Google has my original password, but TB has the new password.) When I click on “Configure manually” to get out of this, and add a “1” to the end of my username to try to set it up differently from my original account I get a message “Incoming server already exists”. Is there any way that I can reset up this gmail in TB?

The bottom line: 1. I only have one of my two gmail accounts in TB now. How can I get the one I deleted back into TB? 2. The one gmail account I still have in TB doesn’t send or receive any emails. How can I fix this? It appears to me that Google thinks that cookies are disabled, but as I show above, I think they are enabled. I have also enabled cookies in Chrome (even though I never use it). I see a note asking me to “enter credentials for this email account on imap.googlemail.com. 3. How can I add the third gmail account? What am I missing? 4. The other email account (not gmail) can receive emails in TB but I cannot send emails from it. I get the following message (see attachment 3). How can I fix it to be able to send emails?

I would sure appreciate any help you could provide. Thunderbird has been wonderful for years and I would severely miss it if I couldn’t get my emails through it. Thanks Carla

I have managed to install - and use - Thunderbird for my email messages, but I would like to choose the default font (which at the moment seems to be set at Calibri) PLUS the default font size is set to 14, but onscreen it looks too small and I would like to make it a little bigger. I have tried all the things I am comfortable to try, buy my ignorance has finally got the better of me and I am stuck! Any suggestions would be gratefully received! Thankyou.

Thunderbird no longer reflects the IMAP structure of Google Mail.

The latest version of Thunderbird, appears to lose the previous structure un an IMAP tabe and mixes Sent and other folders within a Gmail Email account that is connected to Google mail via an IMAP account.

Searching on the Internet, most replies say to back level to Thunderbird v 102 as version 115 has this change. Is there an intention to correct/remove this annoying change in a later release?

Regards, Ed Durrant

Version 115.4.3 seems to have eliminated the Mail Toolbar altogether. The “Unified Toolbar” support page at https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/unified-toolbar refers to a “Tabs Bar” which is not part of the standard Thunderbird vocabulary (there is a “Tab Strip” at https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-customize-toolbars#w_how-do-i-sh.... If you keep changing the toolbars and the vocabulary, you are going to confuse everyone, including yourselves. Now the user cannot customize the Menu Bar (or the Unified Toolbar), so the main buttons on the Mail Toolbar (Get Messages, Write, Chat, Tag, QuickFilter, Address Book etc.) are just not there. There is also no visible way to display the Mail Toolbar. It seems that in their desperate indecision as to whether the Menu Bar or the Mail Toolbar should be on top, the developers of Thunderbird decided to eliminate the Mail Toolbar altogether. What an unfortunate decision. Give us back our Mail Toolbar!'

I have a good, working Gmail account with Google. It is very old, and has been working well for many years. I just created a new Mozilla account to get your assistance using my Gmail login and password in my Firefox browser, just a few seconds ago. I used it to get the 'verification code' to create this Mozilla account. So this proves that my Gmail account is valid, and working well.

My problem started when I tried to upgrade the Thunderbird client that I've been using on this PC for several years, now. First I tried updating to the latest version, but I ran into problems, probably because I was attempting to make too large of a 'jump' between my existing version and the latest version. So I backed up my Local Folders and uninstalled the old (working) version, and installed the newest version of Thunderbird in it's place. It installed OK, and I can recognize that it seems to be working as it should. I just can't create an account that works with it.

I tried creating both an IMAP and a Pop3 account using the 'wizard'. But when I make the attempt, the 'wizard' incorrectly informs me that 'no such Gmail account exists'. It is apparently looking up my credentials somewhere other than at Google itself, because I obviously DO have a valid Gmail account. I can create a Thunderbird account manually, which apparently bypasses the account verification step. But then when I attempt to download e-mails to the manually created account, I get 'host contacted, sending login information' at the prompt at the bottom of the main page, but it stays that way until I close the program, and never downloads anything. I have all the recommended Gmail account settings set as per both Mozilla and Google. It just seems as if Thunderbird is getting my Gmail account login information from an incorrect source. I also get the same 'there are no Google accounts that match your information' screen when I click the 'Find my account' button on the Thunderbird/Google login screen. Which of course is incorrect.

So what can be done? I have had this problem for a couple weeks now. I would very much like to stay with Mozilla and Thunderbird, as I have had virtually no problems with either the browser or the e-mail client before now. Thanks for any assistance you may provide, but I am stumped!

'Long-time T-birder'

What is with the pointless thick empty bar above the FILE menu area? (Highlighted RED in image) I removed the search bar as I don't often use it and prefer the traditional screen layout with FILE menu at the top of the program. Can I remove it? It's illogical and makes use of the program difficult.