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Can I still use my Hotmail folders?

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  • Last reply by Matt

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I am a longtime hotmail user with years of emails stored in many folders on the hotmail server. Lately hotmail has become very slow and glitchy ie: today it will not allow me to put any text in the body of a NEW or REPLY email.

I have decided I need to go to Plan B and, being a longtime FB user, investigate if Thunderbird will suit.

Question: does TB migrate all my folders and content to my pc at one time when initially setting it up or does it do it each time I open Tb?

I don't want to lose my content stored on the Hotmail folders but Hotmail is starting to be a nightmare to use so need an alternative while not losing my old stuff.

All advice gratefully received.

I am a longtime hotmail user with years of emails stored in many folders on the hotmail server. Lately hotmail has become very slow and glitchy ie: today it will not allow me to put any text in the body of a NEW or REPLY email. I have decided I need to go to Plan B and, being a longtime FB user, investigate if Thunderbird will suit. Question: does TB migrate all my folders and content to my pc at one time when initially setting it up or does it do it each time I open Tb? I don't want to lose my content stored on the Hotmail folders but Hotmail is starting to be a nightmare to use so need an alternative while not losing my old stuff. All advice gratefully received.

Chosen solution

Yes, once the initial synchronization is done then only changes are synchronized.

NotE changes are synchronized. That is not just new mail, drafts changed in Thunderbird will synchronize to hotmail, message state will be undated moves from folder to folder etc.

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IMAP email is your only real choice, it is synchronized to the hotmail folder structure and content to a deletion in one will be reflected in the other.

Yes setup is a one time thing.

Note you will have to modify your account settings to have Thunderbird not save a copy of sent mail as Hotmail in typical Microsoft fashion ignores protocol and does it when you send the mail. As the is no opt out in Hotmail you have to do it in Thunderbird or put up with duplicates in your sent folder.

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Thanks for the reply. I'd prefer Thunderbird saved my sent email just as HM does now. Oh...I see. You're saying TB ALSO saves a copy as well as HM saves a copy in the HM sent folder and then TB replicates HM so I end up with TWO copies in TB sent folder as well as a copy in HM sent folder. Hmmm...I'll watch for that and make the adjustment in TB.

After TB finishes copying all the HM folder content I assume it will compare and only add new stuff as it comes up. Right now it's still busy copying 10 years of stuff - sent, saved, etc., etc.

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Chosen Solution

Yes, once the initial synchronization is done then only changes are synchronized.

NotE changes are synchronized. That is not just new mail, drafts changed in Thunderbird will synchronize to hotmail, message state will be undated moves from folder to folder etc.