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Recreate stored messages from a backup

  • 3 replies
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  • Last reply by Matt

dan_tech
dan_tech
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I have a tricky situation... I have been using Thunderbird for a number of years and had older messages sorted and stored in a number of Inbox folders. The computer that was running this was stolen and has never been recovered. I have been using WD Smartware to do backups once a week to a drive which has saved the past weeks of Thunderbird backups which I can see on the backup drive. I also have a second computer that has a fully functional version of Thuinderbird and all of the files except its about 9 months old. I have a new computer, loaded Thunderbird and copied the 9 month old default profile over which is fine, then it updated with all old messages still on the POP3 servers which got me close to current. Then I went to restore from the WD Smartware backups but the way that functions is to only backup files that are new since the last backup or that have changed since the last backup. 99% of the Thunderbird files I need are there but when I use their restore utility, it overwrites the files in my default profile and ends up deleting some of the things I need replacing them with what it thinks are the most recent. My question is, is there a process for copying specific Thunderbird mailbox files that I select from the backup drive into the current default profile?

I have a tricky situation... I have been using Thunderbird for a number of years and had older messages sorted and stored in a number of Inbox folders. The computer that was running this was stolen and has never been recovered. I have been using WD Smartware to do backups once a week to a drive which has saved the past weeks of Thunderbird backups which I can see on the backup drive. I also have a second computer that has a fully functional version of Thuinderbird and all of the files except its about 9 months old. I have a new computer, loaded Thunderbird and copied the 9 month old default profile over which is fine, then it updated with all old messages still on the POP3 servers which got me close to current. Then I went to restore from the WD Smartware backups but the way that functions is to only backup files that are new since the last backup or that have changed since the last backup. 99% of the Thunderbird files I need are there but when I use their restore utility, it overwrites the files in my default profile and ends up deleting some of the things I need replacing them with what it thinks are the most recent. My question is, is there a process for copying specific Thunderbird mailbox files that I select from the backup drive into the current default profile?

All Replies (3)

Matt
Matt
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the issue is you need to place them in the same basic location (If the account is POP) but with a different name.

Thunderbird stores all the mail in a folder as a single file.

So if your folder was called mumsmail and you want to restore it, simply change the name to mumsmailold The sorting of which mails from folder you actually want is however going to be entirely manual

dan_tech
dan_tech Question owner
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Matt... Thank you for your reply. What I have done is to create a second profile using profile manager. Then I copied the backup of my default profile into it. Now my question is, I have a number of local folders on the second profile. Is it possible to copy or export the messages in the local folders on the second profile into the local folders on the default profile?

Matt
Matt
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it is easiest done with the import export tools. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/addon/importexporttools/

I would just copy the files I wanted to where I wanted them, but that is difficult to explain in text messages. Thee import export tools offer menu entries to export and import. For speed use the mbox format. IT is Thunderbirds native format so there is no conversions going on.