How can I read emails in the Inbox file when the Inbox file is too large for TB to use?
I’ve used Mozilla Thunderbird for many years. I’m experiencing a very disturbing problem. First, I couldn’t receive any more emails because my Inbox folder/file was full. I was told to compact the file, but I didn’t. I went to the TB Profile/mail folder and created a new Inbox, re-naming the old one. Now incoming emails go to that new one. But all my old emails are in the other Inbox file, which is about 4 GB in size. Unfortunately, I can no longer access what’s in that file; i.e., read my old emails. Is there a way I can get to read these old emails, either in Thunderbird or with another program?
In trying to solve this problem, I found that for some reason the Inbox file never gets smaller, only bigger. If I delete an email after reading it; or move it to the Trash folder, the Trash file gets bigger, but the Inbox file stays the same. Is there a way to reduce the contents of the Inbox file so that it doesn’t just keep growing until it reaches the size that makes it inaccessible? Or is there a way to increase its capacity?
Finally, if I were to uninstall TB and re-install a newer version, would I still have access to all my folders? Or just the local folders? Or none of them?
Any help you can offer will be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Alle antwurden (2)
I suggest you learn about compacting and use Thunderbird as designed instead of trying to reinvent the software. http://kb.mozillazine.org/Thunderbird_:_Tips_:_Compacting_Folders http://kb.mozillazine.org/Keep_it_working_(Thunderbird)
helpseeker9 said
I’ve used Mozilla Thunderbird for many years. I’m experiencing a very disturbing problem. First, I couldn’t receive any more emails because my Inbox folder/file was full. I was told to compact the file, but I didn’t. I went to the TB Profile/mail folder and created a new Inbox, re-naming the old one. Now incoming emails go to that new one. But all my old emails are in the other Inbox file, which is about 4 GB in size. Unfortunately, I can no longer access what’s in that file; i.e., read my old emails. Is there a way I can get to read these old emails, either in Thunderbird or with another program? In trying to solve this problem, I found that for some reason the Inbox file never gets smaller, only bigger. If I delete an email after reading it; or move it to the Trash folder, the Trash file gets bigger, but the Inbox file stays the same. Is there a way to reduce the contents of the Inbox file so that it doesn’t just keep growing until it reaches the size that makes it inaccessible? Or is there a way to increase its capacity? Finally, if I were to uninstall TB and re-install a newer version, would I still have access to all my folders? Or just the local folders? Or none of them? Any help you can offer will be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Specifics like versions numbers would be helpful. Some older versions had trouble compacting large folders.
Also, you don't need to uninstall, just install a newer version. Though you should do a backup first of your profile https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profiles-tb#w_backing-up-a-profile
Lastly, are you archiving old messages? https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/archived-messages