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Why does reinstalled Thunderbird delete my new Gmail account every time the program closes? [win10]

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  • Freagra is déanaí ó smennell

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I reinstalled Thunderbird, latest version, after not using it for a while. It picks up old accounts. When I set up my new main account, a Gmail one (outsourced by my university), it works perfectly. But then, when I close the program and restart it, the new account has been deleted, along with other customisations that i have made.

I have read the Gmail advice on using Thunderbird as a client, and followed all its recommendations, but it makes no difference.

I reinstalled Thunderbird, latest version, after not using it for a while. It picks up old accounts. When I set up my new main account, a Gmail one (outsourced by my university), it works perfectly. But then, when I close the program and restart it, the new account has been deleted, along with other customisations that i have made. I have read the Gmail advice on using Thunderbird as a client, and followed all its recommendations, but it makes no difference.
Attached screenshots

Athraithe ag Wayne Mery ar

Réiteach roghnaithe

The read only value then is why your settings are not being saved. And something on your system is messing with the file to cause it to be read only - but it's not Thunderbird.

Try starting Windows in safe mode and see if it goes away. If it does, go hunting AV or backup software :)

Please post to let us know your results

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All Replies (4)

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Check prefs.js file in your Thunderbird profile directory. https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profiles-tb

Is the file set to read only?

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That solution looked very promising. The file was indeed marked read only. Unfortunately, unchecking that option didn't solve the problem. Thanks for the suggestion though.

Any other ideas?!

Stephen Mennell

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Réiteach Roghnaithe

The read only value then is why your settings are not being saved. And something on your system is messing with the file to cause it to be read only - but it's not Thunderbird.

Try starting Windows in safe mode and see if it goes away. If it does, go hunting AV or backup software :)

Please post to let us know your results

Athraithe ag Wayne Mery ar

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Yes, your diagnosis was spot on. It turned out that Thunderbird was being run in the Avast! Sandbox, which (a) I hadn't noticed, and (b) didn't recognise its signifcance. I've since uninstalled the Sandbox, which I've never used and which only reared its ugly head in this case.