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Thunderbird app has disappeared from my computer. All the associated files are still on the computer. If I download the app will these files be overwritten?

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  • Last reply by Toad-Hall

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Thunderbird has disappeared. One day it was here, the next it was gone. Only the app is missing, all of the other files are still there in the Thunderbird folder. I don't want to have to set up Thunderbird from scratch as I manage 4 email accounts. What should I do? Is there a way to put the app back in place and have it work with the existing setup files?

Thunderbird has disappeared. One day it was here, the next it was gone. Only the app is missing, all of the other files are still there in the Thunderbird folder. I don't want to have to set up Thunderbird from scratch as I manage 4 email accounts. What should I do? Is there a way to put the app back in place and have it work with the existing setup files?

Chosen solution

If all your 'Profile name' info is still in tact then installing Thunderbird would pick up and use them. There should be a 'Thunderbird' folder containing everything in the 'Roaming' folder.

This is where Profile info is stored: Windows OS C:\Users\<Windows user name>\AppData\Roaming\Thunderbird\Profiles\<Profile name>\

Create a backup by copying the 'Thunderbird' folder to an external drive.

Download your prefered language for your OS: https://www.thunderbird.net/en-US/thunderbird/all/


Very odd to have a complete program uninstall. I know a Windows OS reinstall/recovery can uninstall anything that was not part of Microsoft. But it usually creates a 'windows.old' folder for all the User/AppData/'Roaming' folder application data, so allowing you to copy it back into the correct location. Make sure any Thunderbird folder is exempt from AV scans or programs like CCleaner.

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Chosen Solution

If all your 'Profile name' info is still in tact then installing Thunderbird would pick up and use them. There should be a 'Thunderbird' folder containing everything in the 'Roaming' folder.

This is where Profile info is stored: Windows OS C:\Users\<Windows user name>\AppData\Roaming\Thunderbird\Profiles\<Profile name>\

Create a backup by copying the 'Thunderbird' folder to an external drive.

Download your prefered language for your OS: https://www.thunderbird.net/en-US/thunderbird/all/


Very odd to have a complete program uninstall. I know a Windows OS reinstall/recovery can uninstall anything that was not part of Microsoft. But it usually creates a 'windows.old' folder for all the User/AppData/'Roaming' folder application data, so allowing you to copy it back into the correct location. Make sure any Thunderbird folder is exempt from AV scans or programs like CCleaner.