do I read this correctly. You deleted the mail account on the server and recreated it then Thunderbird removed all the mails. Is that correct?

If so, then there is a possible solution.

Download this add-on https://freeshell.de//~kaosmos/index-en.html#recDelMsg and install it. Installing an Add-on in Thunderbird Right click the inbox and select to undelete the messages the folder contains.

A new sub folder with deleted messages from the account should appear, if the imap server allows sub folders of the inbox.

however if that does not work. There is a more convoluted method to perhaps get mails is sub folder are not allowed.

Note here that all this relies on the folder having not been compacted. once that happens there is nothing left to undelete.

Hi Matt

Thank you for your help. Installed okay but then get the following error when selecting recover deleted messages:

[Javascript Application] Unsupported type folder (newsgroup or Imap not set for offline use)

Whether I am online or off!

Richard

That error message says that your account is not set to store local copies of mail, so no local copy to recover by undeleting.

In account settings > synchronization and storage you have the option "keep messages for this account on this computer" turned off, in which case Thunderbird has never had a copy of your mail. Only enough information to populate the user interface with a list.

That's not right..The option for keeping messages for this account on this computer is turned on. It's turned on for all accounts and always has been!

did you check it? THe complete absence of a file is the only other thing I can think of and changing stuff on the server side should not affect anything WRT files PC side other than have the contents deleted.

Did you modify the Thunderbird settings at all? Otherwise perhaps a compact has already occurred and the file in empty.

Yes checked, set to keep messages. No modifications, and I have never compacted any files. Does Thunderbird auto compact??! It's only a day or so since server deletion!

I do get another error message just before the other: "For safety reasons, it's better to do the recover process in "offline" mode. Do you want to continue anyhow?"

What does this mean?

online might fetch more mail. click the two blue monitors icon on the bottom left of the screen to switch modes.

Right click the affected folder in the folder pane and select properties. What is the size on Disk. if is is only a few KB then I think it is a lost cause.

Have used Thunderbird for years and didn't even realise there was an online and offline mode!

Switched and tried recovery again, it created a new folder Deleted_emails_0 But the folder is empty!

Under properties inbox folder size is 11.6MB but there are only two emails in it!

I did still have the stored sent and deleted emails in their folders, just checked now and these two folders are now also completely empty!!

Tried again, created Deleted_emails_1

Bottom left status bar says: Recovered messages (in progress): 0

Tried recovery on Sent folder

Done, with 0 recovered messages

What appears to have happened is that once a new mail box was created on the server, and the first email from that mail box was automatically downloaded on opening Thunderbird, to an account of the same name, with the same login, in instantly deleted all messages in the Thunderbird inbox!! That's one hell of a bug!!

If you then reply or send a message from that inbox it instantly deletes all stored messages in the sent items folder, and then goes on to delete all messages in the deleted items folder if you just delete one message from the inbox!!!!!

So how do I retrieve messages that were auto deleted by Thunderbird. It thinks that the original inbox etc..is completely new, as trying to use this plugin didn't work!! Is it likely that these emails will be stored in a folder somewhere within the Thunderbird files??!

Thanks

Thanks for your help Matt, any more suggestions?