Could you get us the full address, C:\user\xxxx\ ????? And you are using win 7 -64bit? The normal 'Local Folders' address would be C:\Users\xxxx\AppData\Roaming\Thunderbird\Profiles\"Something".default\Mail\Local Folders

The full message is: The Local Directory path "C:\Users\User\AppData\Roaming\Thunderbird\Profiles\q6s03qv2.default\Mail\Local Folders" is not suitable for message storage. Please choose another directory. I can go to that directory and it contains a number of folders and files one of which is Mail. This folder seems to contain all the files and sub folders under Local Folders.

Any free-space problems?

For security: Make a copy of your Local Folders (externally).

If you open TB and can access Local Folders then right click on each folder choose properties and repair.

Think of moving attachments to a separate folder as they take up the majority size of your mails.

Thanks for your help. I have 55GB free on my c drive so space should not be a problem. I have run a repair on every folder then compacted them all but I still geth the error. As far as I can see, TB is running ok but I have noticed that if I make changes to Tools/Account Settings then run mozbackup then immediately restore from mozbackup, the account settings have not been saved as after the restore they go back to previous settings PS I am running TB 38.2.0

If Mozbackup is set to collect all files then prefs.js is among them.

Pref.js should hold your settings. If you have an User.js it loads later and overwrite prefs settings. If you haven't created user.js it shouldnt be there.

The Mozbackup file (*. pcv) is a zip-file and can be open as such. You can check whats stored.

I have prefs.js in the pcv file and in the restored folder (q6s03qv2.default). There is no user.js that I can find

If you got places.sqlite-shm, or places.sqlite.wal delete those. You can also delete panacea.dat, it will be rebuilt.

And also open tools/ clear resent history and clear cache (at least)

Just as a wild guess, You have set another account to use the local folders

If Thunderbird is starting, you have a prefs JS. That error says you have one with something wrong in it.

use the config editor to locate preferences that contain local folder by typing it into the search box. My guess is you have more than one

mail.server.server[x] directory  

pointing to that location.

Basically your profile is in a mess. The root of your profile should contain "mail" not local folders. So how did you restore your profile? Bits from the PCV to a location you chose perhaps?

Also check that your anti-virus software doesn't search your profile.

And that places.sqlite is a file not a folder and that it hasn't zero-length.

@Matt @Hunterbr The location in mail looks right as he can open mail/local folders from explorer (right Hunterbr?) A change in account settings doesn't keep. (right Hunterbr?) Is there something that overrides prefs.js?

@Matt your probably right on having a mail-account use Local Folders as main folder that would probably (I don't want to try it) create that error-msg.

Thanks gnospen and Matt for your help - as you can probably guess I am struggling to understand how tbird works.

Gnospen - I have both places.sqlite-shm, and places.sqlite.wal (these are both files) and panacea.dat in the latest pcv file and so in the q6s03qv2.default folder. Should I delete those files from both places? I have only been doing backups and restores using mozbackup.exe and have not delved into the pcv files to try and extract files from them. When I do a restore, tbird seems to operate as it should (ie all emails under Local Folders and its subfolders are where they should be) except that the account settings are not changed from a previous backup.

Matt, I do have 2 email accounts - one account name (cegge1 )was given to me by my isp and I set up a '"secondary" account (hunterbr) to keep an earlier name I had used. In tbird, my left pane looks like the first attachment. All my emails should come into the Inbox under Local Folders but I do get some from my isp that go into the Inbox under cegge1. My isp wont change my cegge1 name but I was trying to set things up so that the cegge1 name was aliased to the hunterbr name.

In the Config Editor, there are 4 entries for Local Folder

mail.server.server2.directory;C:\Users\User\AppData\Roaming\Thunderbird\Profiles\q6s03qv2.default\Mail\Local Folders

mail.server.server2.directory-rel;[ProfD]Mail/Local Folders

mail.server.server2.hostname;Local Folders

mail.server.server2.name;Local Folders

The second and third images are the account settings for the two names and the Names email address and reply-to-address are what get changed when I do a restore.

Thanks for any suggestions Chris

Keep Local folders and Account folders apart.

To me it looks just as MATT suggested. Your account hunterbr doesn't seam to have an inbox that can be synced with server.

Is hunterbr a POP3 or IMAP account?

Both accounts are POP. Any emails addressed to hunterbr come into the Local Folders Inbox. As set up at the moment, any emails addressed to cegge1 do come to the Reply_To_Address (hunterbr) and end up in the Local Folders Inbox which is ok by me). As maybe a confusing side issue, any emails I write come From cegge1 by default but I can change this to hunterbr form the dropdown list.

In my mind there should not be a server-inbox under Local Folders.

The normal directory for your pop3-account should be something like: "profiledirectory"\Mail\pop3.optusnet.com.au AND "profiledirectory"\Mail\pop3.optusnet-1.com.au

And for your Local folders "profiledirectory"\Mail\Local Folders

You can however move all Incoming to a folder under Local with a filter.