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Accessing Old Emails when I Have Already Started Using Thunderbird on a New Computer

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  • Igcine ukuphendulwa ngu sfhowes

gayfer
gayfer
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Our old Windows computer was not usable, but the harddrive is fine and is in a case. We are now using a Mac and have installed and been using Thunderbird. I'd like to access the old emails, but I don't understand about profiles and everything and I'm terrified I will accidentally overwrite all my current emails. How can I get to the old ones?

Our old Windows computer was not usable, but the harddrive is fine and is in a case. We are now using a Mac and have installed and been using Thunderbird. I'd like to access the old emails, but I don't understand about profiles and everything and I'm terrified I will accidentally overwrite all my current emails. How can I get to the old ones?

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sfhowes
sfhowes
  • Top 10 Contributor
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First, find the old Windows TB profile folder. The default location is:

C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Thunderbird\Profiles\8characters.default

Or, search for the file abook.mab that is in every profile folder.

Next, open the Mail and ImapMail subfolders. Inside there are subfolders named after the mail server, e.g. pop.gmail.com or imap.mail.yahoo.com. In those account subfolders are mbox files, files with no extension named after the folder, e.g. Inbox, Sent; they appear with a like-named .msf file, e.g. Inbox.msf. Copy the mbox files to a flash or external drive, or connect the drive to the Mac if it's in an enclosure.

On the Mac, Help/Troubleshooting, click Show in Finder to open the profile folder. Close TB, then open the Mail/Local Folders location. Copy the mbox files into Mail/Local Folders, renaming them if necessary, e.g. Inboxgmail, Inboxyahoo. When you restart TB, the folders should appear under Local Folders in the Folder Pane. This won't interfere with your active mail accounts.

Other items, in fact the entire setup, can be copied from the Windows profile folder, such as abook.mab (Personal Address Book) and history.mab (Collected Addresses).