OT: Exporting mail files
Ed Maier
running in WinXP sp2 that I'd like to export (function n/a) to a flash
drive. From there I want to import them using the available import
function in Thunderbird V 3.0 running in Windows7. Does anyone know of a
neat way to do the export?
Thanks,
Ed Maier
Les Cargill
What do you mean by "export"? Mail files are at a known-good location
for any given Thunderbird/Mozilla install.
An example ( YMMV - they change this now and again ) is
C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Application Data\Mozilla\Profiles\default
(<user> is typically Owner)
Whatever you copy the files with must also copy hidden files.
--
Les Cargill
Ed Maier
> Ed Maier wrote:
>> I have about six years of email files saved in Thunderbird V 12.0.0.23
>> running in WinXP sp2 that I'd like to export (function n/a) to a flash
>> drive. From there I want to import them using the available import
>> function in Thunderbird V 3.0 running in Windows7. Does anyone know of a
>> neat way to do the export?
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Ed Maier
>
>
> What do you mean by "export"? Mail files are at a known-good location
> for any given Thunderbird/Mozilla install.
Some allow exporting of email files, address books, bookmarks, etc., in
a format that allows easy installation in another program.
>
> An example ( YMMV - they change this now and again ) is
>
> C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Application Data\Mozilla\Profiles\default
>
> (<user> is typically Owner)
>
> Whatever you copy the files with must also copy hidden files.
Thanks, Les. Believe that's what I was looking for. (In my case the
<user> was (Compaq-administrator>.) Won't know for sure until I have the
new machine up.
Ed Maier
>
> --
> Les Cargill
>
>
Les Cargill
> Les Cargill wrote:
>> Ed Maier wrote:
>>> I have about six years of email files saved in Thunderbird V 12.0.0.23
>>> running in WinXP sp2 that I'd like to export (function n/a) to a flash
>>> drive. From there I want to import them using the available import
>>> function in Thunderbird V 3.0 running in Windows7. Does anyone know of a
>>> neat way to do the export?
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>>
>>> Ed Maier
>>
>>
>> What do you mean by "export"? Mail files are at a known-good location
>> for any given Thunderbird/Mozilla install.
>
> Some allow exporting of email files, address books, bookmarks, etc., in
> a format that allows easy installation in another program.
>
I do not believe that Mozilla/T'bird are elements of the set "some".
>>
>> An example ( YMMV - they change this now and again ) is
>>
>> C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Application
>> Data\Mozilla\Profiles\default
>>
>> (<user> is typically Owner)
>>
>> Whatever you copy the files with must also copy hidden files.
>
> Thanks, Les. Believe that's what I was looking for. (In my case the
> <user> was (Compaq-administrator>.) Won't know for sure until I have the
> new machine up.
>
> Ed Maier
>
Again, be aware that whatever you copy these files with must be able to
navigate hidden files. That got me once when I wrote a Tcl script to
do backups, and you have to add options to the "glob" command in Tcl
to force it to traverse hidden files.
>
>>
>> --
>> Les Cargill
>>
>>
--
Les Cargill
Kevin Krell
Actually, the Thunderbird files are not hidden. There are Windows
folders based on the structure of your folders within Thunderbird.
Let's see, according to Thunderbird's Account Settings->Server
Settings->Local Directory, my files are currently in the folder beginning:
C:\Documents and Settings\Owner\Application
Data\Thunderbird\Profiles\l4a2u4y5.default\Mail\worldtrad.org
Under that are my Inbox, Sent folders, etc., named as Inbox.sbd , and
Sent.sbd, and Vendors.sbd (because I have a Vendors folder in
Thunderbird where I save such emails. Each folder may have sub-folders,
if I've divided them further, such as Microsoft.sbd . Final division is
that in the Vendor folder, I have a file Subscriptions, and
Subscriptions.msf
I believe the .msf files are the actual (text) data, and the same file
name without the .msf is the indexing. While you should have a file of
the correct name (and you will if you are just moving data between
systems, versus having lost stuff as I did once.), Thunderbird will
automatically re-index each data file when you go to view the folder
within Thunderbird. Comes in handy when you blow a disk and can recover
the data, but not all the original structure. I have managed to
maintain a continuous, accessible and searchable 11-year history across
a succession of machines, since earlier versions of Netscape and onto
the Mozilla platform.
Hope this helps you to understand what you see in your own directory
structure to make sure it is all moved over and working to your
satisfaction.
You might want to make sure that you point Thunderbird to a location
that is included as part of your backup software.
All the best,
Kevin Krell
International Traditional Music Society, Inc.
Al Evans
Les Cargill <lcar...@cfl.rr.com> wrote:
> Ed Maier wrote:
> >
> > Some allow exporting of email files, address books, bookmarks, etc., in
> > a format that allows easy installation in another program.
> >
>
> I do not believe that Mozilla/T'bird are elements of the set "some".
For what it's worth, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mbox :
"The Mozilla family of MUAs (Mozilla, Netscape, Thunderbird, et al.) use
an mboxrd variation with more complex From line quoting rules."
This means the mail file is a flat text file, with "beginning of each
message ... indicated by a line whose first five characters consist of
"From" followed by a space'.
--Al Evans--
Les Cargill
Right. But they don't have a tab or menu item within the program
that implements an "export" function - you gotta go outside
the program to do that.
--
Les Cargill
Les Cargill
All I know is that this particular version of Mozilla did indeed use
hidden files/directories. Just saying - it is something to watch for.
--
Les Cargill
Ed Maier
Here's where I have the problem: There is no such folder as \documents
and settings\ in the Windows 7 version of T-bird (V 3.0). Nor can I find
anything even resembling that location string.
Ed Maier
LA
IMO, exporting/importing mail files basically blows.........period.
Even though I've moved on to W7 and new machines, I'm keeping my xp
laptop plugged in just to manage old email folders in outlook express
and thunderbird.
I've convinced myself that it is a viable workaround. :-)
YMMV
LA
Geezer51
"LA" <sunsid...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:e50e303b-a7d7-4b84...@f5g2000yqh.googlegroups.com...
-IMO, exporting/importing mail files basically blows.........period.
-Even though I've moved on to W7 and new machines, I'm keeping my xp
-laptop plugged in just to manage old email folders in outlook express
-and thunderbird.
-I've convinced myself that it is a viable workaround. :-)
-YMMV
-LA
You have to export the files to China...
Then import them from China after paying export and import duties.
Geezer
Al Evans
Les Cargill <lcar...@cfl.rr.com> wrote:
> Al Evans wrote:
> >
> > This means the mail file is a flat text file, with "beginning of each
> > message ... indicated by a line whose first five characters consist of
> > "From" followed by a space'.
> >
> > --Al Evans--
>
>
> Right. But they don't have a tab or menu item within the program
> that implements an "export" function - you gotta go outside
> the program to do that.
My point, such as it is, is that you don't need an "export function" to
export a plain text file, you can just find it and copy it.
--Al Evans--
Ed Maier
Found a program MOZBACKUP referenced in the Mozilla newsgroups in
Google. Downloaded it from CNet and did a backup of Thunderbird 2.0.0.23
to a 16GB flash drive (used less than 3GB). I'll copy that to the new
Windows7 machine and see if I can restore it to Thunderbird 3.0.
Ed Maier