Thunderbird slow to open
WindsurferLA
I’ve started a new thread for this topic in an attempt to summarize the
dozen replies to the original post., “Thuderbird opens slowly.” That
post was a follow-on to “Thunderbird Opens Slowly” originally posted on
the netscape.mozilla.thunderbird newsgroup. I appreciate the comments
of those that have replied. I’m sorry for the length of this post, but
I’m attempting to summarize what I’ve learned.
When I started working this problem, my machine was taking in excess of
20 seconds to open Thunderbird. Right now, it opens nearly
instantaneously, but it takes ten seconds to bring up the 1500 entry
address book. A brief description of my machine is shown below. I think
most will agree it is not a slow machine.
Hardware ...
DELL Dimesion E510, 3.0 GHz dual processor with 1.0 Gbyte RAM and two
~150 Gbyte HDD
Software ...
WinXP-pro w/ SR2, Thunderbird version 1.5.0.7, Norton Internet Security,
I suspect my problem was/is (???) due to the very large number of
message files that I have accumulated over the years. The problem may
also be a result of “profiles” being copied from an early version of
Netscape, to later versions of Netscape, and more recently to
Thunderbird in addition to having been migrated over three computers as
I upgraded to faster machines. The “properties” box for the Mail folder
under my profile now indicates it is using 1.3Gbyte of memory. The key
QUESTION. HOW MIGHT I MOVE ALL MY OLD MESSAGES OUT OF THE THUNDERBIRD
THAT I USE DAILY AND STILL BE ABLE TO ACCESS THEM EASILY? From the
number of replies, I suspect that I’m not the only one with this
problem. Several suggestions have been made as to how to speed up
Thunderbird. They are:
DELETING .MST - The most frequent suggestion is to delete all
potentially damaged “.msf” files and to let Thunderbird rebuild those
files. This “fix” has been suggest to me several times before as a way
to cure a variety of Thunderbird ills. Leonidas Jones commented as
“interesting idea” to my suggestion that Thunderbird tools include a
means to purge the .msf files. He/She also said, “It will probably never
happen, but that's an interesting idea. Sort of like clearing the cache
in a browser.” Initially, after deleting all “.msf” files, my
Thunderbird application worked much faster, but within a few hours it
was back to the same slow performance.
Mbox. Import EXTENSION - Another suggestion was to add the “Mbox
import” extension. I’ve not pursued this approach as I’m very hesitant
to download and install that kind of file. Nir reports that he/she uses
it with only minor problems. I see how to install it, but I’m not trying
it until I have a better idea of how it works.
MOVE ARCHIVES FILES - Another suggestion was to locate the “Archive”
folder in the “Mail” directory, and when Thunderbird is closed, to move
the contents of the folder to some other location outside of the
Thunderbird folder. The procedure would be to move the contents back
when you need to access the older files. When I went to move the files,
I found an “Achives.sbd” folder with various xxx.sbd sub-folders, but no
files were shown. (I don’t know if the misspelling of archives is of my
doing, or was set up that way by the application.) In any case, there
were no files to move.
MOVE FILES TO LOCAL FOLDERS – In line with the prior suggestion, I
looked into moving all the old files into the “Local Folders” folder. I
could find a directory called “Local Folders” and I could see that it
contained files. My initial test moves did not seem to improve
performance, but that might be because the bulk of the files remained.
CREATE NEW ARCHIVE FOLDERS – Also in line with the prior suggestion, I
experimented with creating some new folders, one called “Archive Sent”
and one called “Archive Rcvd.” From within Thunderbird, I then move
nearly all my old files (about 1.0 Gbyte worth) into those two
“folders.” After doing so, in the directory, “pop3.norton.antivirus” I
then found directories “Archive Sent.sbd” and “Archive Rcvd.sbd.” MY
THUNDERBIRD APPLICATION HAS BEEN OPENING QUICKLY SINCE CREATING THESE
NEW FOLDERS/DIRECTORIES, AND MOVING ALL MY OLD FILES INTO THEM. I can’t
say for sure that it will not again slow down, but preliminary tests
make me optimistic. Note that for some time after I created the new
folders/directories, considerable time (perhaps 15 seconds) was required
before I could see view their content from within Thunderbird. Over
time, the delay has been drastically reduced. I suspect that over time,
Thunderbird has built some kind of index file system.
REMAINING PROBLEM – When the messages are listed in the new “Archive
Sent” folder, the list shows who sent the message rather than to whom
the message was addressed. HOW DO I CHANGE THE PROPERTIES OF THIS FOLDER
SO THEY ARE THE SAME AS THE STANDARD “SENT” FOLDER/DIRECTORY?
Floor
> I’ve started a new thread for this topic in an attempt to summarize the
> dozen replies to the original post., “Thuderbird opens slowly.”
Still have the same problem here...
Neiter DELETING .MST nor Mbox. Import EXTENSION or the other suggestions
work.
Perhaps there should be a connection with using IMAP (which I do) that
causes the problem....
Floor
Nir
click on the drop-down button ( at the right top corner of Message list
pane ) , select 'Recipients'
Note :There is no such way to to change 'Sender' to 'recipients' for a
particular (user created ) folder. if you make any change to it , it
will also reflect same settings in other folder like Inbox , Trash .
So, there are two way
1. (as mentioned above ) keep both 'Sender' and 'Recipients' column, but it
will also make same changes in other folder like Inbox
2.make that "Archive Sent” folder a sub-folder of Sent folder . Then no
such modification will be needed. 'Sender' column will automatically be
changed to 'recipients'
Nir
are you getting same problem while opening Thunderbird in safe mode :
Start > run, type "thunderbird.exe" -safe-mode
[don't reset anything ]
Ron Hunter
responsive is the server?
WindsurferLA
Thanks for pointing out option button in top right corner. I had never
used it before. I see that I'll need to play with it a bit to display
sender and receiver information.
Meanwhile, Thunderbird seems to have retained the speed increase
achieved by moving the messages out of the very old Archive
folder/directory. It still has the long delay when opening the address
book, and there is a ~15 second delay when addressing the first e-mail.
When addressing the first e-mail, Thunderbird needs to open the address
book to check for matches, hence the delay. If the address book is
already open, even though the general application was closed and opened
again, there is no significant delay. I can live with a delay on the
very first opening.
WindsurferLA
After making the changes I described previously in referenced post and
using Thunderbird all morning, Thunderbird continues to open quickly,
and I have rapid access to several years worth of e-mail messages.
There is still a delay when opening the 1500 record address book and
when entering a name in the To: box for the first time. The latter
undoubtedly requires opening the address book even though it may not be
displayed.
clay
...
> I suspect my problem was/is (???) due to the very large number of
> message files that I have accumulated over the years. The problem may
> also be a result of “profiles” being copied from an early version of
> Netscape, to later versions of Netscape, and more recently to
> Thunderbird in addition to having been migrated over three computers as
> I upgraded to faster machines. The “properties” box for the Mail folder
I have 10 years of email in my 'cya' folder(s).
cya is divided into customers and vendor folder with dozens of folders
below them.
I recently restored an archive copy of the same cya folder to Local
Folders to dig out something I deleted and wanted back.
So I'm sitting on thousands of emails total ~ 4 GB between the two copies.
Started with NS4.5x, to NS7, to TB, migrated to new pc, etc.
Access is instant to any one of the folders/files.
3.0 with a gig... same as yours.
It's not a problem of too much mail.
You have Norton Internet Obscurity looking at the mail folder?
I hate that program. The AV it tolerable but the rest is junk. Might
exclude mail and see if that changes anything.
You ever change the setting I suggested over in secnews?
WindsurferLA
I believe what you suggested was the following:
"in config editor (Tools>Options>Advanced, General flag) find:
config.trim_on_minimize and change to false. "
I could not find "config.trim" in the "about.config" window.
There is a "config.use_system_prefs"
and "config.use_system_prefs.accessiblity"
both of which are set to default false.
Thus I have not done what you suggested because I could not find
"config.trim"
Regarding your comment on Norton Internet Security... I use the
anti-virus but not the Norton firewall, because I have a hardware firewall.
clay
firewall.
hmmm... Well, you could right click-add config.trim_on_minimize as a
boolean and set it to 'false', see if it helps.
--
100% money back guarantee!
If at any time you are dissatisfied with the performance of your Mozilla
product, feel free to return it for a complete refund of what you paid
for it...
Barbara
I had a thread called "Address Book Slow" about bugs that created many
unwanted entries in the Address Book, therefore, making it very slow. I
have to run it occasionally as those darn things come back sometimes.
Here's the fix:
Subject: Re: Address book slow
From: Mark Banner <bugz...@nospam.standard8.demon.co.uk>
Date: Sun, 23 Jul 2006 07:55:29 +0100
Newsgroups: mozilla.support.thunderbird
Barbara wrote:
> Test 6: Opened Address Book, memory window went full green opening the Address book (and the time lag of about 14 seconds), then when I typed AB, it took about 2 seconds to find the list.
Now I know this bit, I think you're seeing the effects of bug 230580.
There was a bug in the address book code whereby extra invalid address
books could be saved into preferences accidentally, on loading the
address book processing of the invalid address book setups can cause the
delay that you're seeing.
We've fixed the main part of the bug (where they get created) but
haven't come up with a way of removing the invalid address book items
yet, but you can fix it manually:
1) Close Thunderbird
2) Find your profile folder (http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_Folder)
3) Take a backup copy of prefs.js
4) Open up prefs.js with a text editor.
5) If you look through you'll see lots of entries such as:
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_<nn>.filename", xxx);
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_<nn>.replication.lastChangeNumber",
xxx);
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_<nn>,uri", xxx);
and/or
user_pref("ldap_2.servers.user_directory_<nn>.filename", xxx);
user_pref("ldap_2.servers.user_directory_<nn>.replication.lastChangeNumber",
xxx);
user_pref("ldap_2.servers.user_directory_<nn>,uri", xxx);
Note that <nn> will be a number and that xxx is a value that I can't
remember what it is normally set to.
Anyway, each ldap_2.servers.* set effectively defines an address book.
If the ones above occur, with just 3 entries as I've shown they are
invalid and can slow down the loading of the address book.
So, delete all those triplets similar to the above (this is why I said
to back it up, just in case you take out too much and lose data).
6) Now save prefs.js and open up Thunderbird and then the address book,
it should appear almost straight away now.
Hope this helps
Standard8
Floor
> are you getting same problem while opening Thunderbird in safe mode :
> Start > run, type "thunderbird.exe" -safe-mode
Well, that was the cure; thanks very much!
Is there a how_to that explains all these (and other) startup parameters?
Floor
Floor
> Could be. How many messages do you have stored on the server? How
> responsive is the server?
I use IMAP; message folder on server is about 70 Mb.
Using TB to read headerinfo only. Server is accessed thru private lan
(Postfix icw Dovecot)
Floor
WindsurferLA
To: Barbara re Address book errors - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Thanks for suggestion. I'll try what you suggest, but it will be a day
or two before I'll have an answer, as I need to first build some
confidence with regard to digging into Thunderbird code.
WindsurferLA
I found the following short segments in the prefs.js file that appear to
meet your criteria. Only one was three lines. It is:
user_pref("ldap_2.servers.verisign.csid", "UTF-8");
user_pref("ldap_2.servers.verisign.filename", "verisign.mab");
user_pref("ldap_2.servers.verisign.replication.lastChangeNumber", 0);
user_pref("ldap_2.prefs_migrated", true);
ARE THOSE THE ONES THAT SHOULD BE DELETED?
there is also the short group:
user_pref("ldap_1.directory1.filename", "abook.nab");
user_pref("ldap_1.directory2.filename", "X0OET318.nab");
user_pref("ldap_1.directory3.filename", "X0DTLG5S.nab");
user_pref("ldap_1.directory4.filename", "XV5G5M3Q.nab");
user_pref("ldap_1.directory5.filename", "XUEG7GAU.nab");
user_pref("ldap_1.directory6.filename", "XVJVSD9T.nab");
user_pref("ldap_1.end_of_directories", "12805120");
I assume they are OK.
Barbara
Wind Surfer,
Yours do not appear to be the problem described. If you have the
multiples, you will have bunches of them from what I saw and others
reported. Do a search for "nonascii" in notepad. Here's a selection in
mine today (I need to clean them out again apparently as my prefs file
is double its usual size):
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii.filename", "_nonascii.mab");
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii.replication.lastChangeNumber", 0);
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii.uri",
"moz-abldapdirectory://_nonascii.mab");
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_1.filename", "_nonascii_1.mab");
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_1.replication.lastChangeNumber", 0);
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_1.uri",
"moz-abldapdirectory://_nonascii_1.mab");
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_10.filename", "_nonascii_10.mab");
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_10.replication.lastChangeNumber", 0);
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_10.uri",
"moz-abldapdirectory://_nonascii_10.mab");
Barbara
WindsurferLA
them be deleted? for example
Chris Ilias
> I found at least 100 lines that included "nonascii" . Should all of
> them be deleted? for example
Delete 'em.
--
Chris Ilias
mozilla.test.multimedia moderator
Mozilla links <http://ilias.ca>
(Please do not email me tech support questions)
Nir
> Thunderbird slow to open
> REMAINING PROBLEM – When the messages are listed in the new “Archive
> Sent” folder, the list shows who sent the message rather than to whom
> the message was addressed. HOW DO I CHANGE THE PROPERTIES OF THIS FOLDER
> SO THEY ARE THE SAME AS THE STANDARD “SENT” FOLDER/DIRECTORY?
http://kb.mozillazine.org/Long_time_to_open_address_book
Barbara
Yes, delete all of them.
Barbara
WindsurferLA
Thanks Chris, Barbara, Nir and to all for help..
I deleted 7701 lines / records... ponder it, over seven-thousand seven
hundred lines of inappropriate code for the form:
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_2521.replication.lastChangeNumber", 0);
user_pref("ldap_2.servers._nonascii_2521.uri",
"moz-abldapdirectory://_nonascii_2521.mab");
Time to open address book is now less than five seconds. Sometimes it
seems to open in an instant.
WindsurferLA
Thanks .. it solved problem ... there were 7700 lines of bad code.
WindsurferLA
> _WindsurferLA_ spoke thusly on 03/11/2006 3:02 AM:
>> I found at least 100 lines that included "nonascii" . Should all of
>> them be deleted? for example
>
> Delete 'em.
Barbara
Great news! This bug is listed as fixed in TB 1.5.0.8. :)
For your other issue about changing properties, I believe the only way
is to make the Archive folder(s) as a sub-folder of your regular "Sent
Mail" folder (or whatever is your standard name for that folder).
That's the way mine are set up. You can drag it there.
Otherwise, I believe they will be as you describe because TB thinks
they are other mail folders.
Barbara
WindsurferLA
folder, but obviously some folders believe they are for sent mail and
other for received mail. The property seems to flow down from some
higher level, and not be an integral property of the folder itself. If
you create a sub-folder under sent mail, it will show the addressee, but
when you move it to a location under an inbox, it will show the sender;
the roles flip back and forth depending on the role of the top level
folder.
For the time being, I've changed the properties of all folders so that
they show sender and receiver.
Barbara
WindSurfer,
Exactly. The property probably comes from your setting which folder
to use as your "sent" mail folder. I have a different name on mine
(SentMail) and the properties go with that folder.
It makes sense that people want to see the recipient on sent mail,
and the sender on incoming mail, so the software does that for you.
Barbara