--- title: 'Thunderbird 3 Upgrade- Not Such a Smooth Ride!' url: 'https://worldoweb.co.uk/2009/thunderbird-3-upgrade-not-such-a-smooth-ride' markdown: 'https://worldoweb.co.uk/2009/thunderbird-3-upgrade-not-such-a-smooth-ride.md' date: '2009-12-15' description: 'I have been using Thunderbird for the last 2 years and my configuration has always worked well even through the transition of switching from Windows to Linux. I have never had any trouble when updating versions of Firefox so I thought that I wouldn’t have many problems with Thunderbird either. Was it as plain sailing as what I originally thought? The 1s' taxonomy: category: - Software - Linux tag: - Review - Email - Server --- # Thunderbird 3 Upgrade- Not Such a Smooth Ride! Published on December 15, 2009 by Tracy Ridge in [Software](https://worldoweb.co.uk/category/category:Software) [Linux](https://worldoweb.co.uk/category/category:Linux) I have been using Thunderbird for the last 2 years and my configuration has always worked well even through the transition of switching from Windows to Linux. I have never had any trouble when updating versions of Firefox so I thought that I wouldn’t have many problems with Thunderbird either. Was it as plain sailing as what I originally thought? ### The 1st Upgrade My choice of upgrade method was to use the [Ubuntuzilla](https://sourceforge.net/apps/mediawiki/ubuntuzilla/ "Ubuntuzilla") script which is what I use for Firefox. Ubuntuzilla backs up your profile folder before making any changes which is an excellent idea when upgrading to a new version. Once I upgraded I loaded up Thunderbird which started fine but I could not see any emails although it said that I was getting them. I tried creating the accounts again but that would not work, then the options page was stuck and I could not get lightning to integrate well. I decided to roll back to the previous version and start again. ### Roll Back to V2 I went back to v2, via the same Ubuntuzilla script, I deleted the contents of .thunderbird folder in my home folder and replaced it with the backup files from my Thunderbird backup which the Ubuntuzilla script created. I ran the program and copied all of my emails to my local folders to prevent losing them especially as I haven’t got them saved on the server. I saved my contacts to a **.LDIF** file and my calendar to a **.ICS** file so I could easily import them after upgrade. When I had finished exporting I changed the **.thunderbird** to **ThunderbirdBackup** (or similar) and ran the Ubuntuzilla script again. ### 2nd Upgrade I opened the new Thunderbird up and then shut it down again as this creates the new profile. Navigating to my backup I copied the local folders folder from **ThunderbirdBackup/user.default/mail** across to the new **.thunderbird/user.default/Mail**. Setting up new accounts is a breeze now as Thunderbird automatically searches for the email settings. ![Thunderbird email setup](https://worldoweb.co.uk/user/data/wp-content/uploads/accountsetup.jpg "Thunderbird email setup") After 5 minutes I had configured all of my emails, 6 in total and they were all in working order. I installed the latest version of [lightning](https://www.mozilla.org/projects/calendar/lightning/ "Mozilla lightning "), which is the current testing version. I imported my contacts and calendar and all is in good working order. ### Conclusion I have known people that have gone through the installation without any problems but I would definitely recommend you make a backup of your profile before any major upgrade. I would also back up contacts and calendars if used too. However it was definitely worth the hassle as the new version has some excellent features. ### Share [X](https://x.com/intent/tweet?text=Thunderbird%203%20Upgrade-%20Not%20Such%20a%20Smooth%20Ride%21&url=https%3A%2F%2Fworldoweb.co.uk%2F2009%2Fthunderbird-3-upgrade-not-such-a-smooth-ride&via=worldoweb "Share on X") [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fworldoweb.co.uk%2F2009%2Fthunderbird-3-upgrade-not-such-a-smooth-ride "Share on Facebook") [Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Fworldoweb.co.uk%2F2009%2Fthunderbird-3-upgrade-not-such-a-smooth-ride&title=Thunderbird%203%20Upgrade-%20Not%20Such%20a%20Smooth%20Ride%21 "Share on Reddit") [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fworldoweb.co.uk%2F2009%2Fthunderbird-3-upgrade-not-such-a-smooth-ride "Share on LinkedIn") [Bluesky](https://bsky.app/intent/compose?text=Thunderbird%203%20Upgrade-%20Not%20Such%20a%20Smooth%20Ride%21%20https%3A%2F%2Fworldoweb.co.uk%2F2009%2Fthunderbird-3-upgrade-not-such-a-smooth-ride "Share on Bluesky") [Email](mailto:?subject=Thunderbird%203%20Upgrade-%20Not%20Such%20a%20Smooth%20Ride%21&body=https%3A%2F%2Fworldoweb.co.uk%2F2009%2Fthunderbird-3-upgrade-not-such-a-smooth-ride "Share via email") #### Tags [ Review](https://worldoweb.co.uk/tag/tag:Review) [ Email](https://worldoweb.co.uk/tag/tag:Email) [ Server](https://worldoweb.co.uk/tag/tag:Server) ##### Next [ ← Synchronise Your Computers and Your Life! ](https://worldoweb.co.uk/2010/synchronise-your-computers-and-your-life) OR ##### Previous [ Mouse Buttons Not Working With Eclipse or Aptana! → ](https://worldoweb.co.uk/2009/mouse-buttons-not-working-with-eclipse-or-aptana) --- ## Navigation - Next: [Mouse Buttons Not Working With Eclipse or Aptana!](https://worldoweb.co.uk/2009/mouse-buttons-not-working-with-eclipse-or-aptana.md)