Author Topic: Moving archived SMTP emails to AOS-5.1 Thunderbird  (Read 1171 times)

Andrew Stephenson

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Moving archived SMTP emails to AOS-5.1 Thunderbird
« on: October 19, 2023, 03:51:43 pm »
I'm still getting my system organised, so this question belongs in the "forward planning" pigeon-hole.

I need to move archived emails, some quite old, to my anticipated AOS-5.1 Thunderbird installation.  These exist as groups of files with names the same as topics covered by SMTP-form sequences within those files.  Eg: "family", "friends", "tax", "new computer".  Call these "content-files".  They may be within directories representing (eg) years: "2022", "2023" &c.  A couple of archives also have files with the same names as the content-files but oddball extensions, whose job seems to be to index the content-files.  But these are unreliable, so basically I only have sets of content-files.

Archive sources: KA9Q package, 1989-2014-ish, created when I was on dial-up with ISP Demon Internet; Apple Powerbook G4, 2005, Thunderbird; Dell Latitude, 2023, Thunderbird.

Thunderbird in both 2005 Apple and 2023 Dell has oddly limited ways of importing archives, none of which comes close to coping with ancient KA9Q stuff.  Is there an easy, tidy and reliable way of putting content-files where AOS-5.1 Thunderbird can find and index them, making them available via Thunderbird?  If the new archives can be in a partition ("E:") reserved for such materials, away from AOS Thunderbird's code, that would be even better.

Dave Yeo

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Re: Moving archived SMTP emails to AOS-5.1 Thunderbird
« Reply #1 on: October 19, 2023, 05:26:51 pm »
Hi Andrew. Have no idea about KA9Q, isn't that a packet radio thing?
Generally, after you install Thunderbird and set it up and back up your profile, you might want to install the "Import Export Tools" addon, use the add-on manager or download it from https://freeshell.de/~kaosmos/index-en.html and drag'n'drop the XPI on the add-ons page.
I have never done this but you should be able to import everything with the Tools-->Import menu
Make frequent backups.

ivan

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Re: Moving archived SMTP emails to AOS-5.1 Thunderbird
« Reply #2 on: October 19, 2023, 07:34:33 pm »
Since these e-mails are archived material it sounds to me that you need a NAS box to store all that information.

A single NAS box with a couple of 4 Tb drives set up as a raid set would keep them safe yet still accessible if needed.  I have a couple of D-Link boxes powered via a UPS that has kept my info safe since their install on my network  during 1990 - OK, i've changed the UPS batteries as necessary since then.
The only problem I had was when I changed from ADSL to Fibre because the fibre box wanted to use the x.x.1.x subnet while my net is on the x.x.0.x subnet, and still is thanks to a little TP-Link box.
 

Neil Waldhauer

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Re: Moving archived SMTP emails to AOS-5.1 Thunderbird
« Reply #3 on: October 20, 2023, 05:09:00 am »
I've used ImportExportTools for this, but mbox and maildir formats have many dialects, so you may wind up needing to clean up your content a little bit. I was able to put a few million messages into Thunderbird at the end.

In the end Thunderbird used about 6 GB of storage for several million messages.
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Andrew Stephenson

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Re: Moving archived SMTP emails to AOS-5.1 Thunderbird
« Reply #4 on: October 20, 2023, 04:27:20 pm »
Thank you, Dave / Ivan / Neil...

Side notes first: KA9Q may indeed be a "packet radio" thing.  The software was supplied free by ISP Demon Internet, back when everyone was a bright-eyed idealist and Demon was two men and a dog operating out of someone's attic.  Later they got fat, sassy and way too important for dial-up customers like me, so they threw me out w/o warning and I had to get acquainted with broadband -- fortunately, around the time my phone company was extending b/band to my village.  Happily my present ISP behave like nice people, so it goes.  I heard somewhere that "KA9Q" was (is?) a radio ham.  Plainly he was (is?) a Good Lad, to release such useful software to the world.

Back at the main topic: thanks for the pointers, held in reserve until my new system has been weaned and learned to walk.  It does mystify me why T/bird doesn't make importing emails from other systems a whole lot easier.  Mind, s/ware like word processers also complicate things with mutually hostile formats.  Perhaps all will come clear when I investigate those extra tools.

Ivan: your archiving setup is impressive but a tad more adult than hoped for.  Some good quality 32GB USB sticks (powered up now and then to keep those scraps of electric charge refreshed) was what I had in mind.  :-)  But soon enough the gear you describe may seem easy-peasy, what every SOHO should have.  So I've made a note.  Ta muchly.

Neil: oh yes, much pruning is planned, trust me.  We forget how much junk we're stashing away, don't we.  (Like right now.)  Maybe years of blather will end up in the bit bucket, unmourned.

Dave Yeo

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Re: Moving archived SMTP emails to AOS-5.1 Thunderbird
« Reply #5 on: October 20, 2023, 05:49:07 pm »
I'd suggest picking up a 1TB USB HD drive (or 2) for backup. I've found sticks too slow compared to a HD and they're fairly inexpensive now.

Andrew Stephenson

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Re: Moving archived SMTP emails to AOS-5.1 Thunderbird
« Reply #6 on: October 21, 2023, 02:30:16 pm »
I'd suggest picking up a 1TB USB HD drive (or 2) for backup. I've found sticks too slow compared to a HD and they're fairly inexpensive now.

Even USB3, now becoming commonplace?  Okay, noted for a hardware upgrade.  I am already thinking in terms of a partition E:, for emails, in a SSD of around half a TB, my needs being modest.  (The manuscript of an average novel fits into Not Very Much -- if you're not using a flabby format like Microspit Word.)

Maybe (re: Neil's point that "...you may wind up needing to clean up your content a little bit...") email archivers would benefit from a header filter that deletes items not one of: Date/time, To, From, Cc, Bcc, Return-receipt-to.  (Did I miss any?)  Storage wasted on (eg) what path the email followed is impressive.

ivan

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Re: Moving archived SMTP emails to AOS-5.1 Thunderbird
« Reply #7 on: October 21, 2023, 03:33:30 pm »
Hi Andrew,

The attached pic is of the partitions on my work machine spread over three drives drives.  Most motherboards will work with several drives attached, in fact I can also attach a couple of USB based disks (they are in usb to sata external hard drive lay flat docking stations which allows me to select which drives I want attached).