Archiving while using IMAP so that messages on server are removed but on local machine are not deleted
i am switching from a POP3 based provider to IMAP. As part of this the pleasingly large server quota I had is now much, much smaller. That means I will now need to archive some stuff and keep on doing it as a routine. However I want to keep my old (archived) messages permanently on my local drives within TB.
It seems that defining the TB Archives location as in the TB LOCAL FOLDERS may do this. But I want to know 2 things which aren't clear in the TB documentation: 1/ Once messages are archived into Local Folders, are they "safe" from IMAP synch deleting them from the local drive if/when I delete them on the IMAP server? (Incidentally, that would seem a reasonable definition of "archived" to me.)
2/ Is there a minimally manual way of moving messages into a local-disk archive in LOCAL FOLDERS? That is, moving messages from the IMAP account folder structure into my hoped for permanent structure on my local drive. And which also doesn't require me to work through N messages in each email folder (where N is a large number) selecting and moving them by hand.
Guidance or additional knowledge appreciated.
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Hi Duncan Thanks for posting as a new question - that earlier discussion you added to was more confusing than helpful.
1/ It depends where you choose to locate your Local Folders. Some people do have Archives in the IMAP folders, and the equivalent Archives show up on the server and in their webmail. What you want to achieve is to make sure Local Folders and Archives are located on a local drive in your device. So when you go to the Thunderbird Local Folders setting, ensure the chosen location is on a local drive, and probably not the same folder structure as your Profile. Then choose to have Archives be in Local Folders. (In my own system it is on a different partition than %appdata%. You can put it almost anywhere that the Thunderbird setting allows.) Then check - move a few emails to the new Local Folder, then look at your IMAP server webmail and make sure the new folder does not appear there.
2/ Minimum way to move messages to Archives is to multiple-select a batch of emails, and press A. However it is not recommended to choose very large batches - this article recommends no more than 2,000. https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/archived-messages (Don't use their example of where to put Local Folders - theirs is on a server, you want Local to be truly local.) Essentially you are moving the emails from their current location to the new location, and permanently deleting them from the original location.
Once you start doing that with an IMAP server - you are deleting them permanently from the server, downloading them to your device, and saving them there. Doing that with large batches is tempting the gremlins of internet connection, server and local device glitches. Be patient! To check that your archived messages can't be synched - make sure the local folders are not copied and visible in your new IMAP webmail.
Also do back up (copy) your profile, before moving large numbers of emails, and before switching to your new provider.
I hope that helps, Agnes
Hi
Just personal - I would create your local folders from the POP account somewhere completely separate from your Profile before changing to IMAP, just for peace of mind. Then once IMAP account is set up, create a test Local Folder within the profile but outside the ImapMail area. Test that works OK, with a few disposable test emails. Check they do disappear from the online webmail. Then copy the older Local Folders to that location.
One other thing - in my own setup with an Exchange server, I do not have the option to 'subscribe' folders. That may be something you will need to learn about - it has to do with IMAP sync. Toad-Hall describes it here https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1262332
Agnes