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Thunderbird substitutes a file for shortcut

  • 16 replies
  • 2 have this problem
  • 2 views
  • Last reply by Matt

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I have lots of Thunderbird profiles. (email addresses) I need to Bcc different groups. Some time several groups get the same message. So in profile E the account says when you send Bcc this CSV list. So if I write a message in E and add a file it is sent correctly to the Bcc list.

I can repeat the sane for C and A. Fantastic.

In profile A, C & E there is a filter - upon receipt of an email from Z FORWARD the message to Y

The problem In profile Z I write an email To: A ; To: C and To E: and attach a file

profile A, C and E send the message to the Bcc list with a short cut

Help I want to send the file not a shortcut to the Bcc list A, C and E with the message!

I have lots of Thunderbird profiles. (email addresses) I need to Bcc different groups. Some time several groups get the same message. So in profile E the account says when you send Bcc this CSV list. So if I write a message in E and add a file it is sent correctly to the Bcc list. I can repeat the sane for C and A. Fantastic. In profile A, C & E there is a filter - upon receipt of an email from Z FORWARD the message to Y The problem In profile Z I write an email To: A ; To: C and To E: and attach a file profile A, C and E send the message to the Bcc list with a short cut Help I want to send the file not a shortcut to the Bcc list A, C and E with the message!

Chosen solution

Hello Matt & Toad_Hall,

Thanks for all your help.

Following on from the above I looked at the thread and changed;- > mail.imap.mime_parts_on_demand  : true -> false > mail.server.default.mime_parts_on_demand : true -> false In the Config Editor.

So far I have sent 1 email with 100% sucess to 3 other email addresses with large Bcc: CSV lists.

Matt I will remove you from the mailing list.

Alan

Feedback FYI I was not sure where the Config Editor was, Gmail or Thunderbird. I found it. It was trial an error how to change the Config Editor, double click it worked for me.

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All Replies (16)

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Sorry but I'm rather confused with what you are saying. Can you clarify a few points?

Do you really mean 'I have lots of Thunderbird Profiles'? Usually, people only use one Profile. A Profile is not a mail account.

Or do you mean you have one Profile which contains several mail accounts. Each mail account being a separate email address which you refer to as A,C,E and Z. Confirm these are your mail accounts.

re: So in profile E the account says when you send Bcc this CSV list. confirm you mean... When you use mail account A,C, or E email address to send, you add the Mailing List as Bcc, append the file and send and all is ok. It goes out to all the contacts in the Mailing List.

However, you imply something else...'the account says when you send Bcc this CSV list'. As if you only use A, C, and E to specifically send to a Mailing List that has already been set as Bcc.

  • Please show as an image, where the Mailing list as bcc is set in the Account Settings.


re: The problem In profile Z I write an email To: A ; To: C and To E: and attach a file So when you use Z mail account, you are actually sending an email to your own other mail accounts - this sounds odd, so have I misunderstood something?

But let's go with this...you compose an email from mail account Z and attach a file. You send it to yourself - another mail account called eg: A. the filter for Account A says you received from Account Z so Forward to Y.

Is 'Y' another person's email address OR another of your mail accounts. or is 'Y' the Mailing List ?

But after going through the filter, Account A has forwarded the email to the Maling List, but the attached file has now become a link/shortcut and not the actual file.

  • Please post image of the email which shows file attachment as 'shortcut'.


re : file attachment What is this file? what extension does it have? Is file saved on computer? In the Z account, in the 'Sent' copy, is the file attachment still a file or shortcut?


Are you using Mail Merge ?

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Thanks for the reply.

First I got the title wrong, It should be "Thunderbird substitutes a Shortcut for a File".

I have 1 Profile and 12 email accounts. 3 of which are not included below.

I arrived here so I could Bcc a CSV File (list) in Account Settings Copies & Folders. (see image) Most of the email accounts have a Bcc CSV file (list) set as above.

Y and Z are email addresses vis [email protected]. These have no Bcc: and Z is my normal To: Account for a single recipient.

Y is an email  address I use in the Filters. 

There are Conditions which if met vis, if the email is from Z or some other emails; Action: FORWARD the email to Y. In so doing Bcc: the email to the CSV file (list).

All the above works fine.

Attachments

If I author an email in accounts A, C or E and add an attachment the file is sent.

If I author an email in accounts Z and add an attachment the file is sent to any combination of A, C and or E as addressed. However these accounts receive the File and only FORWARD a shortcut.

Files They are most often PDF (.pdf) but can be Word (.doc).

Saving the file on the machine seems not to be an issue;-

   When I send as Z, the files are saved on the machine.
   When another "programmed" email triggers the Filter Conditions the File  is not saved on the machine.

I diagnose the FORWARD command. I thought there was a tick box which selected when forwarding send File or Shortcut, but I can't find one!

I hope that is clear, if not please get back to me.

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Thanks thats more clear. I'm recreating a similar senario as a test to see what I get and then try to recreate your situation.

Please tell me what you have for the following: Send email with pdf attachment from Z to A

  1. In Z account Sent folder - locate sent copy of email and confirm the attachment is correct at initial point of sending.
  2. In A account Inbox folder - Locate received email from Z - and confirm the attachment is correct at point of receiving from Z.
  3. In A account Sent folder - locate sent/forwarded copy of email and confirm the attachment is correct at point of sending as forwarded to Y account.

Modified by Toad-Hall

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Thanks for getting back again,

Sorry about the slide bar, that seemed to come from a TAB press and was resilient.

Ok, it's not that easy to do tests as I can't just keep sending emails.

So I set up 2 of my other accounts [email protected] and another named account 2@***.info. The freezone account now has a filter and FORWARDS email from [email protected] to 2@***.info

It worked correctly! File (pdf) all Bcc: to the list.

So I am now thinking about Gmail. However I have been there some days ago and can't find the tick box to check to send a SHORTCUT instead of a FILE.

Looking at your Questions Z to A works fine with pdf attachment in full. (as above) Questions 1, 2, & 3 I sent the original emails (pdf) several times and once the first time, from an external email address. Thats when I got the replies cant open pdf. I made sure I had the pdf file saved on the machine and used Z to send again, same reply -cant open pdf. Then I sent direct from A, C, E and pdf could be opened.

I did go through and look at these when I composed last time. The file is 122kb and shortcut 27bytes So when it fails it is Gmail and Thunderbird Forwarding.

Just to be clear [email protected] via the filter Forwards to the Bcc list only 27bytes, the shortcut

so 1 is 122Kb 2 is 122Kb 3 is 27bytes

I do hope I am clear again.

Modified by Alan_Builder

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Just sent an email from [email protected] To: [email protected]; [email protected]; e@gmail .com. a,c,e each have their own Bcc: list as above, see attachment above. a,c and e each FORWARD the email message to Y when they receive a message from Z. so A sends the pdf attached file (undetermined length) while c and e send a SHORT CUT.

The pdf file was saved locally

That makes no sense Help

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By short cut, I presume you mean the actual file has been removed and instead it has a link to where the file is stored locally.

This sounds like what occurs when you receive an email with attachment and you want to detach the attachment to save elsewhere on computer. In it's place you get a link - the file attachment looks the same but the size is much smaller as it has become a link instead of the actual file.

I'm trying to determine the point at which the file is detached and by what. So I need to know the following: Clearly A is actually receiving the attachment correctly and is forwarding it.

But is C and E actually receiving the attachment from Z - forget the forwarding for a moment. When C or E receive the email from Z it will be in the C or E Inbox before it is forwarded. Q: Does the email in the C or E Inbox still show a proper attached file at this point - before it is forwarded?


Also do you have any anti-virus/firewall product scanning incoming and/or outgoing mail?

Modified by Toad-Hall

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Short Cut..... Yes that is what I mean. Original file say 200Kbytes file substituted 27Bytes.

Sounds Like..... That is 100% correct, I did say I was looking for a tick box with the "forward" function (to save email size or bandwith (amount of data used) cost etc when chatting over a file)

I can attach a file in Z and send it to any email address correctly. The SENT box contains the file correctly and it can be opened. This is also true for A, C & E

so Z sends to A, C & E in another test I sent to *@freezone.co.uk A, C & E and *@freezone.co.uk all receive the full size file. (A, C & E are @gmail.com) The file can be opened.

Forwarding One test with @freezone sent the full file 200Kbytes One test to A, C & E - A sent undetermined file size, C & E sent the short cut / link. Most sendings by A, C & E all send just the short cut / link when they "forward"

When the "Forward" routine is invoked by the filter the To: and Bcc: emails only get the shortcut / file in some cases.

Z, A, C & E all have the full file in the "IN" folder at all times even after the message has been "forwarded"


I have just checked so I can be 100% sure about the above. The account e@ gmail.com - The last 3 sent emails in SENT box / folder from z (so Forwarded) file 27bytes from z (so Forwarded) file 27bytes (file saved locally not on a networked machine). Authored in e with attached file of 415Kb - attached file; size unknown

I am totally bewildered, flakey software, it sometimes does one thing another time it does something else!


No anti-virus/firewall product scanning incoming and/or outgoing mail other than Win XP. Firewall is on. updates manual (ask), AV none. I sit behind a Smoothwall, (Linux dedicated firewall on one machine) totally strapped down). The PC has O/S, Thunderbird email, Adobi pdf reader, Mozilla Firefox and Libra office. I don't surf on this machine I only look up URLs on my web page to save typing them into my emails. I use this workstation for all non email tasks.

I have a Linux portable, SSD with IMAP email copy of some of the email accounts. I wish to use z to email to A, C & E and not to need the accounts on the portable, same goes for my tablet & smart phone. Other big wigs should also be detected by the filter and warnings sent to A, C & E while I am out or away.

Hope that helps explain why.

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Again thanks for the help. Having a talking head helps, it makes one check.

Sorry some of the data are contradictory, (are not is as data is plural, datum is singular for is).

I have double checked and what I have stated seems true, the problem is variable, not consistent. I have only seen 2 occasions where the file size has not been unknown.

Alan

Modified by Alan_Builder

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Update the last 3 Sent from C@gmail last file Authored in C with attached file of 415Kb - attached file; size unknown 2nd from last Authored in Z 415Kb sent to C which received 415 Kb "forwarded" Short cut / link 27bytes to HBH@gmail and Short cut / link 27bytes to Bcc: CSV list. (file saved locally not on a networked machine). The 3rd from last Authored in Z 415Kb sent to C which received 415 Kb "forwarded" Short cut / link 27bytes to HBH@gmail and Short cut / link 27bytes to Bcc: CSV list.(file saved on a networked machine).

the last 3 Sent from E@gmail last file Authored in E with attached file of 415Kb - attached file; size unknown 2nd from last Authored in Z 415Kb sent to E which received 415 Kb "forwarded" Short cut / link 27bytes to HBH@gmail and Short cut / link 27bytes to Bcc: CSV list. (file saved locally not on a networked machine). The 3rd from last Authored in Z 415Kb sent to E which received 415 Kb "forwarded" Short cut / link 27bytes to HBH@gmail and Short cut / link 27bytes to Bcc: CSV list.(file saved on a networked machine).

the last 3 Sent from A@gmail last file Authored in A with attached file of 415Kb - attached file; size unknown 2nd from last Authored in Z 415Kb sent to A which received 415 Kb "forwarded" Short cut / link 27bytes to HBH@gmail and Short cut / link 27bytes to Bcc: CSV list. (file saved locally not on a networked machine). The 3rd from last Authored in Z 415Kb sent to A which received 415 Kb "forwarded" Short cut / link 27bytes to HBH@gmail and Short cut / link 27bytes to Bcc: CSV list.(file saved on a networked machine).

Modified by Alan_Builder

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Thunderbird Filter, just in case.

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A windows shortcut is 1kb, not 26.

Could you send me one of those email with the 26kb attachment? (forward as an attachment using the message menu so I can see exactly as you do, not wrapped in a forward header.) The email is in my profile here. Please include a link back to this thread as I just loose track of things otherwise, and I do want to keep Toad in the loop if I discover anything.

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Ok I get the attachment as

 --------------090405020007010700070905
Content-Type: application/pdf;
name="150409ShedGarages.pdf"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: base64
Content-Disposition: attachment;
 filename="150409ShedGarages.pdf"
Thisbodypartwillbedownloadedondemand
--------------090405020007010700070905--


So your IMAP account is not downloading the full message before forwarding it is my guess.

I found an old bug that exactly describes the situation. https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=570914

I must admit I have not read it all, but from what I can gather they can not reproduce. So your input may be beneficial.

But all this reading gave me an idea. use the config editor to change the value of mail.imap.fetch_by_chunks to false and see if that helps at all. That will force the download of the attachment as a single chunk. instead of the 100kb bits is normally uses.

Modified by Matt

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This is not so good.

Wrote here, went to Add image. Clicked on image to see if it was readable and All my work here was gone!

Hi Matt, Thanks for the reply.

I don't have "mail.imap.fetch_by_chunks" Added an image it covers mail.imap it covers a through u - there is no f so no fetch

I had a thought last night in bed - could the problem be to do with the size of the Bcc: CSV file? Reason, it seemed to work with just one Bcc: address! Or was that just chance?

I have put the full CSV file back but left you in for now. I am waiting for a file to distribute, and thus test. If that is ok with you? Alan

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I can cope with a few messages.

Add the entry if it is not there. Thunderbird's prefs are a funny thing. Defaults are not there, and preferences that are changed back to default are missing after the next restart.

I really have no understanding of how your CSV files work. But I doubt it is related. A more likely scenario is your computer is to fast and your internet connection to slow. I really think this is a timing issue. Hence the change to chunks. The filter should not get a cance to run until all the message is here.

One other thing that might slow the filter firing is to change it to run after junk classification.

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Chosen Solution

Hello Matt & Toad_Hall,

Thanks for all your help.

Following on from the above I looked at the thread and changed;- > mail.imap.mime_parts_on_demand  : true -> false > mail.server.default.mime_parts_on_demand : true -> false In the Config Editor.

So far I have sent 1 email with 100% sucess to 3 other email addresses with large Bcc: CSV lists.

Matt I will remove you from the mailing list.

Alan

Feedback FYI I was not sure where the Config Editor was, Gmail or Thunderbird. I found it. It was trial an error how to change the Config Editor, double click it worked for me.

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If you had clicked the link in the mail (the words config editor) then there would have been no mystery.

( I was just starting to enjoy the police reports from your corner of Britain.