Increase the MB total to extend the space saving threshold for compacting.

go to Tools>Options>Advance>NetworkDiskSpace>Compant All folders to save......

Hi, if I may intrude, I have a similar problem of getting this super annoying message each time I delete a file:

"Do you wish to compact all local and offline folders to save disk space? This will save about 223 MB."

Some here advise to increase the MBs to give more space (I increased it to 100 MB and no relief1). Others, advise to decreasing to 20 MBs (so we feel annoyed enough to compact files) lol.

I'm confused since I have plenty of available space in my disk, especially now that I recently lost all my data to a virus so I'm left with barely 3 GBs while I have approx. 7 GBs or more.

Why I wonder then this complicated thing about saving space??? I prefer not to compact as some people have lost files that way. However, I thought I'd try compacting on my Trash files to see what happens, but when I delete a file in Trash I don't get the message so I can't say "Yes" to compacting.

Any ideas please? Thanks so much!

P.S. I wonder why a small team of good techies don't work on all these things on this program as to complete it so we wouldn't have to waste so much time fixing them. And then, of course, they should charge us to use it and I'd be most happy to pay for a completed program.....  :) Just my 2¢.

i agree with your assessment and i am not a fan of tbird. i now only use tbird for 1 email account. and use opera for all the email accounts that i have. (so you may end doing the same a i have done)

in regards to compacting, it has a valuable purpose but none of us know how the tbird programmers engineered it.

but i/we would think that the programming for "compacting" would not deviate from the standard methodologies and rationales.

on the other hand, other programs can interfere with tbird and cause undesired effects, such as programs running in mem at the same time as tbird and are scanning your emails.

the other problem could be due to a corrupted email, perhaps it was once infected or still is infected, that is archived deep in your email folders.

so all i can do is to provide some basic suggestions like:

1) reinstall t-bird.

2) set the compacting option to like 2 mb which should auto compact as tbird closes and without the annoying question and forcing you to respond.

3) set the cache to something like 350mb, ie not too big and not too small.

4) create a partition on the hard drive and move your email folders to it. this will a) preserve your emails if/when the system partition crashes and b) keeps the fragmentation of the folders to a bare minimum. afterwards point tbird to those email folders.

Thank you databaseben, for your good suggestions and opinions. I made a mistake in leaving WLMail program as it's much more efficient in many ways even though they, as Thunderbird, abandoned their support. But I congratulate with thanks the TB volunteers who help out giving as much support as they can.

You made good suggestions and I'll try them, especially keeping the MBs at 2 so it can compact automatically. I'll set the cache to about 350 MBs too but where can I find it, and is this temporary files? As to creating a partition...I'm too intimidating to enter the computer entrails lol! I don't even know what or where a partition is... I'll probably have to read about it and try it, and since at present I have so many things to fix here, I'm too overwhelmed and unhappy that I spend the better part of the days trying to fix the program instead of doing my work....But if I ever catch up a little, I'd like to try doing it if it will help for a smoother function. Is reinstalling TB easy?

If you happen to be familiar with WLMail, how does it compare with Opera? I googled Opera but funny that most results were on theater opera lol! But I'll look more into it. If sometime you have a minute maybe you could tell me how Opera compares with TB?

It's strange that a site compared Opera, Thunderbird (and don't recall the 3rd one) and TB got the most stars (at least 4) and the 2 others the least. Why is TB so popular, perhaps there isn't any other that's more like WLM?

Thanks so much again!  :o)

P.S. Just changed compact to 2, and saw the cache is 350 MB, but says it's currently using 268 MB space. Should change it to 268?

i used wlm for many years. but when i got word that wlm was going through somekind of change, i said screw it and began looking for alternative email programs. over the years i had used/tested many of the email programs, if not all of them and sometimes switching back and forth between them whenever they became buggy.

I had switched all my email accounts back to tbird and for a while was working ok. but then began getting the compacting issues you are getting. finally, it solved itself by using tbird for only 1 email account and for the rest I settled on opera mail.

so far all email is ok for me. opera has no bells and whistles but has been proven reliable. but since its russian made (i believe), i only use opera for the generic email addresses i have. generic being those that have zero information pertaining to my bank, credit cards, online accounts.

additionally, i only use text modes in email, since html embedded emails are not really that useful and are trojan horses for malware.

so another suggestion from me, is to switch off html in your email programs. and if you are interested in pictures, the email should have a link to view them online.

another suggestion from me is to "never" open any links that end in php and never open any attachments that you are not expecting, even if the attachments are cited to have cute puppies and kittens in them.

in regards to creating partitions on hard disks, this is simply a method to divide the hard drive or ssd into sections. so if your hard disk is labelled as drive c, then creating sections on it will create drive d, e, f's, etc...

its not difficult. but you do have to have the mind set. however, some programs make it easier than what it use to be. aomei program is pretty good for being free.

i wish i could be more helpful with tweaking tbird. it always had potential but never had the support. but i have tried to help my world in other ways. here is one of them

https://pcsmarties.wordpress.com/

in conclusion, i would recommend the setup i have established for myself to others which is use 1) email programs in text modes, 2) use tbird for you main account, 3) use opera for the others and 4) move the email folders into a separate partition

~dbben.

Oh you must know them all by now. That's the way to do it, to find the one that fits our satisfaction, although it's such a chain of changes to make with each switch, that only to think about it makes me sick, lol.

I think you would've liked WLMail as even without a formal support, the same as with TBird, the community is very good and knowledgeable to help us. The reason I left them is (1) all my inquiries about TB were so positive that I really believed it, and (2) I also believed that the problem I had there of creating a chaos on my emails so that I couldn't do my work, was only WLM's defect so when I switched to TB I was most aggravated that it also happened in TB. So, I'll probably end up by going back to WLM, at least I didn't have to struggle with add-ons because they have everything installed right there.

I didn't know Opera was Russian. Well I was told that TB had no whistles and bells and I thought to myself who needs them! But, if the lack of whistles and bells in Opera is the same as in TB....then maybe Opera is not for me either? But I will look into it which I didn't have the chance yet, but I'll do it. You're right that embedded emails may be subject to dangerous viruses, but, in order to have some niceties I'm running that risk; however, I've installed Backup CrashPlan so at least I'll be able to recuperate what I lose. I learned a bitter lesson when a couple of months ago I lost everything to something, not sure whether a virus or not, the co. I took my computer to, could've recuperated them but didn't try. Oh well, that passed. Your suggestions are all excellent and I'll follow them, thank you so much! One can't take enough protection against those cyber burglars!

As to partitions, thanks to you I'll look into that too, perhaps installing the software you mentioned.

Also thank you for the very helpful link to pcsmarties, and I'll keep it to follow your guides....Loved your KISS segment. If you wish it in Spanish: MANTÉNLO SIMPLE ESTÚPIDO. LOL!

I thank you a lot for all your great advice.  :-) P.S......

P.S. I changed the Compact to only 2 but it still continues with the popup message....

1. Thunderbird is not abandoned.

2. Setting lower compact of 2MB will not decrease fragmentation - it will increase it.

3. Neither increasing cache nor reinstalling THunderbird has any impact on compact.

4. Very likely there is a single damaged folder which is causing the problem - we just need to figure out which one. So before we continue, I should ask have you resolved your problem?