>On Tue, 22 Aug 2023 17:07:00 +0100, kim6329@ggg.com wrote:
>> On Tue, 22 Aug 2023 22:32:23 +1200, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid> wrote:
>>> On Tue, 22 Aug 2023 09:19:57 +0100, kim6329@ggg.com wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hi I have 1,500 emails on my btinternet email account.
>>>>
>>>> I can use the program from bt called btcom backup tool.
>>>>
>>>> BUT what format should I use to import into forte agent
>>>>
>>>> When I go to import in agent all I see is TXT , is that the only format that agent takes
>>
>> On Tue, 22 Aug 2023 22:32:23 +1200, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid> wrote:
>>>
>>> Agent imports MBOX format files.
>>> Agent calls this format the "Unix Message format".
>>>
>>> There are several different variants of the MBOX file format.
>>> Agent should be able to successfully import messages from most MBOX
>>> variants.
>>>
>>>
>>> At Agent's import dialog at "File >> Import and Export >> Import Messages",
>>> there are two choices for 'Files of type'
>>> 1) Text Files (*.txt)
>>> 2) All Files (*.*)
>>> But either way, the file _must_ be an MBOX format file.
>>>
>>>
>>> If you want to see the technical details of the import file format,
>>> see this page in the Agent help file:
>>> Help >> Index >> Importing, messages >> Import message File Format
>>>
>>>
>>>> Also if there is another way/program that can export them.
>>>>
>>>> The BT BACKUP TOOL is not cheap
>>>
>>>
>>> This could be a question for BT customers (which I am not one).
>>>
>>>
>>> You can download emails from your BT Inbox into Agent, using the
>>> following settings. But if you have emails in other folders on
>>> the BT mail server, Agent will not get those other emails.
>>>
>>> Host name: mail.btinternet.com
>>> The server requires a secure connection: TICKED
>>> Login Method: Simple username and password
>>> Username: your email address including the @btinternet.com or @btopenworld.com part
>>> Password: your btinternet or btopenworld password
>>> Advanced settings:
>>> 'Use a non-standard POP3 port' should NOT be ticked
>>> 'Port' 995 (this should be automatically set to 995 by ticking 'The server requires a secure connection'.
>>>
>>>
>>> If you need to download emails from your BT Inbox and other folders.
>>> 1. If you use Thunderbird and IMAP with BT, you will be able to
>>> download emails from your BT Inbox and other folders into
>>> Thunderbird.
>>> 2. There is a way to then get those emails from Thunderbird into
>>> Agent.
>>> This would be a lot cheaper than the BT BACKUP TOOL, but some more
>>> work on your part.
>>> Post back if you want to try this.
>>>
>>
>>
>> Thank you Ralph,
>>
>> Thank you for getting back to me and very good detail.
>>
>> Yes please I would like to do the Thunderbird way.
>>
>> Kind Regards
>>
>> Kim
>

On Wed, 23 Aug 2023 21:57:05 +1200, Ralph Fox <-rf-nz-@-.invalid> wrote:

>
> A. For this to work, your BT email account must be accessible by
> email applications. (Thunderbird is an email application.)
> If you have a Basic email account only accessible by web browser,
> you would need to pay BT £7.50/m for Premium Mail.
>
> I do not know how BT.com Backup Tool works. It might have the
> same restriction.
>
>
> B. I will assume you do not have Thunderbird on your computer.
> Thunderbird is an email program which can do both IMAP and POP3.
> Forté Agent can do POP3 but not IMAP.
> To download emails from more folders than your BT Inbox folder,
> we will be using Thunderbird's IMAP capability.
>
>
> C. The first thing to do is to download Thunderbird and install it.
> * If you are running Windows 7 or later, download the latest
> version 115.x.y of Thunderbird from
> <https://www.thunderbird.net/en-GB/thunderbird/all/>
> * If you are running Windows XP or Vista, download Thunderbird
> version 52.9.1 from
> <http://ftp.mozilla.org/pub/thunderbird/releases/52.9.1/win32/>
>
>
> D. When you first start Thunderbird, Thunderbird will ask you to
> set up your email account.
>
> Enter the details for your BT email account and click 'Continue'.
> screen-shot: <http://img4.imagetitan.com/img.php?image=26_nsm9ei_1__set-up-thunderbird-for-bt-interrnet.png>
>
> If you entered your BT email address above, Thunderbird should
> automatically find the correct settings.
> screen-shot: <http://img4.imagetitan.com/img.php?image=26_nsm9ei_2__set-up-thunderbird-for-bt-interrnet.png>
>
> Make sure that IMAP is selected above, not POP3.
> Click 'Done'.
>
> Thunderbird's folders pane should now show your BT email account
> together with all your BT email folders under it. Similar to this.
> screen-shot: <http://img4.imagetitan.com/img.php?image=26_nsm9ei_3__set-up-thunderbird-for-bt-interrnet.png>
>
> IMPORTANT
>
> When using IMAP, whatever you do to an email on your computer is
> also done to the email on the server.
>
> * If you delete an email in an email account folder where the
> email account is using IMAP, the email is also deleted on
> the email server.
> * If you remove an email from an email account folder where
> the email account is using IMAP, the email is also removed
> from the folder on the email server.
>
> This is quite different to an email account using POP3, like
> what Agent uses.
> Be careful that you do not do something which could lose emails
> that you want to keep.
>
>
> D. The next thing to do is to download all your BT emails into
> Thunderbird.
>
> For each folder in your BT email account in Thunderbird,
>
> 1. Right-click on the folder and select 'Properties'
> screen-shot: <http://img4.imagetitan.com/img.php?image=26_nsm9ei_4__download-messages-into-thunderbird.png>
>
> 2. On the 'Retention Policy' tab, make sure 'Don't delete any
> messages' is selected.
> screen-shot: <http://img4.imagetitan.com/img.php?image=26_nsm9ei_5__download-messages-into-thunderbird.png>
>
> 3. On the 'Synchronisation' tab, make sure 'Select this folder
> for offline use' is ticked and click 'Download Now'.
> screen-shot: <http://img4.imagetitan.com/img.php?image=26_nsm9ei_6__download-messages-into-thunderbird.png>
>
>
> E. As for getting these emails from Thunderbird into Agent.
>
> Each email folder in Thunderbird will corresponds to two files on
> your hard drive, a file with no extension and a file with a .msf
> extension.
>
> The file with no extension is an MBOX file which you can try to
> import into Agent. The catch with IMAP is that Thunderbird IMAP
> accounts (only) use a different MBOX format which is not 100%
> compatible with importing into Agent. You can try to import the
> MBOX file directly from an IMAP account into Agent and most emails
> will import correctly, but a few emails may be cut off part way
> through.
>
> The way to get around this is:
> 1. Create a new folder inside "Local Folders". "Local Folders"
> is a Thunderbird special account with no server.
> 2. _Copy_ the emails from the IMAP folder into the folder inside
> "Local Folders".
> *** IMPORTANT *** IMPORTANT *** IMPORTANT ***
> Copy, don't move. If you _move_ the emails out of the IMAP
> account the emails will also be removed on the server.
> You don't want to burn your bridges yet, in case you need to
> try or do something else.
> ************************************************************
> 3. Import the MBOX file for the folder inside "Local Folders".
>
> The MBOX files for "Local Folders" and POP3 accounts can be
> imported into Agent without the problem of some emails being cut
> off part way through.
>
>
> F. To find the two files for a folder so you can import the
> one which is an MBOX file (the file with no extension).
>
> 1. Select the account itself in Thunderbird's folders pane and
> click "Account settings" at right of the right-hand pane.
>
> 2. For "Local Folders", scroll down the Account Settings panel
> to find what it says for "Local Directory".
>
> For an IMAP account, select the Server Settings panel at
> the left and then scroll down the Server Settings panel to
> find what it says for "Local Directory".
>
> 3. If an email folder is directly under the account, the two
> files will be directly inside the local directory.
>
> Note: if the folder is empty then there may be no MBOX file.
>
> 4. Where there is a nested email folder, there will be a hard
> drive folder with a .sbd extension and with the two files
> inside it.
>
>
> One final thing to be aware of. If you delete an email in
> Thunderbird, don't compact the email folder in Thunderbird, and
> then import the email folder's MBOX file into Agent, it is likely
> that the deleted email will be imported into Agent as if it had
> not been deleted.

WOW WOW WOW

Thank you so much Ralph

You have gone to so much detail and took a lot of your time to explain all of this to me.

VERY VERY grateful

I'm going away for our bank holiday till Wed August 31st 2023

So when I get back I will let you know how I get on with it all

Kind Regards

Kim

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