AS the World of Internet and communication is growing there is an emerging need for communication and today email is the best source for efficient communication .To access Email services one needs to acquire an email account and a client to send/ receive those email messages. Now as the needs of users are changing, different types of email clients are emerging gradually.
Email Applications use different file formats to store information database such as E-mail messages, contacts, address etc. Email Clients such as Microsoft Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird, Mac mail use file formats such as PST, MBOX, EMl and MSG to store mail information.
MBOX is one of the most common file format used by email clients such as Mozilla Thunderbird, Mac Mail,Microsoft Entourage , Mail Copa etc.
Email Applications use different file formats to store information database such as E-mail messages, contacts, address etc. Email Clients such as Microsoft Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird, Mac mail use file formats such as PST, MBOX, EMl and MSG to store mail information.
MBOX is one of the most common file format used by email clients such as Mozilla Thunderbird, Mac Mail,Microsoft Entourage , Mail Copa etc.
What is the file format of my Thunderbird e-mail messages?
How do I view Thunderbird mail messages ?
How do I convert Thunderbird emails to Outlook format?
First of all you need to know about MBOX files:
How are MBOX Files stored?
MBOX file contains the message information in textual format and they all are linked together in a single file. The message starts from sender information “From” followed by the details. “From” keyword is marked as the starting of every email message irrespective of its location.
Format variation:
Email clients such as Eudora follow a different pattern. It uses a hybrid format version “mboxo” which stores email addresses using a constant string “??@??” .Usually email clients store the incoming information as it is, but Eudora first separates attachments and then stores them in a separate folder.
How does Email Application compile and read all the messages?
· Email Applications use a reader for scanning the contents and determining what is what and then displaying output in a proper format.
· A reader first scans the whole MBOX file and looks for “FROM_” keyword.
· A “From_ ”keyword is marked a beginning of a message
· The reader scans for sender information along with delivery date/ time details
· It stops scanning the email message only when it encounters another “From_” keyword or hits the bottom of the file
· The information is now ready to display.
Note: Whenever two or more processes try to modify mailbox contents, the files tent to get corrupted easily. To avoid this issue, the file currently in use is first placed in a lock phase and then lock is released when the mailbox is free from other processes.
Where can I find my MBOX files?
Email clients create a profile for single or multiple email accounts. The application stores information such as email messages, contacts, address book and all other information inside “Profile” folder.
The profile folder is usually stored in the path -> (drive: \program files\ Mozilla)
For easy access (Windows Platform):
· Right click on messages -> select open containing folder.
· Go to Start->Run -> Type “%Appdata%”
· Select Roaming -> Thunderbird Profiles
· Sub folders contain the information
Note: The Application folder or “%Appdata%” path is usually kept hidden. To access them, Go to Tools->Folder Options -> View -> select Show Hidden files and Folders and apply the changes.
Linux and UNIX users can find profile folder here:
§ ~/.thunderbird/<Profile name>/
However, if you're using a third party build from Debian or Ubuntu, those builds store your profile folder below:
§ ~/.mozilla-thunderbird<Profile name>.
Note: “~/.thunderbird/” and “~/.mozilla-thunderbird” both are hidden folders. To show hidden files and folders , Go to Nautilus (Gnome desktop's default file browser); choose "View -> Show Hidden Files".
Mac OS X can find profile folder here:
§ ~/Library/Thunderbird/Profiles/<Profile name>/
§ ~/Library/Application Support/Thunderbird/Profiles/<Profile name>/
The tilde character (~) refers to the current user's Home folder, so ~/Library is the /Macintosh HD/Users/<username>/Library folder.
Note: If you are still unable to find your MBOX files or profile folder use this tip:
Try to search for file “abook.mab” as every thunderbird profile contains this file.
Here are few screenshots to help you locate:
Storage of MBOX files in apple mail: The MBOX files are stored inside the email account /subdirectory
Users generally know the application but not the file format , so they ask questions like: For Mozilla Thunderbird: