32 bit vs 64 bit

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RBonner
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Joined: October 19th, 2021, 1:00 pm

32 bit vs 64 bit

Post by RBonner »

Several days ago, my wife complained that the text had disappeared from the icons when she opened an email (reply, reply all, ..... trash). I checked today and discovered that the current release 91.2.1 is the 32 bit version. Her computer is a 64 bit so it appears I need to download the 64 bit version.

I searched for a 64 bit version but when I checked the Download folder couldn't tell for sure if it was 64 bit. Is there any risk in uninstalling the 32 bit version and installing the one I downloaded?
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DanRaisch
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Re: 32 bit vs 64 bit

Post by DanRaisch »

Is there any risk in uninstalling the 32 bit version and installing the one I downloaded?
No risk.
Clear the browser cache and the Windows Temp directory.
Download a new copy of the full installer from http://www.mozillamessaging.com/en-US/thunderbird/all
Delete the directory C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Thunderbird
Run the installer.

Note that your saved messages, address books, settings, passwords, etc (if any) are stored in a different directory from the program files and will not be removed by deleting the directory identified above.
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tanstaafl
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Re: 32 bit vs 64 bit

Post by tanstaafl »

Make certain you install it in the exact same location so that it doesn't complain that you're using a version incompatible with your profile. This is due to version 78 (and later) adding a hashstring in profiles.ini for the profile that specifies the installation directory. You might need to select custom install to choose the old location.

Don't worry about 64-bit programs normally being installed in Program Files instead of Program Files (x86). That's merely a convention.
RBonner
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Joined: October 19th, 2021, 1:00 pm

Re: 32 bit vs 64 bit

Post by RBonner »

Downloaded the installer from the link above, removed the directory indicated, ran the installer and all is well now with the 64 bit version showing as current. Thanks so much.

Another question - if I need to start a new thread for this let me know.

How can I back up Thunderbird? I used MozBack several years ago but that seemed to fall into disrepair. I have searched the issue and found some procedures but they were difficult for me to follow. Thought I might pose the question here on the Thunderbird forum.

Added Note - I do use Macrium Reflect to create an image weekly but I would like to handle Thunderbird separately.
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DanRaisch
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Re: 32 bit vs 64 bit

Post by DanRaisch »

A) This is the Thunderbird forum.
B) Some folks have reported success using Kekasoft Backup and Restore -- https://www.hekasoft.com/hekasoft-backup-restore/ I don't use it myself but have seen more than one reference to it on these forums
C) Another option might be the ImportExportTools NG extension -- https://github.com/thundernest/import-export-tools-ng
RBonner
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Joined: October 19th, 2021, 1:00 pm

Re: 32 bit vs 64 bit

Post by RBonner »

Thanks again. I looked at the Hekasoft and it looks interesting. I may give it a try.
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tanstaafl
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Re: 32 bit vs 64 bit

Post by tanstaafl »

Mozbackup was popular because it was a GUI application that didn't require a user to know where their profile was. However the author stopped maintaining it and it was never updated to deal with the changes in profiles.ini introduced with version 78. So its a poor choice nowadays.

Nowadays its easy to find a profiles location by clicking on the open folder button next to "profile folder" in help-> more troubleshooting information. That will open windows explorer at the current profile and you can just copy&paste the directory somewhere safe if you don't want to use a backup program.

The features of ImportExportTools NG are supposed to be merged into the core code of Thunderbird according to the latest roadmap. It might take a year for that to occur though and the add-on broke for a while when version 91 of Thunderbird was released (takes time for the author to adapt to changes in the API).

Hekasoft seemed good when I tried it. They keep it up to date.
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